Lionel Pickens, the New York MC best known as Chinx and Chinx Drugz, was murdered on Sunday in a drive-by shooting in Queens, New York, reports The New York Times.

The 31-year-old rapper was a member of French Montana's Coke Boys, known for his hit song "I'm a Coke Boy."

Chinx, who had finished a performance in Brooklyn, drove back to Queens with a friend. It was around 4 a.m. Sunday. They stopped by a hookah bar but found it was closed. So, they decided to head home.

The rapper waited at a red light in his silver Porsche Panamera on Queens Boulevard as another car pulled up next to him. Gunshots rang out, ripping through the driver's side window at such close range that detectives later found a 9-millimeter shell casing on the front seat.

The "On Dawgs" rapper had been shot at least eight times, possibly more, yet he managed to park his Porsche at the curb as the other car fled the scene.

He was taken to Jamaica Hospital Medical Center where he died. His friend, Antar Alziadi, 27, survived and was in stable condition Sunday afternoon, according to police. Alziadi suffered two bullet wounds in the back and a punctured lung.

No arrests have been made, the police said. Detectives are searching for video footage of the drive-by shooting to identify the car used by the assailants.

Luis Lopez, the Club Red Wolf manager where Chinx performed, told the New York Daily News, "He was here with four or five guys. Then he left. He didn't fight with anyone."

Reaction to Chinx's death has come from all corners of the music industry.

"A lot of love from everybody," DJ Babyface told ABC 7 New York. "The crowd just gave him the energy -- he just kept on and on."

French Montana and Chinx were more than collaborating recording artists; they were close friends. Chinx even vacationed with Montana and Khloe Kardashian. "The devil comes in all shapes and sizes and he's ruthless. Life here is temporary. They will kill you," Montana tweeted.

Chinx's agenda as a rapper was "to make music that people can relate to in their everyday lives," he told XXL magazine during a 2012 interview.

"Sometimes my songs might remind you of a time that made you sad," he said. "Sometimes it'll motivate you to wanna get money, sometimes you might wanna dance, but either way you can equate my music to what emotions you're going through."

The "What They Talkin Bout" rapper recorded many acclaimed mix tapes but had not yet released his first studio record.

Chinx grew up in a Far Rockaway housing project. Before embarking on a music career, he spent several years in prison for robbery and drug-related charges.