Mount Vernon honours late Jamaican born rapper Heavy D with sculpture

The Mount Vernon community in the US yesterday unveiled a new sculpture that captures the legacy of Jamaican born rapper and actor Heavy D.

Heavy D, whose real name was Dwight Arrington Myers, moved to Mount Vernon with his family when he was younger and discovered rap early on.

Brooklyn-based artist Eto Otitgbe was joined by Heavy D's family and Mayor Shawyn Patterson-Howard to unveil his sculpture in celebration of the 50th anniversary of hip-hop and the rapper's influence on the genre.

Otitgbe titled his work "Peaceful Journey" after one of Heavy D's songs that the artist said, offers a thoughtful and complex picture of the lives of Black and Brown people in places like Mount Vernon, the Bronx or Los Angeles.

The popular 90s rapper and actor died suddenly at the age of 44 from complications of pneumonia and a blood clot in his lung.