Nipsey Hussle’s Neighborhood Nip Foundation to Join L.A. Marathon as Charity Partner (Exclusive)

Mesfin Fekadu
·3 min read
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Nipsey Hussle’s marathon continues: The late rapper’s Neighborhood Nip Foundation will join the 2024 Los Angeles Marathon as an official charity partner.

Hussle, who died in 2019 at age 33, was known as a skilled lyricist and activist who worked to build and unite his South Los Angeles community. The 39th running of the L.A. Marathon takes place March 17, 2024.

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“We are honored to be able to partner with the LA marathon. It means a lot to us because it’s something that Nip spoke about and had an interest in being a part of. He told the whole team about it and how he wanted the brand to do something with the LA Marathon, especially since it’s in L.A.,” Sam Asghedom, Hussle’s brother, tells The Hollywood Reporter. “Nip actually wanted to run the marathon. He told us all to get ready and get in shape for it. That’s why it feels so good for this to be coming to fruition.”

Hussle’s The Marathon Clothing (TMC) brand will enter a team of 15 or more in the marathon and all funds raised by each runner will aid the Neighborhood Nip Foundation, which was created in 2019 to inspire the community through initiatives benefiting underprivileged youth. Those who wish to run in support of Hussle’s foundation can register at themarathon2024.com, and the foundation plans to sponsor individuals who cannot afford the marathon fees.

“Nipsey Hussle’s iconic legacy is a beacon of inspiration for everyone in the City of Los Angeles, and we are delighted to welcome the Neighborhood Nip Foundation as an official charity partner in March,” Melissa Christian, charity director for the Los Angeles Marathon, said in a statement. “The Los Angeles Marathon is so much more than just a race; it’s a platform to empower communities and this partnership truly embodies that spirit, uniting our neighborhoods in a shared commitment to build a healthier world while celebrating Nipsey Hussle’s enduring legacy of resilience in the city he loved.”

Hussle was shot to death on March 31, 2019, outside his Marathon clothing store in the South Los Angeles neighborhood where he is from. He was remembered as a talented rapper, caring activist and loving father at his public memorial service at the Staples Center, and his funeral was the first held at the concert arena since Michael Jackson’s in 2009. After spending years releasing mixtapes, he dropped his major-label debut album, Victory Lap, in 2018, and it earned him his first-ever Grammy nomination. A year later, he won a pair of Grammys posthumously for the songs “Racks In the Middle” and “Higher,” his collaboration with DJ Khaled and John Legend.

The Neighborhood Nip Foundation will kick off programming in 2024 with a reconstruction of the Nipsey Hussle Plaza property, located at 3420 W. Slauson Avenue, the original location of his Marathon store. The renovated site will serve as a community center for elementary and high school students and will focus on academics and music.

“Hussle’s ‘marathon’ mentality and mindset fueled his ability to persevere against all odds and achieve greatness in every endeavor of his life. We are so proud and honored to be a part of the LA Marathon. As Hussle would say, ‘Life is a marathon, run a lap,’” Asghedom says.

The L.A. Marathon is presented by Asics and the team participating on behalf of the Neighborhood Nip Foundation is being sponsored by The Marathon Clothing, The Marathon Water and Puma.

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