Lil Jon Shares Final Text Messages With Son in Emotional New Memoir

Lil Jon is offering a vulnerable glimpse into his private life, revealing the final text messages exchanged with his son, Nathan Smith, just hours before the young man’s tragic death. The emotional details are featured in the rapper’s upcoming memoir, I Only Shout So You Can Hear Me, which is scheduled for release on Oct. 20.

The exchange captures a poignant moment between father and son as Nathan, who performed under the stage name DJ Young Slade, grappled with the pressures of his music career. In the messages, the 27-year-old opened up about his struggles with anxiety and his fears regarding how his new musical releases would be received by the public.

Lil Jon, born Jonathan Smith, reportedly offered words of encouragement and fatherly concern during the conversation. He told his son that he pushed him only because he wanted to see him overcome his hurdles. In response, Nathan sent a hopeful final vow to his father. “I’m going to stop letting fear hold me back,” Nathan wrote, according to excerpts from the book. The reconciliation of their relationship through these messages has provided a small measure of peace for the family.

Following the exchange, Nathan was scheduled to attend a therapy session that ultimately did not occur. The next day, Lil Jon received the news that his son was missing. Nathan’s body was recovered by divers on Feb. 6 from a pond near his home in Milton, Ga., three days after he was first reported missing. Authorities later determined the cause of death to be an accidental drowning. In a joint statement with Nathan’s mother, Nicole Smith, Lil Jon described their son as an “amazingly talented young man” and a graduate of New York University who was deeply loved by his family.

“He was immensely caring, thoughtful, polite, passionate, and warmhearted,” Lil Jon said in a statement following the tragedy. “We loved Nathan with all of our hearts and are incredibly proud of him.” The 304-page memoir, published by Atria and Black Privilege Publishing, is expected to cover more than just this family tragedy. It will chronicle Lil Jon’s early life in Atlanta, his rise to fame as the pioneer of the “crunk” genre, and his eventual professional reinvention.

The rapper has pledged to keep his son’s legacy alive through future projects and by sharing the lessons learned from their final conversation.