XXXTentacion death: Chart-topping rapper shot dead while shopping, aged 20

Multiple shots were thought to have been fired by gunmen as the rapper drove out of a motorcycle dealer where he had been shopping

One of the world's most popular young rappers, XXXTentacion, has been shot dead in south Florida.

The local Broward Sheriff's Office initially confirmed that it was "currently working an incident regarding a shooting at 3671 N. Dixie Hwy., Deerfield Beach.

"PIO [public information officer] headed to scene. Dispatchers received a call of a shooting at 3:57 p.m. An adult male victim was transported to an area hospital."

A few minutes later it added: "The adult male that was taken to the hospital has been pronounced dead." Then: "The adult male victim has been confirmed as 20-year-oldd Jahseh Onfroy aka rapper XXXTentacion."

Onfroy stands for a police mugshot after being charged with seven new felonies stemming from a 2016 domestic violence case on 15 December, 2017 in Miami, Florida (Photo: Miami Dade County Corrections/Getty Images) (Getty Images)

Additional police dispatch audio stated that there were "multiple shots" fired in what was a "possible drive-by", describing the victim as a "level 1" trauma patient with a "gunshot wound" and the suspects as two black males wearing hoodies and one of them a red mask. Witnesses allegedly told police a Louis Vuitton bag was taken from Onfroy's vehicle.

Footage from the scene of the crime was posted on social media, showing the rapper lying lifeless in the driver's seat of his car.

Just minutes before he was killed, X wrote in an Instagram Story: "Planning a charity event for this weekend Florida!"

XXXTentacion's music has seen over a billion plays on Spotify, his most recent album, ?, debuting at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 album chart. The Weeknd and Kendrick Lamar are among the artists to have praised his music.

X established a vast following thanks to his emotionally raw lyrics, which tackled his suicidal thoughts and battle with depression head-on. He was a consistently controversial figure in the genre due to multiple allegations of domestic abuse levelled against him.

Success came to him young but it felt as though he was yet to reach his potential as an artist, his mixtapes and albums growing more assured and polished with each one that came out.

The Independent has contacted a rep for XXXTentacion for comment.