More than 20 years after Run-DMC star Jam Master Jay’s murder, two men are finally facing trial.
Ronald Washington and Karl Jordan Jr are accused of killing the New York -based DJ in his recording studio in the city in 2002.
Prosecutors believe the musician, whose real name was Jason Mizell, was killed over a drug deal, but for two decades, the shooting went unsolved, with witnesses remaining tight-lipped.
A breakthrough in the case finally came in 2020 when two men from Mizell’s Queens neighbourhood were arrested and charged.
The two men, both of whom have pleaded not guilty, began their trial at Brooklyn federal court on 29 January.
Here is what you need to know about the case:
Who was Jam Master Jay and what happened to him?
Jam Master Jay was the DJ for the hip-hop group Run DMC, one of the best-known rap acts of the 1980s.
The group, founded by Mizell alongside rappers Joe “Run” Simmons and Darryl “DMC” McDaniels, were known for espousing an anti-drug stance in lyrics and for hits including “It’s Tricky” and a remake of Aerosmith’s “Walk This Way”.