Chi Modu dies at 54

Nigeria-born photographer Chi Modu, who captured iconic images of some of the greatest figures in U.S. hip hop in the 1990s, has died.

He was aged 54.

Modu’s death was announced Saturday afternoon on his Instagram account.

‘Our hearts are broken… We continue the fight,’ read a post featuring a photo of the late photographer and a signed obituary (1966-2021).

The family requested for privacy at this time and did not reveal the nature of his death.

Modu was born in Nigeria on 7 July 1966 in Arondizuogu in Imo State.

Three years after his birth, he and his family moved the United States.

According to History Makers, Modu graduated from the Lawrenceville School in Princeton, New Jersey in 1984.

He earned his B.S. degree in economics from The State University of New Jersey, Rutgers in 1989.

Modu also received a certificate in photojournalism and documentary photography from the International Center of Photography in New York, New York in 1992.