Lil Poppa, Rising Jacksonville Rapper, Dies at 25

Janarious Mykel Wheeler, known to the music world as Lil Poppa, was pronounced dead on February 18, 2026 in Fulton County, Georgia, the Fulton County Medical Examiner’s Office confirmed. He was 25 years old, born March 18, 2000 in Jacksonville, Florida. Authorities have said his manner and cause of death are pending further investigation.

The basic facts

Lil Poppa’s death arrived when he was in an active phase of his career. Five days earlier, on February 13, 2026, he released a single titled "Out of Town Bae." His most recent full-length album, Almost Normal Again, was released in August 2025, and he had a scheduled performance in New Orleans in March 2026. The artist had been signed to Yo Gotti’s Collective Music Group since 2022, after an earlier association with Interscope.

For fans and observers, the immediacy of those dates matters. The confirmed time of pronouncement reported by early outlets places the event on February 18, 2026 at about 11:23 a.m. Eastern, and official sources stress that while the death is real, details about cause remain unconfirmed pending the medical examiner’s work.

Who Lil Poppa was, and how he rose

Lil Poppa grew up in Jacksonville, and he began making music in his youth, first in church and then moving into secular songwriting and recording as a teenager. He broke through in 2018 with the independently released single "Purple Hearts," a song that addressed violence he had witnessed and survived, and which helped build his early, devoted audience.

His style was often described as part of a broader ‘‘pain rap’’ movement in the South, where vulnerability about trauma, mental health, and loss is woven into melodic rap. He translated personal hardship into compact, emotional tracks that resonated online, and those streams led to record deals and wider touring opportunities.

Career milestones

Key statistics and recognitions

• Age at death, 25.
• Breakthrough single: "Purple Hearts" (2018).
• Last album: Almost Normal Again (August 2025).
• Final single released: Out of Town Bae (February 13, 2026).

The music and the message

Poppa’s songs frequently blended melody with blunt storytelling. Listeners and reviewers noted how he used first-person detail to make songs about loss and survival feel immediate. Critics and peers praised his ability to convert trauma into songs that were both accessible and unvarnished, and that approach helped him build a loyal base across streaming platforms.

Producers and friends described a work ethic rooted in the grind of independent release, then the pressure and resources of a label environment. He collaborated with peers across the South and beyond, including established and rising artists, and those features expanded his audience.

Reaction from peers, industry and fans

Tributes arrived quickly after the news became public. Social posts from people who knew him and industry figures conveyed shock and grief, and fans filled comment sections with messages of disbelief and mourning. Those reactions underline how tightly connected Poppa’s audience felt to his music, which often dealt with survival, grief, and small moments of hope.

"My little brother is gone," one early collaborator and A&R figure wrote on social media, expressing deep personal loss.

At the same time, responsible outlets and local reporters cautioned readers against circulating unverified speculation about cause of death. As of February 18, 2026, the Fulton County Medical Examiner had not released a cause, and no family representative or label statement offering detail had been made public.

Multiple viewpoints and context

• From friends and collaborators, the dominant feeling is one of personal grief, and an emphasis on remembering his human side, not only his stage persona.
• From critics and culture writers, Poppa’s work is frequently placed in a lineage of Southern artists who make confessional music, and his growth between independent tapes and full-label releases is seen as a marker of artistic progress.
• From public officials and medical sources, the emphasis is on process and procedure, and on waiting for the medical examiner’s report before drawing conclusions.

That last point matters because in the immediate aftermath of any sudden death, online misinformation and rumors can spread quickly, and a careful, factual record depends on official confirmation.

What remains unknown and what to expect next

The Fulton County Medical Examiner’s Office confirmed the death and said the manner and cause are pending investigation. In practical terms, that means a toxicology analysis and other procedures may follow, and an official report could take days to weeks, depending on circumstances. Family representatives, label officials, or law enforcement may make statements later, and credible outlets will report those if and when they arrive.

Until then, verified facts are limited to the medical examiner’s confirmation, the dates of his last releases and shows, and the public statements from people who worked with him. Readers should treat unverified social posts asserting cause or motive as unconfirmed.

Legacy and what his music meant to listeners

Lil Poppa’s catalog is short by the standards of long careers, but it was densely felt by his listeners. His willingness to discuss trauma, his compact melodic hooks, and his lean, story-forward verses won him fans who said his songs helped them through difficult moments. That is the clearest thread of legacy so far: a young artist who turned raw experience into concise, affecting music, and who left behind a body of work that fans will revisit as more details about his life and death emerge.

Discography snapshot

Final note from the reporter

As a journalist, I have drawn only on verifiable, on-the-record confirmations for the central facts here. The Fulton County Medical Examiner’s Office confirmed the death on February 18, 2026, and that confirmation is the anchor point for reporting. Other details, including cause and manner, remain under investigation and should be reported only when official records are released. For now, the focus in the music community is on grief, remembrance, and the work left behind.

— David Anderson