A Melbourne rapper performing under the name Drips has been charged with murder. 

Drips, whose real name is Lachlan Belmore, was charged with murder, home invasion, and drug offences in the Melbourne Magistrates Court this week, as per news.com.au.

The 24-year-old was arrested and charged with the death of the 22-year-old man on Monday, and didn’t seek bail the following day. Another man, aged 31, was arrested alongside Belmore and four other men, and was also charged with murder and home invasion.

Police were able to locate the six men following an investigation into the fatal shooting of a man in Kalkallo in September. On the morning of September 21st, emergency services were called to a property on Oodgeroo Road in the Melbourne suburb, following reports of someone being shot.

Police later located the man dead on the property. According to their investigation, the murder was a targeted attack, with both parties previously known to each other.

A 25-year-old man from Wallan and a 19-year-old man from Craigieburn were also charged with home invasion. A 22-year-old Keilor woman and a 22-year-old Wallan man were released pending further inquiries.

Belmore, who hails from Mickleham, has now been remanded in custody and is expected to appear back in court in early 2023. All the accused will face court next year, but it’s understood some of them will apply for bail before that time.

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Under the moniker Drips, Belmore had been releasing music for several years, garnering over 16,000 monthly listeners on Spotify. One of his songs, the 2021 single ‘Too Many Times’, has over 400,000 total streams on the platform.

He also has an online merchandise store selling such items as T-shirts and hats, while his music has also been shared across SoundCloud, Apple Music, and YouTube. On the latter platform, where he often posted music videos, he has over 8,000 subscribers.

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