Lauren London gave a powerful eulogy at the homegoing service for her late boyfriend, Nipsey Hussle, as a part of her “final act of love” on Thursday at the Staples Center in Los Angeles.
The actress began by sharing a text that she sent him the morning of Jan. 21, 2019, while he was sleeping next to her.
“I want you to know I feel real joy in my heart when I’m around you. I feel safe around you,” she read.
“You’ve been my turn up and my church. I wouldn’t want to go through this journey with anyone but you,” she continued, calling him “the greatest boyfriend to me.”
Nipsey, born Ermias Asghedom, was shot and killed on March 31 in front of his store, Marathon Clothing, in South Los Angeles. He was 33.
After reading the text, London told the crowd, “I’ve never felt this type of pain before.”
“His soul was majestic,” she continued, recalling him playing music for their children and lighting sage each morning so they could start their days off right. She told the audience that she felt great pain for Kross, her 2-year-old son with Nipsey, because he “probably won’t remember how much his dad loved him.”
“Ermias said you can’t possess people, you can only experience them. And I’m so grateful I got to experience such a man,” London said. She then shared a message for the city of LA.
“This pain is really ours, we know what Nip meant to us. We lost an incredible soul,” she said before sharing words of comfort. “What’s in you, they can’t take away, and he’s in all of us.”
London ended her eulogy with powerful and emotional words.
“Grief is the final act of love,” she said. “My heart hears you. I feel you everywhere. I’m so grateful that I had you. I love you beyond this Earth. And, until we meet again, the marathon continues.”
Nipsey and London had a blended family, which includes his daughter Emani, her son Kameron and their 2-year-old son Kross. Earlier in the program, London took the stage while their kids, along with his nephew Khalil, gave a tribute. Kameron recalled a dream in which he saw Nipsey.
“I was in paradise, and I was playing in the ocean water when Ermias popped up right behind me. I turned around and I yelled his name and I gave him a hug,” he said. “I realized that Ermias told me what heaven was like — he told me it was paradise.”
Other family members and loved ones, including his mom, Angelique Smith, brother, Samuel Asghedom, and mentor Snoop Dogg, spoke at Nipsey’s farewell. Singers Marsha Ambrosius, Jhené Aiko, Stevie Wonder and Anthony Hamilton also paid tribute to the Grammy-nominated artist through performances. Former President Barack Obama also sent a special message, which was read by Nipsey’s business partner and friend Karen Civil.
Nipsey was known as a pillar in his community who advocated for STEM and other educational programs among black youth, employed formerly convicted people who had trouble getting jobs, revitalized LA neighborhoods with real estate and businesses and was working to end violence in his community. He’s been heralded as a hero.
In the days following his death, the hip-hop community and beyond have been mourning and paying tribute to the “Victory Lap” rapper. LA Councilman Marqueece Harris-Dawson said he would be submitting a motion to name the intersection of Crenshaw Boulevard and Slauson Avenue after the rapper, calling it Ermias “Nipsey Hussle” Asghedom Square. Congress also paid tribute to his work, as Rep. Karen Bass honored Nipsey on the House floor on Wednesday.
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