NEW YORK (AP) — Rapper Black Rob, known for his hit "Whoa!" and key contributions to Diddy's dominant Bad Boy Records in the 1990s and early 2000s, has died.

He was 52.

Longtime friend and former labelmate Mark Curry said Black Rob died Saturday in Atlanta.

Curry said he was holding the hip-hop performer's hand at the end.

He'd been hospitalized and suffered multiple health problems in recent years, and died of cardiac arrest, Curry said.

Born Robert Ross and raised in Harlem, New York City, he started rapping even before he became a teenager.

According to The Associated Press, his debut album "Life Story," which was released in 2000, hit the No. 3 spot on the Billboard charts and went platinum.