A female rapper affiliated with hip-hop icon Jadakiss and known by the stage name Queen Jewels was gunned down early Thursday morning in a brazen drive-by shooting in the Bronx, police confirmed.
Julia Anderson, 39, of Mount Vernon, was sitting in the driver’s seat of her black Jeep on Murdoch Avenue near Nared Avenue in the Wakefield section around 12:30 a. m.
when a suspect on a scooter pulled alongside the passenger side and unleashed a volley of gunfire, investigators said.
Anderson was struck multiple times and rushed to Jacobi Medical Center, where she was pronounced dead just hours before she was scheduled to begin her weekend. She was one month shy of her 40th birthday.
Her mother, who asked not to be identified, described the terrifying moment she realized her daughter had not come home. “She usually comes home at 12 at night, and she always makes some kind of little noise, so I know she’s home. But then I was like, wondering what happened.
I didn’t think she knew that.”
Anderson’s sister was too distraught to speak on camera but told relatives that the victim had just finished a night shift as a caregiver at a group home for developmentally disabled adults in the Wakefield area. She had turned to stable work after her music career did not take off as she had hoped.
Neighbor and coworker George Enriquez broke down as he remembered Anderson. “I felt it so much for that girl this morning when I heard the news. I think I was going to have a heart attack.
All I can tell you, she’s a very, very nice person.”
Police sources say the suspect opened fire from the passenger side of the vehicle, firing multiple rounds before fleeing south on a scooter. No arrests have been made, and the motive remains unclear.
Detectives are scouring surveillance footage from nearby homes and businesses.
Anderson, who went by Queen Jewels on social media and in the local rap scene, had been co-signed by Jadakiss in a video posted earlier this year. In that clip, Jadakiss said, “Next generation, boy, first lady we here.
I just try to help out the new up-and-coming high artists that won’t be able to get in touch with me because of my status. We gotta kick it out.”
The video, which has now taken on a grim new context, shows Anderson smiling alongside the legendary rapper.
Friends say she had been grinding for years, balancing her dream of music with the reality of paying bills.
“She was a soldier, man,” said a close friend who asked to remain anonymous. “She worked hard, never complained.
She was trying to make it in the rap game, but she also had a heart for helping people with disabilities. That’s who Julia was.”
The shooting has sent shockwaves through both the Mount Vernon community and the underground hip-hop scene.
Anderson’s social media pages have been flooded with tributes from fans and fellow artists, many using the hashtag #RIPQueenJewels.
“I can’t believe this. We just linked up at a show two weeks ago.
She was full of life,” wrote one local rapper. Another posted: “Another angel taken too soon. The streets are getting too crazy.”
This is the latest incident in a wave of gun violence that has plagued the Bronx throughout the summer. According to NYPD statistics, shootings in the borough are up more than 20% compared to the same period last year.
“It’s a tragedy, another life snuffed out by a coward with a gun,” said city council member Althea Stevens, who represents the Wakefield area.
“We need more resources, more jobs, more opportunities for our young people so they don’t turn to violence.”
Police are urging anyone with information to call Crime Stoppers at 1-800-577-TIPS. A reward of up to $3,500 is being offered for information leading to an arrest.
The suspect is described as a male riding a dark-colored scooter, last seen heading toward the Cross Bronx Expressway.
Anderson’s mother recalled her daughter’s last words to her before she left for her shift. “She said, ‘Mom, I’ll be home soon, just gonna pick up some food.’
I never saw her again.”
The sister, who was not identified, suffered what witnesses described as a near breakdown when police delivered the news. “My younger daughter came and told me she was gone.
My heart felt like it was going to come out,” the mother said, her voice breaking.
Anderson’s death has also reignited discussions about the dangers faced by women in the music industry, especially those trying to break out of street-oriented rap. “She was trying to tell real stories, not just the glamour.
She was going to make it,” said music producer D’Angelo “D-Major” Wilson, who worked with her on several tracks.
Jadakiss has not issued a public statement at the time of this report, but sources close to the rapper say he is “devastated” by the news. The two had a close mentor-mentee relationship, and he had been helping Anderson secure studio time and features.
At the scene Thursday morning, the black Jeep remained cordoned off with yellow tape as crime scene investigators collected evidence. Neighbors stood on their stoops, some crying, others shaking their heads in disbelief.
“You never think it’s going to happen on your own street, you know?”
said Maria Torres, who lives two doors down. “She was always so polite, waving when she drove by. Now she’s gone for nothing.”
An autopsy is scheduled for Friday afternoon at the city medical examiner’s office. Police have not confirmed whether the shooting was targeted or random, though the nature of the attack suggests Anderson may have been specifically marked.
Family members are making funeral arrangements and have set up a GoFundMe page to cover costs.
As of this writing, the page has raised over $15,000 within hours, a testament to the impact Anderson had on her community.
“She wasn’t just a rapper; she was a caregiver, a sister, a daughter, a friend. She deserves justice,” said close friend Tanya Davis.
“We won’t stop until whoever did this is brought to the light.”
Detectives are also exploring whether Anderson’s online presence or music lyrics may have played any role in the shooting. Several of her tracks dealt with street life and loyalty, but friends insist she had no known enemies.
“People are always trying to make something out of nothing. She was about peace, about love,” Davis added. “If someone had beef with her, they would have said it.
This was just a cold-blooded murder.”
The NYPD’s 47th Precinct has increased patrols in the area following the shooting, and community outreach workers are being deployed to calm tensions. Local clergy will hold a prayer vigil Saturday evening at the corner of Murdoch and Nared.
“We have to come together. Violence only begets violence,” said Reverend James Carter of the Greater Mount Nebo Baptist Church. “We are praying for Julia’s family, and we are praying for the soul of the shooter, that he may turn himself in.”
Anderson’s mother clutched a photo of her daughter as she spoke to reporters outside her Mount Vernon home. “She was everything to me. My baby.
And now they took her. For what? For a scooter ride?
I want that man to know what he did. He killed my heart.”
The investigation remains active.
Anyone with dashcam or security camera footage from the area between 12:15 a. m. and 12:45 a.
m. on Thursday is asked to contact police immediately.
As the sun set over the Bronx on Thursday, the black Jeep was finally towed away, but the bullet holes remained etched into the street, a haunting reminder of a life cut short.
The search for the scooter-riding gunman continues.
Anderson, known to her fans as Queen Jewels, had a single on streaming platforms titled “Ready to Reign,” which included the lines: “They can’t stop me, I’m destined for the crown / Even when they knock me down, I get up and clown.”
Her last Instagram post, uploaded just hours before the shooting, showed her smiling in front of a group home, captioned: “Night shift done.
Grateful for every soul I help. Keep shining.”
Friends and family say her light was extinguished too soon.
“She shined bright,” her sister managed to say through tears. “But the world was too dark for her.”
Anyone with information can also submit tips to the NYPD via their website or anonymously through the Crime Stoppers app.
All calls are kept confidential.
This is a developing story. Stay with us for updates as more details emerge.
