After surviving a near-death experience last week, rapper Keith Murray is thankful that the only injuries he, his driver, or his three companions suffered were minor.

“We got bruises and we’re limping, but none of us is hurt, by the grace of God,” he told MTV. “But I’m shook now. I just been telling people how important that seatbelt is. Remembering to put your seatbelt on is remembering that you want to live.”

He recalls to MTV exactly what happened:

“We were driving down [Interstate] 85, and it was icy. Now, I had just done ‘Direct Effect’ and left New York around 9 p.m. Then we drove all night in a customized van to get to North Carolina by morning. But the driver was supposed to have gotten rest all day to prepare for the nine-hour drive. … I don’t know what happened, but I do know I have a phobia about drivers being fully rested. And now I’m even more nervous about that because all I know is that at 7a.m., I woke up to the van spinning and a pre-existing collision heading towards me. My first thoughts were, ‘Oh sh–!,’ and then my mind went so blank.”

Hours after being released from hospital, he went to a radio station to promote his latest album.

“When I can rock a crowd or perform a party song or talk about my music, it’s love. That’s a real healer for me. I love it. Hip-hop gives me a new life.”






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