Cardi B has spoken out following the fatal shooting of 15-year-old Ghanaian student Javits Frimpong in the Bronx, using the incident to explain why she would never want to raise children in the New York neighbourhood where she grew up.
The American rapper, who spent her childhood in the Bronx, said the violence and hostility young people face in certain parts of New York have made the city an unsuitable place for her to raise a family. She also expressed concerns about children attending public schools in the city.
Frimpong was shot while heading to school last Thursday, October 29, 2026. His death has attracted widespread attention, particularly among Ghanaians in the United States and back home.
Reacting to the tragedy, Cardi B mentioned the Bronx, Harlem and Washington Heights as places where she would not want to raise a child.
“Jarvis is the reason why I would never raise a kid in the Bronx, Harlem, Washington Heights. I will never raise a kid in a New York public school. I will never raise a kid in the hood. Let me tell you why. It is a game of survival to live in those places,” she said.
She also questioned what could drive teenagers to take another person’s life, particularly when the victim had done nothing to provoke them.
“Even the kids that killed that boy, what is wrong with you? How do you wake up in the morning and say, ‘Today is a good day to kill someone who has not wronged or attacked me?’” she asked.
The rapper further urged New Yorkers who intend to have children to consider relocating, arguing that the behaviour of some young people in the city has become increasingly troubling.
“If you are in New York and you want to have kids, move out because the kids there are so nasty,” she said.
Javits had relocated from Ghana to the United States about a year before his death to live with his father, Thomas Frimpong, a 60-year-old taxi driver.
The teenager was shot once shortly before 9:30 a.m. on Thursday near East 171st Street in the Claremont neighbourhood of the Bronx. He was rushed to hospital but later died from his injuries.
He attended DreamYard Preparatory School.
In an account to CBS News New York, his father disclosed that the school’s principal had contacted him days before the shooting to report a fight involving Javits and two other boys. The two students were subsequently suspended.
Thomas Frimpong also revealed that his son had complained about being bullied during lunchtime at school.
Meanwhile, police are searching for three teenage suspects believed to be between 16 and 18 years old. They were last seen wearing black clothing and blue surgical masks.
No arrests had been announced at the time of reporting. Investigators have also not established what prompted the shooting or confirmed whether the earlier bullying complaints were connected to the teenager’s death.
Cardi B pays tribute to 15-year-old Ghanaian boy Javits Frimpong, who was shot and killed while walking to school in the Bronx, and adds that she will never raise her children in New York. https://t.co/4wZmPTornz
— 𝐀𝐒𝐊 (@askghmedia) October 31, 2026
