ASAP Yams’ death ruled accidental drug overdose

The unexpected death of music manager ASAP Yams shook the New York hip-hop world in January. Now there’s an official cause of death: an accidental drug overdose.

According to a statement from the office of the New York City chief medical examiner released to the New York Times, the death of the hip-hop personality and label co-owner born Steven Rodriguez was ruled an accidental drug intoxication. Rodriguez had opiates and benzodiazepine in his system at the time of death, leading the medical examiner to rule it an acute mixed drug intoxication death.

Messages left for the medical examiner’s office were not immediately returned.

Rodriguez was found unresponsive on Jan. 18 in his Brooklyn apartment and was taken to nearby Woodhull Medical Center, where he died. He was 26.

Rodriguez was an unusual figure in contemporary hip-hop, a business visionary and idea man who helped steer the careers of major acts like ASAP Rocky and ASAP Ferg. Yams established the crew ASAP Mob that grew to include more than a dozen rappers, fashion designers and music producers.

“We want the best from everybody,” Yams told public radio in 2014. “I want everybody to outshine each other. I want the only competition in this rap game to be between them.... We are all our worst enemies in this competition in the game of rap.”

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