A night meant to celebrate music turned into one of Chicago’s darkest moments of 2025. During an album release party for rising rapper Mello Buckzz, a drive-by mass shooting erupted outside Artis Lounge in the River North neighborhood, leaving four dead and fourteen others injured.
According to police, a dark SUV pulled up around 11 p.m. on July 2, as attendees were leaving the venue. Three assailants opened fire into the crowd, striking multiple victims aged 21 to 32. The deceased include a 24-year-old man, a 25-year-old man shot in the head, and two women, ages 26 and 27, both shot in the chest.
Mello Buckzz shared heartbreaking tributes on social media, revealing that among the deceased were her partner and her best friend. “My heart broke into so many pieces,” she wrote. “I held his hand until I couldn’t. I’m so angry. I don’t understand.”
The chaos following the gunfire was described as “the worst” by Pastor Donovan Price, who arrived on the scene. “People screaming, blood on the streets, phones lost, people searching for loved ones—it was complete chaos.”
Artis Lounge, which replaced the former Hush Lounge after a previous 2022 shooting, released a statement reaffirming their mission to create a safe space for marginalized communities. “Our hearts are with the victims. Last night disrupted that mission in the most painful way.”
As of July 3, no arrests have been made. Police continue to search for the three shooters responsible for the attack.
The incident marks yet another tragedy in Chicago’s ongoing struggle with gun violence, this time cutting deep into the city’s music community and leaving a young artist grieving both publicly and personally.