Mexican Rapper Lefty SM Shot Dead in Mexico at 31

Mexican rapper Juan Carlos Sauceda, better known as Lefty SM, was shot dead in Zapopan, Jalisco in Mexico. He was 31 years old.

His record label, Alzada Records, confirmed his death on Sunday morning (Sept. 3).  

“Dear Alzada friends and family, with profound sadness we’re informing you about the death of our brother, Lefty SM, Juan Carlos Sauceda,” wrote the label in a brief post on its Instagram account. “Our love and prayers are with his wife María Isabel and their two daughters.”

According to reports, the artist was attacked near his home in the neighborhood of La Cima in Zapopan, very close to Gaudalajara.

Carlos Félix, PR rep for Alzada Records, confirmed to Billboard Español that Lefty SM was shot twice and declared dead at a local hospital. No additional information was provided.

A formal report from the government of Jalisco is expected during the day.

Just this past Friday, Lefty MS performed at Teatro Metropólitan in Mexico City as a guest of his friend and colleague MC Davo, who was one of the first to publicly comment on his death.  

“How is this possible? I can’t believe it, really, I can’t believe it man,” said Davo in tears in a video posted Sunday morning on his Instagram Stories. Later, he posted a photo of both of them together at the beach: “Just a few hours ago we were enjoying life. May God have you in his glory.”

Lefty SM started in music in 1992 in the world of rap and hip-hop in his native San Luis Río Colorado, Sonora. His career took off in 2017 when he launched his YouTube channel and began to gain a reputation in the Mexican urban scene. He collaborated with stars like Santa Fe Klan, with whom he recorded the tracks “Si me caigo”, “Con los ojos rojos” and “Por mi México,” one of his greatest hits. In fact, on Aug. 25, Lefty MS released a remix of “Por mi México” with Mexican rap stars Santa Fe Klan, Dharius, C-Kan, MC Davo and Neto Peña.

“It’s not possible carnal,” wrote Santa Fe Klan wrote on his Instagram, next to a photo of both of them. “Tell me it’s a lieeeeeeeeeee.”