Jewell Caples, better known by her stage name Jewell and was described as the “First Lady of Death Row,” has passed away, People reports. She was 53.
While her cause of death is still unknown, she shared on her Instagram in March that it was discovered that she had “eight pounds of fluid on her heart, lungs, and legs.”
Timothy Beal, Caples' manager confirmed her passing in a statement obtained on Entertainment Tonight on Saturday.
"Jewell was a very special woman with a big heart," the statement read. "She had been a guest at my wedding back on February 12th of this year. We shared many many spiritual conversations. She had transformed her life from hardcore gangsta rap to faith-based gospel singer and songwriter."
"We have been working diligently on her comeback, we wish we could have seen her make her big comeback,” the statement continued. ”I will personally miss her a great deal. Goodbye to a great great friend and a very loving woman ... RIP to her, gone but not forgotten. Her spirit will live on through her music for generations to come. Rest In Peace and Power.”
Noted producer and former Death Row labelmate Daz Dillinger paid tribute to Caples in an Instagram post.
"🌹RIP 🌹REST N PEACE 🌹@iamjewellcaples IM SAD THIS REALLY HURT BUT JEWELLZ PASSED THIS MORNING," his post read. "WOW DEATHROW FOR LIFE. WE GONE MISS HER 🌹🌹🌹 CLASSIC MUSIC 🎼 FAMILY OVER EVERYTHING."
Jewell came to prominence after collaborating with NWA on “I’d Rather F**k You,” and followed Dr. Dre when he launched Death Row records.
On Death Row, she contributed to the Deep Cover soundtrack and appeared on “Let Me Ride” and “B*****s Ain’t S**t” from Dre’s classic album The Chronic. She provided vocals for Snoop Dogg’s “What’s My Name” and “Gin And Juice” from his highly-acclaimed debut Doggystyle.
Jewell also appeared on The Dogg Pound’s “What Would You Do?,” Snoop’s “Murder Was The Case,” and Tupac's " Thug Passion."
Caples also claimed she sang on Bone Thugs-N-Harmony’s “Foe Tha Love Of $” although Shatasha Williams was given credit.
“Mostly every song I ever did, I wrote my own lyrics [and] it was a hit,” she said in an interview in 2021.
As a solo artist, Caples had a hit single in 1995 covering Shirley Brown's "Woman to Woman," which reached No. 72 on the Billboard Top 100 and No. 16 on the Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop songs chart
After leaving the music industry, she co-wrote and self-published her memoir My Blood My Sweat My Tears in 2011 and recently appeared on The Art Of Dialogue YouTube channel to discuss her life and career.
Most recently, she was promoting her new podcast titled The Jewell Xperience Broadcast.
We extend our prayers and deepest condolences to the family and friends of Jewel Caples.
