Texas rapper Tay-K convicted of murder for his role in a robbery that left 1 man dead

Texas rapper Tay-K, who recorded the 2017 viral hit "The Race," was found guilty of murder on Friday.

Posted 9:17 p.m. Jul 19, 2019 — Updated 9:17 p.m. Jul 19, 2019

Amir Vera

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Marlena Baldacci, CNN

CNN — Texas rapper Tay-K, who recorded the 2017 viral hit "The Race," was found guilty of murder on Friday.

The 19-year-old, whose legal name is Taymor McIntyre, was also found guilty of three counts of aggravated robbery, said Sam Jordan, a spokeswoman for the Tarrant County Criminal District Attorney's Office.

Jordan told CNN Tay-K took part in a robbery that left a 21-year-old man dead. The rapper's attorneys argued he wasn't the person who fired the gun that killed the man, so he shouldn't have been found guilty, according to CNN affiliate KTVT. Prosecutors, however, said Tay-K knew the plan to steal drugs and money from the home in Mansfield, which is in the Dallas-Fort Worth metropolitan area.

Prosecutors said the plan to rob the house was actually the idea of a 15-year-old girl, whose friend reached out to Tay-K because she believed he could get guns for the robbery, KTVT reported

Tay-K gained notoriety in 2017 when he went on the run after the murder and released "The Race," which now has over 170 million views on YouTube. According to Billboard, the song debuted at No. 70 on the Billboard Hot 100 when it initially released. Tay-K, according to Billboard, also had endorsements from rappers, like Lil Bibby who tweeted "Free Lil Tay K" and Travis Scott who tweeted Tay-K's lyrics.

Jordan said the jury will continue deliberating Tay-K's sentencing Friday and will continue into Monday, if necessary.

The rapper faces between five and 99 years in prison, according to KTVT.

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