Christopher Cheeks, 32, was a California-born rapper who performed as Chris King and had been in Nashville to play a festival in April 2024. Family remembered him as a young, vibrant presence who had stayed by his father’s bedside after the elder man’s open-heart surgery just weeks before the killing.

In the early hours of April 20, 2024, Christopher was with friends in an alley between Hayes and Church Streets outside a music studio when three men approached. A 29-year-old friend later told police the interaction was cordial at first before the men attempted to rob the group. Gunfire followed. Christopher and the friend were struck; the friend survived after being taken to a hospital. Christopher was found in the Hayes Street Hotel parking garage, taken to Vanderbilt University Medical Center, and died of his injuries.

Police identified suspects quickly. Investigators linked an ankle monitor cutoff to one suspect and later arrested multiple men on an indictment alleging first-degree murder, aggravated robbery and weapons offenses. All remain jailed on first-degree murder charges in Nashville. If anyone knew Christopher, his movements in Nashville, or saw the alley that night, what can be shared with investigators?