“Watch Me (Whip/Nae Nae)” rapper Silentó sentenced to 30 years in prison

Silentó, the musician best-know for his 2015 song “Watch Me (Whip/Nae Nae),” was sentenced to 30 years in prison after pleading guilty voluntary manslaughter on Wednesday. Associated Press reports that the 27-year-old artist, whose real name is Ricky Lamar Hawk, pleaded guilty but mentally ill for the 2021 killing of his cousin, Frederick Rooks III.

As part of his plea deal, Hawk pleaded guilty to aggravated assault, possessing a gun while committing a crime, and concealing the death of another. An additional murder charge was dropped by DeKalb County Superior Court Judge Courtney L. Johnson.

Frederick Rooks III was discovered by police with gunshot wounds in his leg and face on January 21, 2021. Security footage showed a white BMW SUV, traceable to Hawk, speeding away shortly after the gunshots were fired. He was arrested and confessed to the killing 10 days later.

In the decade since “Watch Me (Whip/Nae Nae)” was released Hawk has been arrested on violent offense charges while also talking openly about his mental health issues.

In August 2020, Hawk was arrested in Santa Ana, California, on a domestic violence charge after witnesses said he entered a stranger’s home while looking for his girlfriend and swung a hatchet at two people. In October that same year he was arrested for speeding in DeKalb County.

In a 2019 appearance on The Doctors he revealed that he struggled with depression, since he was a child, saying “I don’t know if I can truly be happy. I don’t know if these demons will ever go away.” On the day of his arrest, Hawk’s then-publicist said that he had been “suffering immensely from a series of mental health illnesses” in recent years.