A young boy’s small hand lies on his father’s casket, a moment whose photo has gone viral and taken the social media world by storm. The boy belonged to Derrell “Youngin” Givens, a 28-year-old rapper from Chicago who was killed in a shooting on May 10, 2025. His funeral, a few days after, was a mournful occasion, with visitors reflecting upon the ongoing violence in O’Block, a part of Chicago. The photo of Youngin’s boy, too young to understand the magnitude of his loss, has become a moving representation of the human losses behind the city’s statistics, evoking broad sympathy over the internet.
Youngin was an emerging figure in the Chicago drill music scene, a movement originating on the city’s South Side and which tends to reflect the brutal conditions of street life. From O’Block, an area affiliated with the Black Disciples gang, Youngin’s music was raw and real, and he attracted a following in both the city and elsewhere. A featured artist with King Von, a leading O’Block rapper murdered in 2020, recordings like “Trust” and “No Pull” featured his ability, although his life was ended before he could reach his potential. His death has been a loss to the drill world and has elicited tributes from both his followers and industry peers.
Youngin and 31-year-old O’Block rapper Rachaun “Munna Duke” Vance both were fatally shot outside a tavern in Edgewater’s part of Chicago on May 10, 2025. The attack happened at about 1:20 a.m. on the 6300 block of North Broadway. Armed shooters leaped from a car and fired at least 50 rounds at close proximity. A third man, 36, was injured but survived. Youngin and Munna Duke both perished at local hospitals. No one has been detained, and the motive was not clear, though speculation focuses on gang rivalries or personal vendettas. The brazenness of the attack, the getaway car reportedly being burned to incinerate the evidence, has raised fears of rising violence in the city.
Youngin’s son’s photo at the funeral has highlighted the tragic effect of violence on children. Social media has been filled with comments, many of which conveyed sympathy for the boy now forced to live life without a father. One commenter posted,
“The real victims are the children left behind. We need to do something to keep them safe and allow them to have a better life”.
Another stated,
“To see a child endure this is heartbreaking. The community has to step it up to take care of him.”
These words highlight the intergenerational effect of violence, with countless children of O’Block and neighborhoods like it living fatherless because of the perpetual strife.
Chicago’s South Side, where O’Block stands, has a reputation for having connections to the Black Disciples gang and its affiliation with the drill music movement made famous by King Von and Chief Keef. 6400 block of South King Drive, the block the area is centered around, has been a site of gang-related violence, and much of it attributed to rival groups to the Gangster Disciples. Drill music, as a form of expression, has been decried as glorifying violence, but it is something born from the lived reality of the musicians. Youngin and Munna Duke’s death has reopened discussions of gang culture’s hold and the difficulty of escaping it.
Amid the violence, organizations like Project H.O.O.D. (Helping Others Obtain Destiny), led by Pastor Corey Brooks, are working to transform communities like Woodlawn, adjacent to O’Block. The organization employs former gang members to mediate conflicts and provide trauma counseling, aiming to prevent retaliatory shootings.
homicides in Woodlawn have dropped 52% over the past decade, with a 35% decrease in 2022 alone, while neighboring South Shore saw an 11% increase. Project H.O.O.D.’s initiatives, including job training and youth programs, offer a model for reducing violence, though challenges persist in areas like O’Block.
