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Christopher McKenzie aka I.G.Off passed on June 12th after lengthy illnesses related to spinal injuries. I.G. Off was one of the greatest New York underground emcees of the ’90’s. He is known as one-half of the Queens duo I.G.Off & Hazardous who cemented their Golden Age reputation on the DJ Spinna produced “Street Serenade 12- inch and the Lyricist Lounge and Beyond Real Experience recordings. I.G. Off belongs to that rare circle of gifted freestylers like KRS-One and Supernatural who truly rhyme ‘off the dome.’ His omnipotent and respected presence on New York City’s underground turf reached its highest profile with a 1996 Lugz print ad with Hazardous and Kid Capri. In 2000-2001 German filmmaker Harald Rumpf shot the documentary, Hip Hop: A Tale From The Hood about their lives as underground rappers. In 2007 I.G. Off was hit by a car that paralyzed him from the neck down. He continued to make music until his death. DJ Eclipse gave a succinct account of his life at 2Dopeboyz and photographer Stefan Falke shared images of the late rapper on his site.
