Lil Jon Pushes For Posthumous Grammy To Honor Late Son Nathan Smith

Lil Jon asked Grammy voters to honor his late son Nathan “Slade” Smith with a posthumous award for his work on the rapper’s meditation albums.

The producer made the appeal in a Facebook post Tuesday, October 13, as the Recording Academy began choosing next year’s nominees.

“He engineered my meditation albums, and his talent lives on in this music,” Lil Jon wrote.

His post included #RemixMeditation, the title of the album he released with Kabir Sehgal on October 30, 2025. That project turned songs from his catalog, including “Get Low,” “Yeah!” and “Turn Down For What,” into guided meditations.

First-round voting for the 2027 Grammys opened October 12. That round decides who receives nominations. Lil Jon’s caption asked voters for support but didn’t name a category or announce a nomination.

Nathan, who made music as DJ Young Slade, was 27 when his body was found in a pond near his home in Milton, Georgia, on February 6. He had been reported missing three days earlier. The Fulton County Medical Examiner’s Office later ruled his death an accident.

Long before the loss, Lil Jon spoke about the bond he shared with his son. In a 2024 interview with OK!, he described how Nathan grew from a young DJ into an artist who made his own music and worked on other people’s records.

“When he was going to college, he would come home and be my engineer,” Lil Jon said.

Nathan studied at New York University’s Tisch program after learning to DJ at Scratch DJ Academy, his father said. He had also started producing while still in high school.

Lil Jon said Nathan also helped record his meditation work. He discussed two projects: Total Meditation and Manifest Abundance: Affirmations for Personal Growth. One centered on guided sessions, while the other focused on affirmations.

Lil Jon released Total Meditation with Sehgal in February 2024. He had turned to the practice while dealing with changes in his own life and said it helped him find peace.

The remix concept had been in the works during that early recording period, too. Before its release last year, Lil Jon told Showbiz Cheat Sheet he held it back because he wanted people to take his move into meditation seriously.

For this year’s Grammy race, voters have until October 22 to cast first-round ballots. The nominees will be announced November 16, ahead of the awards on February 7, 2027.