MEMPHIS, Tenn. — For the first time since the tragic shooting of rap superstar Young Dolph, we heard from the family that owns Makeda’s on Friday.
Raven Winton is the operation manager of Makeda’s Cookies and the daughter of Pamela and Maurice Hill.
In her own words, she told WREG what happened that day and how her family has been grieving the loss of Young Dolph.
“It has been a challenge. We’ve had a couple of sleepless nights since this happened. We just want the city to know that we are so, so sorry you guys had to endure this and see this,” Winton said. “Please pray for his family. That’s just unreal to me. I can’t even imagine what they’re going through.”
Days before the shooting, the store posted on social media that Young Dolph made a point to stop by regularly.
The mom and pop shop has been around for 20 years and opened their second location downtown a few years ago, but Dolph stopped at this one, another symbol of his dedication to the community.
“He was was family to us. Everytime we saw him we didn’t treat him like a rap star, a rap artist. we weren’t trying to get autographs. Hey, it was basically…What’s up, Dolph,” she said. “That man did not deserve that. He was just in there to buy cookies for his family. It’s terrible that we can’t even step outside of our house and feel comfortable in the neighborhood that he knew and loved and supported.”
A number of people have been reaching out in support and offering well wishes to Makeda’s Cookies, including Hollywood director Prentice Penny, who visited the city for the Memphis-based movie Uncorked.
“I hate hearing about Young Dolph…its so unnecessary and tragic. Especially to be killed at a cookie store that was founded by a wonderful black family who named their store after a daughter they lost to Leukemia. Let’s be better,” Penny said.
Winton encourages others to support Dolph’s family as they have continued to support hers.
“Young Dolph’s wife, she’s supported us. We appreciate that. She’s backing us saying he enjoyed the cookies and was there to pick up cookies for us all the time. So Please back them up, support them,” she said.
Makeda’s on Airways has been closed and boarded up since the shooting as the workers and owners process what happened and take time to grieve.
There’s a GoFundMe campaign to support the business as they strive to get back to normal in the future. You can donate here.
