Who was Lil Poppa? Jacksonville rapper Janarious Mykel Wheeler dead at 25
Jacksonville-born rapper Lil Poppa, known for turning unvarnished personal testimony into a rapidly rising national career, has died at age 25.
The Fulton County Medical Examiner’s Office in Georgia confirmed to TMZ that he was pronounced dead at 11:23 am ET on Wednesday, 18 February 2026. Officials have not yet released a cause of death. The confirmation put to rest hours of confusion that followed early social-media reports.
Wheeler, who built a substantial following on the strength of deeply autobiographical music, had released a new single just five days earlier and had an upcoming show scheduled in New Orleans. His death interrupted a stretch of clear momentum for an artist whose audience and output were both expanding.
Death confirmed, cause pending
Authorities verified the death of Janarious Mykel Wheeler – better known as Lil Poppa – but emphasised that no cause has been formally established. While unverified posts across social media platforms speculated about suicide, none of those claims originated from law enforcement, the Fulton County Medical Examiner, his label, or any family representative.
As of Wednesday, no public comments have been issued by his label CMG or by relatives. Fans have noted his previous openness about living with sickle cell disease, a condition he explored in his documentary ‘Blessed, I Guess’, but officials have not linked the illness to his death.
How the news emerged
The first reports appeared on community-focused Jacksonville Instagram pages, citing individuals close to the family. Within two hours, the news had been independently verified by TMZ, prompting widespread media pickup by outlets from Complex to major radio networks.
Artists from his hometown reacted quickly, including Jacksonville rapper Trap Beckham, who wrote: "This one hit different. RIP to the chosen one. The city is truly not the same. Lil Poppa been a real one – a talent that most of seen from the jump. Duval Legend."
Who was Lil Poppa?
Born 18 March 2000, Wheeler began rapping in church as a child and built his first home studio at 12. By his mid-teens he was self-releasing music, and in 2018 his breakout track “‘Purple Hearts’” – a raw account of a shooting that killed two close friends – pushed him onto the national stage.
The song caught the attention of Chicago star Polo G, who invited him on tour and collaborated on “Eternal Living,” now one of the most streamed tracks in his catalogue.
His early ‘Under Investigation’ mixtapes expanded his regional following, eventually leading to a signing with CMG in 2022, distributed through Interscope Records.
Catalogue and career momentum
Following his CMG signing, Lil Poppa released a steady run of albums – ‘Heavy Is The Head’ (2022), ‘Half Man, Half Vamp’ (2023), ‘WEE ARE WHO WE ARE’ (2024), and ‘Almost Normal Again’ (2025). The latter marked his strongest critical reception and supported his largest national tour to date.
His final release during his lifetime, ‘Out of Town Bae,’ arrived just days before his death and was intended to preview a forthcoming spring project. A show at the Fillmore New Orleans was scheduled for 21 March.
Across 146 released tracks, Wheeler accumulated more than 247 million Spotify streams, including major collaborations with Yo Gotti, Moneybagg Yo, and others.
Lil Poppa net worth
At 25, Lil Poppa was in one of the most lucrative years of his career. Estimates place his net worth between $1 million and $5 million, with the most consistent figures landing in the $1.5 million to $3 million range. His income was driven by streaming, a high-traffic YouTube channel totalling more than 602 million views, a successful 20-city tour in 2025, merchandise sales, brand partnerships, and label support.
His Spotify catalogue generated an estimated 184,000 daily streams, and industry benchmarks indicate he had only begun reaching the upper tier of his earning potential.