Quavo Says Death of Migos Groupmate Takeoff ‘Eased’ His ‘Friction’ with Offset: ‘It Can’t Get No Tougher Than That’

In a recent sit-down with Complex, Quavo reflected on how the loss of his nephew and fellow Migos member Takeoff altered the strained dynamic he had with Offset. According to Quavo, the tragedy dissolved much of the lingering bitterness between them. "I feel like it eased it a little bit," he said. "It threw out all the things that I was upset about or that we had friction about. I don't know on his end; I'm just talking for me." That emotional reset, as Quavo described it, allowed him to reach a point of acceptance: "All right, cool. Whatever. Whatever you're going through, I go through it with you. And whatever I'm going through, I hope you understand what I'm going through."

Takeoff, whose birth name was Kirshnik Khari Ball, was fatally shot in November 2022 at a Houston bowling alley. He was 28. Alongside Quavo and Offset, he grew up in Atlanta, and the three formed Migos in 2011. Their breakthrough mixtape, Juung Season, helped define the trap sound that would dominate the 2010s, propelling the group to multiple platinum records and chart-topping singles before their internal disagreements became public. Takeoff was the first of the group's original members to die. His killing also highlighted a troubling trend in hip-hop: he was among a number of high-profile rappers whose lives were ended by gun violence in recent years, a pattern that has intensified discussions about artist security and conflict mediation within the music industry.

Quavo also explained how the experience hardened him on an emotional level. "As long as I understand whatever everybody be going through and that I can't control or can't be upset or emotional about… that's where that chrome outer layer comes from," he said. "That part of me losing my brother and understanding that it can't get no tougher than that. So, whatever that's in front of me that I got to deal with to make my life more easier… and to give these fans what they want, I'm going to do it."

In 2024, Quavo was honored with Variety's Hitmakers Humanitarian of the Year award for his anti-gun-violence efforts. After Takeoff's death, he launched the Rocket Foundation in 2022, an organization committed to carrying on his late nephew's legacy and combating gun violence in Atlanta and elsewhere. "I felt like it's a crisis that goes on everywhere, and me being a figure and a person who speaks to the youth, I feel like turning my tragedy into triumph," Quavo told Variety. The foundation has since partnered with local Atlanta organizations to fund conflict-resolution programs and support families of victims, channeling Quavo's personal mourning into broader community change. Data from the Gun Violence Archive shows that firearms remain the leading cause of death for children and teenagers in the United States, a fact that lends further urgency to the foundation's prevention-focused work.