Rapper Dolla killed in Los Angeles

Hip hop's troubled relationship with gun crime is under the spotlight once again after up-and-coming rap star Dolla was shot dead in a shopping mall in Los Angeles.

The death is sure to reignite the debate over violence and urban music in the States. The latest killing comes 12 years after the murders of rap legends Biggie Smalls and Tupac Shakur whose deaths shocked the rap community, but who are just two names on a long list of artists to be gunned down.

Dolla, a 21-year-old from Atlanta whose real name was Roderick Anthony Burton II, had recorded with well-known stars T-Pain and Akon. He was shot in the head in broad daylight at the Beverly Center.

Police said he was attacked at the entrance to the shopping mall  just after 3pm. The victim was waiting in the valet area with fellow rapper DJ Shabbazz. He was taken to the nearby Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, but died soon afterwards.

There were reports that two men were seen running from the scene, and a grey Mercedes SUV was later spotted heading towards Los Angeles airport. A 20-year-old man was subsequently arrested at the airport with a handgun in his possession. He has been named in some websites as 20-year-old Aubrey Berry, who was known to the victim.

Dolla had worked on the soundtrack for the 2006 dance film Step Up and was signed to Akon's Konvict Muzik label. He had released two singles with Akon, called Like This and She's So Fine.

Born in Chicago, Dolla's family relocated to Los Angeles and then Atlanta after his father shot himself in front of the five-year-old rapper and his sister.

Burton began performing in local showcases at age 12 with his group, Da Razkals Cru. The up-and-coming rapper had flown into Los Angeles earlier in the morning to work on his debut album, which was scheduled to be released on Jive Records this summer.

Dolla signed up to the social networking site Twitter just hours before his death, and posted just two tweets before his death - it is not thought they were related to the shooting. ·