"He wasn't gay. Someone got to him": Craig Mack’s ex-wife Roxanne Alexis Hill-Johnson claims rapper was intentionally infected with HIV/AIDS

Craig Mack sadly passed away on 12th March 2018, near his home in Walterboro, S.C., aged 47. As per a report shared by Grammy, his longtime producer Alvin Toney revealed back then that the rapper had died of heart failure due to a prolonged battle with an unspecified illness. However, in a shocking turn of events, it was later revealed by Rolling Stone in 2024 that Craig Mack reportedly didn’t die from congestive heart failure but due to his contraction of HIV/AIDS.

The Rolling Stone report also detailed that Craig Mack, “refused to seek treatment,” and revealed that Mack's family,

“Honored his wishes and repeated his assertion that he had congestive heart failure.”

However, Craig Mack's ex-wife and the mother of his two children, Roxanne Alexis Hill-Johnson, recently shared her opinion during her interview with The Art Of Dialogue that the rapper contracted AIDS as a setup.

"I believe him getting sick was something that was intentional," Hill-Johnson shared.

"Craig was a very heterosexual man. He liked women. He liked the company of women. So when people were saying, 'Oh, he was gay.' He wasn't gay. Someone got to him," she added.

Craig Mack’s ex-wife says family learned of AIDS diagnosis weeks before his death:

During her recent appearance on The Art of Dialogue, Roxanne Alexis Hill-Johnson said Craig Mack’s AIDS diagnosis was kept from his family until shortly before his death. She said she and the couple’s two children only learned of the illness about two weeks before he passed away.

Hill-Johnson shared that the children had known their father was sick for some time, but were never told what he was suffering from.

"The kids knew he had been sick, but no one told them what was wrong," Hill-Johnson said

She also added that the coroner informed her that Mack was probably sick for a decade; the coroner’s conclusion suggested Mack had been living with the disease for years without medication, something she said she struggled to understand.

"Unmedicated, all those years. Why? I don't know. So, if you do the math, that puts him back in New York when he got sick," she continued.

Hill-Johnson also pointed to a warning Mack allegedly gave to another male artist, recalling that he cautioned him about the risks he believed existed within the music industry. She said Craig Mack told the artist to “be careful,” claiming someone would attempt to “poison” him with a sexually transmitted infection (STI).

She added that she believed Mack did not take medication to treat his AIDS diagnosis and said that if he had, neither she nor their children were made aware of it.

How Craig Mack helped put Bad Boy Records on the map before falling behind:

According to a detailed report published by Rolling Stone, Craig Mack had been prepared to tell his story in the months leading up to his death. The rapper, then 47, had invited a documentary crew to record his life in his own words.

Despite still being able to hold court, trading jokes, and recounting stories, Mack’s appearance suggested a man far older than his age. Deep wrinkles had set in, and the footage ultimately became difficult for his family to watch.

“It’s hard to watch, I could tell something was very wrong,”

his daughter, Amanda, tells Rolling Stone of viewing the footage. Mack first made his mark on hip-hop in 1994 with the release of his breakout single “Flava in Ya Ear.” At the time, he was signed to Sean “Diddy” Combs’ Bad Boy Records, which was still in its early stages.

The song quickly spread through New York City’s clubs and block parties. As reported by Grammy, “Flava in Ya Ear” climbed into the Top 10 of the Billboard Hot 100 and earned Mack a nomination for Best Rap Solo Performance at the 37th GRAMMY Awards. Looking back on those early years, former Arista senior vice president Lionel Ridenour said Mack was instrumental to the label’s momentum.

“[Mack] absolutely was the gas in the tank” for Combs and Bad Boy, Ridenour tells Rolling Stone. A spokesperson for Bad Boy also acknowledged Mack’s role in the label’s early success, saying he “played an essential role in the foundation of the label” and that “Flava in Ya Ear” “not only gave Bad Boy its first hit but also set the tone for the label’s future.”

“The track was the anthem that put Bad Boy on the map,” the rep adds,

“and showcased Combs’ hands-on approach in all aspects, including production, styling, and creative direction, which would become a hallmark of the label’s success.”

As Bad Boy’s profile grew, Mack’s career began to stall. He eventually stepped away from the industry altogether, falling behind peers who continued to rise.

“I just knew how talented this kid was and how much further he could go,”

says Jean Nelson, Mack’s first co-manager.

“But he got in his own way because of the way he thinks.”

×

Was this article helpful?

Thank You for feedback