Lil Jon Speaks on Son's Death and Family History in Nightline Interview
Lil Jon spoke about the death of his son and about learning that the man who raised him was not his biological father, in an interview with ABC News for Nightline. Billboard reported that the interview, conducted by ABC News correspondent Stephanie Ramos, was set for the Wednesday, October 21 episode.
The rapper and producer's son, Nathan Smith, died in an accidental drowning in February 2026. He was 27. Lil Jon was writing his memoir at the time.
In the interview, Lil Jon said his daughter Nahara, who is almost two, helped him cope after the loss. The same account covers his discovery of his biological father, a subject he returns to in the book.
The memoir is titled I Only Shout So You Can Hear Me. Simon & Schuster lists it as published by Atria/Black Privilege Publishing, with a publication date of October 20, 2026. The book runs 304 pages. Its ISBN, the number that identifies a specific edition for booksellers and libraries, is 9781668061473.
Nightline airs at 12:35 a.m. Eastern Time (ET) on ABC. Episodes are available to stream the following day on Disney+ and Hulu, so viewers outside the United States' Eastern time zone can catch the segment on either service once it is posted.
For readers who follow Lil Jon's music, the interview is a rare look at the personal side of his life. For anyone who has lost a child, it is a reminder that grief often runs alongside a public career, and that a book deadline can keep moving while a family is trying to stop.
