‘Traumatized for life’: Family, friends remember slain Las Vegas rapper Kidd Earl

The bullet holes from the shooting that killed Lesly Blanchard’s brother were still visible in the door of her south Las Vegas apartment, even though whoever put them there remained a mystery.

There were also other reminders of Dionte Tarlini’s slaying inside the apartment: A few feet from the door, his blood-spattered Nike sneakers were still there, as were bullet impact marks to nearby walls and even the side of Blanchard’s refrigerator.

Tarlini, 27, a budding emo rap artist known as Kidd Earl, was killed Sept. 28 by gunshots fired through the front door of the apartment on Dean Martin Drive near Cactus Avenue, family and friends told the Las Vegas Review-Journal. His mother, Allison Tarlini, said she is still in disbelief.

“It’s just heartbreaking,” Allison Tarlini said during an emotional interview in the apartment where her son was killed. “They didn’t know who they were shooting.”

The Metropolitan Police Department said Friday Tarlini’s killing was still under investigation and were unable to state whether they were looking for suspects. A spokesperson said the department doesn’t comment on ongoing investigations and added that no arrests have been made.

The Clark County coroner’s office ruled the death a homicide caused by multiple gunshot wounds.

Following a vigil that took place Wednesday, Blanchard, Tarlini, and other artists who knew Kidd Earl called it a random and senseless act of gun violence, and they said they’re looking for all the answers they can get.

“They didn’t know him,” artist and longtime friend Young Hippie said of Tarlini’s alleged gunmen. He declined to give his real name over safety concerns.

“It was just a senseless act,” Young Hippie continued.

‘Literally traumatized for life’

Tarlini’s family recently started a GoFundMe digital fundraiser with a goal of $18,000 to help cover funeral expenses, with over $2,000 having been raised by Saturday. But Allison Tarlini said moving Blanchard, her daughter and granddaughter into a new apartment has also become a priority.

“Right now, my concern is more trying to get her out of here and finding a new, safe place,” Allison Tarlini said.

Blanchard said she was on vacation out of state during the shooting and invited Dionte, who days prior had come in from Los Angeles, to house-sit and watch over Blanchard’s 7-month-old daughter. The last image Allison Tarlini has of Dionte is a video from Blanchard’s nanny cam footage of him playing with his baby niece a few hours before the slaying, she said.

But the baby wasn’t home at the time of the attack, Allison Tarlini said, noting that one of her other sons had picked up the child to go to a nearby fair.

“He (Dionte) got a phone call 15 minutes before the shooting from my other son about bringing back the baby,” Allison Tarlini said. “So I’m thinking that my son thought it was his brother and the baby at the door. But when he went to look through the peep hole it was too late, and they started firing.”

Allison Tarlini said her son’s body was found by police several feet from the doorway. He was home with a different sibling, who police found under a bed inside the unit and then held for questioning for several hours before releasing him, Allison Tarlini said.

Authorities left with Dionte Tarlini’s body, Allison Tarlini said. But much of the scene was left for the family to clean up.

“My 21-year-old and my 22-year-old and one of his best friends, he’s 22, they’re gonna be literally traumatized for life,” Allison Tarlini said. “Literally, they came in here and had to clean up all of the blood.”

‘For him, that wasn’t supposed to happen’

Tarlini had looked up to other hip-hop artists such as XXXTentacion, a popular Florida rapper who was gunned down in 2018 and according to Young Hippie was good friends with Tarlini.

Young Hippie said Tarlini had a great appreciation for music of all genres, and stressed Kidd Earl should not be viewed solely as a rapper. The two met in 2016, Young Hippie said, and quickly formed a bond over music and skateboarding.

“We don’t just rap,” Young Hippie said, adding he considered Dionte Tarlini his best friend. “We create music, create art. You can’t just put it in a box. He was a big Michael Jackson fan, and he loved so many different flavors and genres of music.”

Young Hippie said one of his favorite qualities about Tarlini was his unruffled nature. No matter what someone would do to bother him, any attempts at play fighting or practical jokes just bounced off of his friend like rubber, he said.

“We were soul-tied,” Young Hippie said. “That was my guy forever.”

Steve Lewis, a rapper who goes by “King Yella” and who has more than 255,000 subscribers on YouTube, told the Review-Journal he had known Tarlini since around 2017, and said he was an easygoing guy who largely stayed out of serious trouble.

“I came from a lot of the killing that went on in Chicago,” Lewis said in a phone interview Friday. “For him, that wasn’t supposed to happen. He was just chill. He hardly ever said nothing. He would probably just have a few brews and smoke a little pot. He just made music, never was no gangbanger, no nothing.”

Funeral services for Dionte Tarlini are pending, Allison Tarlini said. He is survived by mother Allison; sisters Kayla and Lesly; brothers Deshaun, Jayquan, Devon and Treyvon; and many other loving relatives, and was expecting his first child, Allison Tarlini said.

Contact Casey Harrison at charrison@reviewjournal.com. Follow @casey-harrison.bsky.social on Bluesky.