Up for today is the second installment of the God bless the Dead-series. Today’s feature is H-Town Legend and original Screwed Up Click Member Fat Pat.
2. Fat Pat – All Eyez on the Fat Gangster
You have educated, well spoken gangsters that seem too reasonable to be G and then you got the hyper-sympathic funny Go-to-Guys like Fat Pat. Born in Houston, on December 4, 1970, Patrick Lamark Hawkins, was an original member of DJ Screw’s Screwed Up Click and Dead End Alliance. But even more so a certified street legend in Houston’s infamous South Park-neighborhood.
Trying to touch on Pat’s legacy is almost impossible to describe with words.
Pat wasn’t most notable for his music, but more for his personality, just being a real street dude, staying real to the game and it’s rules. His grind, his style, his swag – that’s what made him such an important figure for Houston’s diverse scene.
A lot of rumors surround the death of Patrick Hawkins, most of them connected to the drug game – they all proved to be wrong, when DJ Screw shed light on the mystery, when bein‘ interviewed back in 1999.
Pat in fact was killed by a Austin, Texas drug lord named Weasel, being part-time concert promoter. One day Pat and Screw performed in Austin. Weasel video taped the show and sold bootlegs of it on the streets. When Pat confronted him with the claim, he denied it. Pat wasn’t too pleased with that and the two got into a bad argument which was solved without bad results though. Soon after Weasel got robbed and thought Fat Pat was to be blamed for it. To „solve“ the problem, Weasel invited Pat over to his place in Austin, claiming he wanted to pay him for the tapes. Well, things turned out different and Pat got shot by Weasel over the robbery.
And once again a key figure got killed, for keeping it real. For going there without no protection. Like a man. Getting killed for it – within the blink of an eye.
The saddest thing about it all is, that he never saw the big success of his debut-album Ghetto Dreams, as he was killed February 3, 1998. Ghetto Dreams was released March 17, 1998. The album achieved to reach the No. 5-spot on the US Rap-Charts. Moving 20.000 units in it’s first week, eventually reaching sales of 60.000 units. Independently.
Long gone, never forgotten – we mourn him with his own song – we miss our G!