Lil Jon is opening up about one of the most painful experiences a parent can endure, sharing intimate details about the loss of his 27-year-old son, Nathan, and the final conversation that has brought him some peace.
During a deeply emotional appearance on CNN’s “All There Is with Anderson Cooper” podcast, released Friday, Nov. 6, the rapper and producer reflected on the accidental drowning of his son, a DJ known professionally as DJ Young Slade, in February. He also spoke candidly about the challenges of grieving while trying to remain strong for his family.
One of the most poignant moments came as Lil Jon recalled a conversation with Nathan just before his disappearance. The two had discussed the young man’s ongoing health struggles, and Lil Jon admitted he had been frustrated that his son hadn’t followed through on some of his suggestions for relief.
After discussing the exchange with his therapist, the rapper realized Nathan needed to feel that his efforts were being acknowledged. He called his son back to apologize.
“I said, I’m sorry. Said, I see you and I hear you,” Lil Jon recalled, explaining that he wanted Nathan to know he recognized how hard he was trying.
It would be their final conversation.
Lil Jon later learned from Nathan’s best friend that his son had been overjoyed by the phone call and had excitedly told his friend about his father’s apology.
“So it makes me feel at peace to know that he left feeling loved by me,” Lil Jon said.
Nathan went missing near his Georgia home in February and was subsequently found in a pond. Lil Jon told Cooper that his son’s death was ruled an accidental drowning, emphasizing that it was not a suicide.
The days leading up to the discovery were agonizing. Lil Jon recalled visiting Nathan’s home after learning he was missing and feeling that something was terribly wrong.
When authorities eventually recovered his son’s body, the loss was overwhelming.
“I always thought that he would be burying me,” he told Cooper.
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The rapper described the difficulty of making funeral arrangements for his only son, including choosing a casket and serving as a pallbearer. He explained that carrying Nathan to his final resting place was an extension of the responsibility he had felt as a father since the day his son was born.
In the months following Nathan’s death, Lil Jon found himself navigating grief while preparing for a world tour with Pitbull. Performing offered a welcome connection to audiences and an opportunity to experience joy, but it also became a way to avoid confronting his pain.
During a recent EMDR therapy session, he said he finally recognized how much he had been holding inside.
As the oldest child in his family, Lil Jon had grown up believing it was his responsibility to be the strong one, a role he continued to play through the deaths of his parents and eventually his son.
“I kept myself so busy this year that I didn’t let myself mourn,” he admitted.
That realization has changed the way he approaches grief and the example he wants to set for his young daughter. Rather than allowing sadness to define her memories of him, he said he wants her to see him laughing, loving her mother and embracing life.
Throughout the conversation, Lil Jon also shared the many ways he continues to honor Nathan, whose love of music began in childhood. He recalled enrolling his son in DJ lessons at age 11 after recognizing his natural talent and watching him develop into an artist in his own right.
Today, Nathan remains part of every performance.
Lil Jon wears a shirt bearing his son’s logo, carries a commemorative coin engraved with their pictures and speaks to Nathan before taking the stage. He also got a tattoo of his son’s signature, mirroring a tattoo Nathan had gotten of his father’s autograph.
The rapper said those rituals help him maintain a connection to his son, even as he continues to struggle with the permanence of the loss.
“It’s not hard to live. It’s just hard to live without,” he told Cooper.
The conversation also touched on another unexpected source of grief. While researching his family history for his memoir, “I Only Shout So You Can Hear Me,” released Oct. 20 through Black Privilege Publishing, Lil Jon discovered at age 53 that the man who raised him was not his biological father. Both men have since died, leaving him unable to ask the questions that surfaced after the revelation.
He described the discovery as mourning the life he had believed he knew, another experience that has forced him to reconsider what it means to process loss.
Despite everything he has endured, Lil Jon said sharing his experiences has become part of his purpose. After spending much of his career protecting his privacy, he now hopes that speaking openly about grief can help others who are struggling.
His message is simple: Don’t suppress the pain, and don’t stop living.
“It’s okay to cry,” he said. “It’s okay to let whatever you’re feeling come out.”
“We have to keep living, even though we’ve lost, we have to keep living for them.”
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