In Compton, California, Yetunde Price, sister of Serena and Venus Williams, was shot in the head by a gang member.
Serena Williams is part of one of the most well-known tennis siblings in history. However, tragedy has tainted their family; Serena and Venus Williams’ sister was cruelly murdered in a deadly drive-by shooting.
Following her presence in Kendrick Lamar’s halftime act during the Super Bowl LIX, 43-year-old Serena went viral, bringing the startling occurrence back to light.
When Kendrick sang “Not Like Us,” Serena made an appearance on one of the stages and performed a Crip Walk dance. The Grammy-winning song was written as a jab at Drake, Kendrick’s adversary, with whom Serena was allegedly romantically involved from 2011 to 2015.
After learning of the connections between the dance and the gang that murdered her sister, viewers were slightly taken aback when Serena performed the Crip Walk, also known as the C-Walk.
An explanation of Crip Walk
‘Sugar Bear’ was a member of the Los Angeles-based Crips gang and was formed in the 1970s by Robert Jackson.
Members of this notoriously violent street gang, known for their history of drug selling, robberies, and killings, used the dance to show their loyalty to the Crips.
It is technically challenging to perform and calls for people to quickly and carefully move their feet while typically spelling out the work C-R-I-P. Members of the Crip gang have used it in a more nefarious manner after killing a target.
With performances by musicians like Snoop Dogg, Ice-T, and Ice Cube at their concerts throughout the years, it made its way into the rap subculture along the USA’s West Coast.
The Crip Walk performed by Serena Williams
Throughout her life, Serena has chosen to do the Crip Walk several times.
With her sister Venus supporting her from the family box, she executed the iconic dance routine on Centre Court following her gold medal win at the 2012 Wimbledon Olympics.
She also did it during her ESPY Awards presentation in June of last year.
“Not a single one of us, not even me, should ever pick a fight with Kendrick Lamar,” she stated, seemingly alluding to her claimed ex-boyfriend Drake’s feud with the Compton rapper.
While Kendrick performed ‘Not Like Us’ in the 2025 Super Bowl in New Orleans, Serena made another appearance and performed the C-Walk. She earlier stated, in reference to the song: “I’m jamming when they play that riff. Jamming is what that jam is.
The murder of Serena Williams’ sister and the discovery by fans
The terrible death of Yetunde Price after Serena’s Crip Walk performance at the Super Bowl alerted some spectators to the Crips’ ties to the Williams family.
Venus and Serena’s half-sister was Yetunde. However, a Crips gang member shot her in the head during a drive-by shooting in 2003 when she was just 31 years old.
When she and her partner parked their SUV, they unintentionally parked it in front of a Compton crack house. Members of the Crips gang who were watching the residence became suspicious and started shooting at the automobile because they thought it was associated with a rival gang.
Price was shot once in the head and was declared dead in the hospital shortly after.
The day before the third trial for Price’s murder, 25-year-old Robert Edward Maxfield entered a no contest plea to voluntary manslaughter. A mistrial had occurred in the previous two trials.
Naturally, Serena and her family were crushed by the loss. In 2004, she told PEOPLE, “She was a wonderful person.” We’re handling it as best we can. Not every day is as good as others.
After learning that a Crip gang member had slain Serena’s sister, Super Bowl viewers went to social media.
One viewer commented, “Serena Williams’ sister was killed by a Crip in a drive-by shooting and she had the audacity to Crip Walk during Kendrick Lamar’s halftime show… indefensible,” in response to Serena performing the well-known Crip Walk on television.
Someone more wrote: “You have the audacity to Crip Walk when your sister was killed by a Crip.”
And a third said: “Oh my God, why did I only now learn that Crips killed Serena Williams’ sister? “What the f**k?” She must truly despise Drake.
Sister Venus responded to earlier claims that the dance glorified gang violence by saying, “It was just a dance.”
“Some of you have no idea how criticized Serena was for this same dance at Wimbledon 13 years ago, and it shows,” wrote Serena’s husband Alexis Ohanian on Instagram after performing at the 2025 Super Bowl. The music is not as important as this.