March 13 (UPI) -- Craig Mack, the rapper best known for releasing "Flava in Ya Ear" under Sean 'Diddy' Combs' Bad Boy Records, has died at the age of 47.
Mack died Monday of natural causes in his home near Walterboro, S.C., the Colleton County Coroner's Office confirmed to NPR. Alvin Toney, who worked with Mack as a producer, told the New York Daily News that the rapper died of heart failure.
Mack's Grammy-nominated and platinum-selling 1994 track "Flava in Ya Ear" from his debut album Project Funk da World, was the first single released under Combs' Bad Boy record label. The song also received a notable remix and music video featuring hip-hop legends Notorious B.I.G., LL Cool J and Busta Rhymes.
Mack left Bad Boy to release his second album in 1997, titled Operation: Get Down. After eventually leaving the music industry, Mack lived a quiet life in South Carolina, where he joined the Overcomer Ministry.
The Colleton County ministry is a commune of some 70 members that live together in trailer homes and worship under preacher Ralph Gordon Stair, who multiple former members have accused of sexual assault, according to the Charleston Post and Courier.
"He was prepared for whatever comes, to go home to the Lord," Toney, who worked on Mack's debut album said. "He was prepared to do that. He wasn't scared. He was ready."
Toney said that Mack is survived by his wife and two children, both adults.
