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Wednesday, July 21, 2010

11 Year Old Rapper Hangs Himself

Shauntay Phillips had a way with words. The 11-year-old loved to write uplifting lyrics."He always talked about the Lord, and all of his raps were about the Lord," said Timeka McCullough-Harris, Shauntay's aunt.He was described as polite, sensitive and a great student, and to his family in Clarksville, Shauntay's smile seemed to signal happiness. Never did they think he'd even consider taking his own life, they said."This is something that was shock to us all," McCullough-Harris said.Last Thursday, Shauntay had been swimming in the neighborhood with friends. His brother said that one of the kids started yelling and cussing at Shauntay and that Shauntay was embarrassed because he thought all of the kids were laughing at him."He was just so upset, and then he walked up the hill," said Shauntay's brother, Antonio McCullough.Minutes later, Shauntay's father found the boy dead in his bedroom. He hanged himself, family members said."I thought it was my fault because I wasn't at the house when he did it, and thought I was the reason why he did it," Antonio said.Shauntay's family, teachers and friends in Clarksville said goodbye Wednesday. His aunt read the final rhyme he'd written."God is my favorite lord. God is my favorite thing. I'm about to go to church to tell the pastor I'm about to sing," McCullough-Harris read.His family said they wanted to share their story in hopes of sending a message to parents to ask more questions and get more involved in their children's lives, even if nothing seems wrong."Try to teach your children that other children have feelings and that it affects people different," said Shauntay's aunt.Shauntay's family said he was most proud of being able to go to a studio and record one of the Christian raps he'd written.

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