In February 2024, two men were convicted of taking Jam Master Jay’s life 22 years earlier.
The BBC reported that Karl Jordan Jr. and Ronald Washington were facing 20 years to life in prison for the crime they’d been found guilty of.
The case helped people feel like justice had finally been served.
Jam Master Jay’s Sons TJ and Jesse Mizell Speak Out
It was reportedly a relief to many of those who were close to Jam Master Jay, including his family.
The Run-DMC member was survived by his wife, Terry Corley, and four children.
Though not all of them have spoken out about the verdict, two of his sons, TJ and Jesse Mizell, have been pretty vocal about the trial and the news surrounding it.
In an interview with CBS News, the brothers, who are now in their 30s, were asked how they felt about the two convicts being close to their dad.
Karl was Jam Master Jay’s godson and Ronald was a childhood friend.
The siblings revealed that both men had never really left their lives.
TJ shared that he and Jesse had seen one of them at a party a while back, and that they were even approached by him.
According to TJ, the family friend told him that he wanted them to know that he had nothing to do with what had happened to their dad.
At that point in time, neither of the brothers had heard the rumor that he was involved, and they asked him what he was talking about.
Why Jam Master Jay’s Sons Decided Not To Go To Trial
Jesse and TJ decided not to go to the trial.
They explained that they wanted to keep away from it and preferred to only do things connected to their dad that were positive.
Run-DMC was famously known for being anti-illegal substances.
They even did public service announcements encouraging the public not to turn to those kinds of things.
But the report by the BBC said that during the trial, it was alleged that Jam Master Jay turned to selling a certain white powder substance to make money in the 1990s.
It was reported that around that time, his earnings from the hip-hop group weren’t what they used to be, and so he’d taken on dealing as an extra way of income.
Why Karl and Ronald Killed Jam Master Jay
Prosecutors of the case made the claim that the reason that Karl and Ronald took his life was because they were angry with him for cutting them out of a deal.
One that supposedly would’ve been worth around $200,000.
So, as revenge, the two men reportedly went and found Jam Master Jay at a recording studio in Queens, New York, and ended his life.
Jesse and TJ told CBS News that this was the most upsetting thing that they’d heard about in the trial.
They denied that their father was a dealer.
TJ shared: “We strongly believe that that’s false.”
He went on to say that he felt like his dad’s money was being taken and being used to do other things.
Jesse agreed with his brother and added that their father was extremely generous with his wealth.
He revealed that he was known for buying cars for everyone on his neighborhood block for Christmas.
Jesse shared that they had a big family, and they never longed for anything while growing up.
Was Jam Master Jay a Drug Dealer?
The New York Times wrote that while Jam Master Jay did not sell illegal substances, he reportedly served as the middleman between the suppliers and the street sellers.
But while he and Jesse were being interviewed by Rolling Stone, TJ alleged that the reports of his dad’s connection with substances was a smear campaign.
He said: “This is just another way for the prosecutor to make a bigger case out of something that happened.”
Jesse argued that pinpointing cases to illegal dealings was usually how lawyers would get them closed in their world, because they did not often solve investigations into people’s lives being taken if they happened in ‘the hood.’
As for the witnesses that alleged that they saw Jesse’s dad dealing, he said: “that’s their truth.”
He admitted that they knew more than he and TJ did, so it wasn’t really something for either of them to speak on.
But from what they’d heard from their mother, and from their father’s closest friends, he said that there was no way that Jam Master Jay was a dealer.
Jesse went on to add that he could’ve been involved from the outside looking in, but he wasn’t the guy who was orchestrating and maneuvering everything.
Why Jam Master Jay’s Family Never Got Closure
TJ told Rolling Stone that the reason his dad met his end was because of jealousy.
He explained that people didn’t like to see other people win, especially in communities like where Jam Master Jay came from, where there was so little opportunity and where everyone was starving for just a shot to get out of the predicament that they were in.
TJ shared: “If someone else got that shot and you feel like you deserved it, that can bring really bad thoughts into your mind.”
But how did the brothers feel about the result of the trial? Did it help to give them some kind of closure?
TJ revealed that since it’d taken over 20 years for it to happen, over that time, his family had lost faith in the justice system.
So, after hearing the verdict, he confessed that there was this feeling of satisfaction that someone was being held accountable.
But he shared that, at the end of the day, they’d already made peace with what had happened.
His younger brother Jesse added that they moved with faith, so for them, it was a healing process that they had already begun working on since the day their dad passed away.
He said: “That’s not to say that it’s over, and not to say that we were done healing, but a lot of the grieving process is finished.”
Jesse explained that the verdict was kind of a reminder that other people still had Jam Master Jay in their thoughts, just like they did, but the verdict didn’t necessarily help bring them any more closure.
Jam Master Jay’s Son Jason Followed In His Father’s Footsteps
TJ and Jesse have an older brother, too – Jason Mizell Jr.
He followed in his dad’s footsteps and became a DJ.
He’s known professionally as DJ Jam Master J’Son.
A report by People Pill revealed that he even ended up becoming the official DJ for his dad’s group, Run-DMC and would perform with them around the world.
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Jam Master Jay’s Daughter Tyra Is An Entrepreneur
Jam Master Jay also had a daughter named Tyra Myricks.
According to Disractify, she was just 9 years old when she lost her dad.
After she graduated from high school, she pursued a career in fashion and ended up starting her own clothing line.
She also opened up a gym in L.A.
She wasn’t the only family member to start her own business, though.
Jam Master Jay’s Sons Jesse And TJ Opened Their Own Business
Page Six wrote about how Jesse and TJ launched Queens OJ, their own line of products made from a now-legal green plant.
They said that they did it in honor of their father, who they claimed loved to smoke.
The Root reported that they were also associated with the Scratch DJ Academy in New York, a DJ school which their dad co-founded.
Both of the brothers have been vocal about how proud they are of their father and of the legacy he left.
When speaking to Rolling Stone, Jesse said that he hoped that Jam Master Jay could serve as a story of inspiration, but also as a cautionary tale.
He went on to explain that no matter how much success a person achieved, they were still a product of their environment.
Jesse advised: “Definitely give back to your community, but you got to move on as well.”
In the CBS News interview, TJ talked about how understanding the weight of carrying and continuing his father’s legacy was enormous.
He said that it was a legacy that was both massive and beautiful.
