A Canadian rapper known as Jon James, real name Jon James McMurray, was killed in an airplane stunt that should have been included in his new music video.
The rapper, a former professional skier who had retired because of a broken back injury, had been rehearsing for the stunt for months. It involved him walking on the wing of a small Cessna plane while rapping, before jumping off.
He had been documenting rehearsals for the stunt on his social media, and he was clearly enthusiastic about it. McMurray was an adrenaline junkie, but he was very careful in all stages of planning and didn’t cut corners when it came to his and his crew’s safety.
As his team says in a statement to CNN, it wasn’t that which killed him, but an inevitable accident. During the stunt, he may have walked too far off on the wing plane, which made the aircraft spin out of control. Or the pilot lost control of it for some other reason. The bottom line is that it went spiraling downwards and McMurray held onto the wing for too long, which means that, when he did let go, he didn’t have enough time to deploy his parachute.
“He impacted and died instantly,” his team says in the statement. The pilot eventually managed to get the plane flying straight again and no one else was injured.
The rapper’s body was recovered from a field nearby, with the farmer telling the media she had heard the plane flying low over houses some moments before.
McMurray was only 34 years old and he was married. His team tells the media that he knew the risks when he agreed to include this stunt in his next video, and that he “shone” bright during his short time with us.
He had been documenting rehearsals for the stunt on his social media, and he was clearly enthusiastic about it. McMurray was an adrenaline junkie, but he was very careful in all stages of planning and didn’t cut corners when it came to his and his crew’s safety.
As his team says in a statement to CNN, it wasn’t that which killed him, but an inevitable accident. During the stunt, he may have walked too far off on the wing plane, which made the aircraft spin out of control. Or the pilot lost control of it for some other reason. The bottom line is that it went spiraling downwards and McMurray held onto the wing for too long, which means that, when he did let go, he didn’t have enough time to deploy his parachute.
“He impacted and died instantly,” his team says in the statement. The pilot eventually managed to get the plane flying straight again and no one else was injured.
The rapper’s body was recovered from a field nearby, with the farmer telling the media she had heard the plane flying low over houses some moments before.
McMurray was only 34 years old and he was married. His team tells the media that he knew the risks when he agreed to include this stunt in his next video, and that he “shone” bright during his short time with us.