Posted by Hip Hop pioneer Biz Markie had been firmly off the radar for over six months when HipHopDX updated fans on his precarious medical condition in December 2020. According to a source close to the Juice Crew legend, Biz suffered a stroke while recovering from a diabetic episode.
“He’s not doing great, but it’s not as scandalous as it felt in the beginning,” the source told DX at the time. “Short story is Biz is diabetic, he had slipped into a diabetic coma, but that has happened to him in the past and it would only last a little while. He would go to the hospital, get discharged and get his meds under control. This particular time, he had a stroke while he was in the middle of the coma.”
Now, Big Daddy Kane is back with another update on Biz Markie’s condition. During a new interview with The Breakfast Club, Kane provided a little hope for all those concerned about the loveable MC.
“He’s getting better,” Kane says around the 2:35-minute mark. “He’s in rehabilitation now. He’s getting better and stronger every day. Last time I talked to him on the phone, he got a real light voice, but last time I talked on the phone he stuck his middle finger up at me so I think he’s coming along.”
Biz, who was diagnosed with Type II diabetes in 2011, opened up about his condition in a 2014 interview with ABC News, two months after he revealed he’d lost 140 pounds in an effort to get in better shape.
“I wanted to live,” Biz said. “Since I have to be a diabetic, If I didn’t make the changes, it was going to make the diabetes worse. I’m trying to get off [the Diabetes meds]. The way you gotta do it is lose the weight. I’m off half my meds, I just got to get off the rest. They said I could lose my feet. They said I could lose body parts. A lot of things could happen.”
In July 2020, TMZ reported Biz Markie was at a Maryland-area hospital where he’d been for weeks. A rep for Biz said it related to his Type II diabetes and assured his fans “he is receiving the best care from an amazing team of medical professionals and we remain positive about the outcome.”
Juice Crew Legend Biz Markie Has Been ‘Missing’ For 6 Months — Now There’s An Update
But as the months dragged on, friends of Biz started to get suspicious after it was reported he’d slipped into a coma. DX reached out to Biz’s management team in September 2020 and was told he was absolutely “not in a coma” as the Hip Hop community grew increasingly concerned about his radio silence and began to think something nefarious was going on behind the scenes. Some were even worried he could’ve quietly passed away.
As Big Daddy Kane confirmed, Biz is conscious and able to FaceTime with his family, but the stroke affected his brain and it’s been difficult for him to communicate. Although he’s been in a rehab facility in the DMV area for months, it sounds like he’s on the road to recovery.
Big Daddy Kane and Biz Markie collaborated on the Long Live The Kane single “Just Rhymin’” in 1988.
Check it out below.