Chris Lighty memorial draws LL Cool J, Diddy and more

Hip-hop heavyweights gathered in New York on Wednesday to mourn the loss of Chris Lighty, the pioneering talent manager who apparently took his life on Aug. 30.

Stars like LL Cool J, Diddy, Missy Elliot, Q-Tip, 50 Cent and Grandmaster Flash attended services at Manhattan’s Frank E. Campbell funeral home, where Lighty was celebrated before friends and family.

A processional for Lighty, who is survived by wife Veronica and their two children, arrived at the home bearing an oversized floral arrangement of white roses, spelling out “I love you Chris. Violator.”

Violator was Lighty’s multi-media management and marketing company. The late exec was widely credited with bringing hip-hop to the mainstream in the late ‘80s.

“I knew him as ‘Baby Chris’...I still can’t believe it,” Diddy tweeted (warning: strong language) on Friday, along with a photo of the two.

PHOTOS: Celebrities react to Chris Lighty’s death on Twitter

While a medical examiner ruled Lighty’s death a suicide (he died from a gunshot wound to the head), Light’s brother David has suggested otherwise. Forensic examiners agreed to a second autopsy, and the family is currently awaiting the results.

Frank E. Campbell has hosted high-profile memorials for the likes of Aaliyah, Heath Ledger, Notorious B.I.G. and Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis.

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