China Walker, one half of the rap duo Cam & China, died on Tuesday, July 1, her identical twin sister, Camara, announced on social media and GoFundMe. The Inglewood, California, native had been living with a rare and aggressive form of ovarian cancer, according to her sister. China Walker was 32 years old.
Camara and China Walker began rapping while at Los Angeles’ Alexander Hamilton High School. They went by the names Cammy and Cee Cee and were two-fifths of the jerk crew Pink Dollaz, best known for the Mustard-produced “Bad Bitch.” Following the group’s dissolution, the Walker sisters self-released music in the 2010s as Cam & China.
Cam & China were known for their fun, aggressive, and confident flows and lyrics. (Writing about the duo’s “Do Dat,” in 2014, Jayson Greene said the sisters had “graduated to next-level shit-talking.”) Speaking with Noisey, China attributed their convictions to being women in the male-dominated hip-hop landscape. “We tell our stories from deep inside—we don’t sugar coat anything. That’s just who we are,” she said. “It’s really what every woman is thinking.”
Cam & China shared their signature song, “Run Up,” in 2015. The following year, a remixed version featured on the duo’s self-titled debut EP. Another year later, in 2017, the original “Run Up” was on the soundtrack for the second season of Issa Rae’s HBO show, Insecure.
After featuring “Run Up,” Rae frequently included Cam & China’s music in her show. The duo was part of an original song for Season 3, “Ho for It,” and the sisters’ “Keep It Pushin” was in Season 4. Rae later tapped Cam & China to make “City 2 City” for Rap Sh*t.
In the 2020s, in lieu of regularly releasing original tracks, Cam & China became known for their viral freestyles over popular beats. They rapped over the instrumentals for Roddy Ricch’s “The Box,” Rich the Kid’s “New Freezer,” Mike Jones’ “Still Tippin’,” Jack Harlow’s “Whats Poppin,” and more. The sisters also took part in the popular YouTube freestyle series On the Radar.
“We work very hard at what we do. We’re very critical. We take rap serious,” China said in 2023, reflecting on her and her sister’s career and work ethic. “We’re very critical when it comes to hip-hop, rap, and just being creative, flow. So, seeing that, and getting my recognition for being authentic and talented, for rapping, is all that I care about.”