Editing Ol' Dirty Bastard (section)

==Death==
[[File:ODB Mural.jpg|thumb|Mural of Ol' Dirty Bastard]]
Leading up to his death, Jones' legal troubles and eccentric behavior made him "something of a folk hero", according to ''[[The New Yorker]]'' writer Michael Agger.<ref>{{cite magazine |last=Agger |first=Michael |title=Not Dirty |magazine=[[The New Yorker]] |date=2005-01-10 |url=https://www.newyorker.com/archive/2005/01/17/050117ta_talk_agger |access-date=2006-10-09}}</ref> Music writer Steve Huey wrote: "it was difficult for observers to tell whether Ol' Dirty Bastard's wildly erratic behavior was the result of serious drug problems or genuine [[Mental disorder|mental instability]]."<ref name=ODB_bio/> According to ''[[The Atlantic]]'' contributing editor and music biographer James Parker, Jones had been diagnosed with [[schizophrenia]] around 2003.<ref>{{Cite web|url= https://slate.com/culture/2009/01/the-spiritual-journey-of-ol-dirty-bastard.html|title=No Father To His Style|first=James|last=Parker|website=Slate.com|date=January 22, 2009 |access-date=December 8, 2023}}</ref>

Jones collapsed at approximately 4:35{{spaces}}p.m. (EST) on November{{spaces}}13, 2004, just two days before his 36th birthday, at [[RZA]]'s recording studio in [[New York City]]; he was pronounced dead at the scene.<ref>{{cite news|author=Thomas J. Lueck|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2004/11/14/arts/music/odb-controversial-rap-artist-dies-at-35.html|title=O.D.B., Controversial Rap Artist, Dies at 35|newspaper=The New York Times|date=2004-11-14|access-date=2019-10-17}}</ref> The official cause of death was a [[drug overdose]]; an autopsy found a lethal mixture of [[cocaine]] and the prescription opioid [[tramadol]].<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/lifestyle/2004/12/16/late-rapper-odb-had-drugs-in-system/067ae244-1959-4435-b826-0f04be9117f8/|title=Late Rapper ODB Had Drugs in System|newspaper=Washington Post|date=December 15, 2004}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last=Patel |first=Joseph |url=https://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1494879/20041215/ol_dirty_bastard.jhtml |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20041217044048/https://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1494879/20041215/ol_dirty_bastard.jhtml |url-status=dead |archive-date=2004-12-17 |title=Ol' Dirty Bastard Died From Drug Overdose, Medical Examiner's Office Says |publisher=MTV News |date=2004-12-15 |access-date=2010-03-01}}</ref> The overdose was ruled accidental and witnesses said Jones reportedly complained of chest pain before collapsing.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.nme.com/news/ol-dirty-bastard/18784 |title=Ol' Dirty Bastard – Cause Of Death Revealed |work=NME |date=2004-12-16 |access-date=2010-03-01}}</ref>

Mourning the decline of Jones' mental and physical health, RZA wrote in his 2009 book ''[[The Tao of Wu]]'':<blockquote>Trust me, the man who became ODB, Ason Unique, my cousin, he was a scientist and a minor prophet... People may not know this from the outrageous character he played, but ODB was a visionary. But he decayed, he lost that vision... From the time they put him in jail to all the drugs he was doing to all the stress he went through with his family, it took away his ability to see. And this night, he sat there and looked me in the eye and said, "RZA, I don't understand." ... Now, I know that right there, right when he said that—we lost him. Eight hours later, ODB was gone.<ref>RZA, ''The Tao of Wu''. New York: Riverhead Books, 2009. {{ISBN|978-1-59448-885-6}}.</ref></blockquote>