Uncle Luke Honored By DJ Khaled, Pitbull & More At His Birthday Party
By Tony M. Centeno
December 29, 2023
Luther "Uncle Luke" Campbell was celebrated by the hometown artists he inspired and worked with throughout the course of his iconic career.
On Thursday night, December 28, the groundbreaking Miami rapper was honored during an intimate gathering of his loved one and peers in celebration of his birthday. The lavish, Hip Hop 50-themed event began with live music from hitmaker Bigg D's band. Special guests like Trick Daddy and Miami-Dade County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava were spotted mingling before surprise speaker Pitbull hit the stage to pay tribute to Luke. During his speech, Pit presented Luke with the Pioneer Legacy Award and donated $100,000 to Luke's foundation, Liberty City Optimist Club.
"You have taught us what it is to hustle, what it is to grind, what it is to fight, what it is to own, but most of all you taught us what it is to give back," Pitbull said. "There is no bass music, Trick Daddy, Trina, (Rick) Ross, Poison Clan, JT Money, DJ Khaled, DJ Laz, Pitbull and I can keep going down the pipeline of all South Florida, Florida and at this point the whole muthaf**kin' world without you."
Afterward, other speakers like Big Teach and DJ Khaled also hit the stage to honor Luke and his contributions to the music industry. Khaled told the story of how Luke recruited him from underground radio and gave him his first major hosting duty in Miami radio. Later on, the "Supposed To Be Loved" artist thanked Luke and also pledged $50,000 to the artist's non-profit organization.
"I learned from Luke not only how to rep my city, because that's what we do in Dade County 305, but also to love my city," Khaled said during his speech. "He also taught me about not just giving back but giving back and being in the field and giving back. Shout out to my beautiful wife Nicole, we started a foundation called We The Best Foundation and we make sure that not only we give back but also we get in the field and touch the kids and people... I've always loved the kids but when you become a father it's our duty with our blessings to give back to all the kids. So We The Best Foundation wants to give $50,000 to [Luke's] foundation."
The event wrapped up with a special performance from DJ Nasty 305 and a troupe of dancers who paid homage to Luke's historic discography. Check out Khaled's speech and other moments from the event below.