In a headline that has echoed through the international hip-hop world, Adam Drake has been convicted of second-degree murder for the fatal stabbing of Pat Stay in the early morning hours of June 9. The jury in Halifax didn’t take long to decide, closing the book on one of the darkest chapters in the life and career of one of battle rap’s all-time brilliant wordsmiths.
Dartmouth, Nova Scotia’s Pat Stay was fatally stabbed in a dispute at a Halifax bar on September 4, 2022. Known as a tower of a presence in the underground rap world, if not quite a household name, he was celebrated for his razor-sharp wit, magnetic charisma, and surgical lyrical takedowns. His death came as a shock to fans, contemporaries, and the wider hip-hop world.
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The prosecution’s case relied on surveillance video from the nightclub during the fateful encounter. While the footage never showed Drake doing it, Crown prosecutors made their case using a painstaking process-of-elimination argument that nobody else could have done. The defense tried to sow doubt, relying on a lack of clear visual evidence. However, the jury found unanimously in less than 24 hours.
A notable piece of information that jurors weren’t told until they began their deliberations. Adam Drake is already serving a life sentence after being convicted of another first-degree murder charge in the 2024 slaying of Tyler Keizer. This significant detail was under a publication ban, presumably to ensure a fair trial. And now that the verdict is in, battle rap fans and music enthusiasts have turned to social media to recall Stay as an entertainer and a person.
“Pat Stay was the epitome of what a battle rapper should be. He was vicious, clever, hilarious, oozed personality, and was just talented as hell, but he was also incredibly friendly and welcoming outside of battles,” one fan wrote. Another added, “Big loss to the battle scene, but an even bigger loss to his kids. Absolutely heartbreaking, such a waste of life.” While the guilty verdict has granted some closure, the hole left by Pat Stay’s absence remains enormous. He was a huge, larger-than-life personality, onstage and off. His legacy lives on as justice is finally served in rhyme, in memory, in the hearts of those he touched.
