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Cool C
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Cool C | ||
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 Cool C from the cover of the 1989 "I Gotta Habit" EP
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| Background information | ||
| Birth name | Christopher Roney | |
| Born | December 15, 1969 (age 37) | |
| Origin |  Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA |
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| Genre(s) | Old School rap East Coast hip hop Hardcore rap |
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| Years active | 1987–1996 | |
| Label(s) | Hilltop Records City Beat Records Atlantic Records Philadelphia International Records |
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| Associated acts |
C.E.B. | |
Christopher Roney (born December 15, 1969 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania), known by the stage name Cool C, is an American rapper whose musical career peaked in the late 1980's. He is perhaps best known today for the notoriety surrounding his involvement in the murder of a Philadelphia Police officer in a bank robbery in January 1996. He is currently incarcerated in a Pennsylvania state prison awaiting execution. He was to have been put to death on March 9, 2006, but his execution has been stayed.
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In the mid-1980s, Roney was an original member of the Philadelphia-based Hilltop Hustlers hip hop crew. His 1987 debut single, "Juice Crew Dis," which took aim at the New York-based hip hop crew run by influential rap producer Marley Marl (a group that included heavyweights Kool G. Rap and Big Daddy Kane), gained Roney a good amount of attention and caught a lot of ears.
A pair of 1988 singles for Hilltop and City Beat Records landed Roney a contract with Atlantic Records, where he released two full-length solo albums: his debut I Gotta Habit in 1989 (which included the hits "I Gotta Habit" and "Glamourous Life") and Life in the Ghetto, in 1990.
With the Hustlers, Roney's laid-back vocal stylings are best heard on the 1989 singles "I Gotta Habit" and "Glamorous Life" - the latter of which liberally sampled Sheila E.'s song of the same title.
In 1991, Cool C put his solo career aside to join hardcore rap group C.E.B. (which stood for "Countin' Endless Bank"), with fellow, local Philadelphia rappers Warren McGlone (Steady B) and Ultimate Eaze. The trio released their only album Countin' Endless Bank on Ruffhouse Records in 1993, to disappointing sales and reviews.
On January 2, 1996, during the same time period that he was recording a comeback EP,[1] Roney, along with C.E.B. band mate McGlone, and another local Philadelphia rapper, Mark Canty, attempted a bank robbery at a PNC bank branch in Philadelphia. During the botched heist, Philadelphia Police Officer Lauretha Vaird, who responded to the bank's silent alarm, was shot and killed by Roney.[2][3] As he exited the bank, Roney exchanged fire with another police officer who had also responded to the bank's alarm, before he and Canty dropped their weapons at the scene and fled in a stolen minivan driven by McGlone.[4]
Officer Vaird, an African-American woman and the single mother of two children, was the first female Philadelphia Police officer killed in the line of duty.[5]
Roney was arrested and on October 30, 1996, convicted of the first degree murder of Officer Vaird.[2] At his subsequent sentencing hearing, Cool C was sentenced to death by lethal injection. On January 10, 2006 his death warrant was signed by Pennsylvania Governor Ed Rendell and his execution date was set for March 9, 2006.[6] He was granted a stay of execution from Pennsylvania Judge Gary Glazer on February 1, 2006 until all post-conviction litigation is resolved.[7]
Roney has steadfastly maintained his innocence throughout the trial and appeals process, despite the trial testimony of three eyewitnesses who placed him at the scene of the robbery, as well as ballistic and forensic evidence that linked him to the murder of Officer Vaird.[1][4] He is currently an inmate at Pennsylvania’s State Correctional Institution at Greene.[6]
| Album cover | Album information |
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I Gotta Habit
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Life In The Ghetto
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| Album cover | Album information |
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Countin' Endless Bank
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- ^ a b Philly MC Cool C awaits his fate on death row. XXL Magazine (2006-03-24). Retrieved on 2006-11-01.
- ^ a b Law Enforcement News: Around the Nation - Pennsylvania. John Jay College of Criminal Justice (1996-12-15). Retrieved on 2006-10-28.
- ^ Volk, Steve (2003-09-24). Shoot the Messenger?. Philadelphia Weekly. Retrieved on 2006-10-28.
- ^ a b Newman, Hon. Sandra Schultz (2005-01-20). "Pennsylvania v. Roney". Supreme Court of Pennsylvania J-199-202: pp. 2-5. Retrieved on 2006-11-05.
- ^ Philadelphia police charge rappers with female officer's murder; suspect still at large - alleged accomplice of Warren McGlone and Christopher Roney sought in shooting of city's first Black woman police officer, Lauretha Vaird. Jet Magazine (1996-01-29). Retrieved on 2006-10-28.
- ^ a b Sims, Seandra (2006-01-11). Rapper Cool C's Execution Warrant Signed by PA Governor Ed Rendell. AllHipHop.com. Retrieved on 2006-10-28.
- ^ Strong, Nolan (2006-02-04). Philadelphia Rapper Cool C Granted Temporary Stay Of Execution. AllHipHop.com. Retrieved on 2006-11-01.