'He's still here': Friends release posthumous track of slain Seattle rapper Trevon McKoy left unfinished tracks behind when he was fatally shot at Seattle Center in April

Shakir Robinson, left, and brother Amir Muhammad, were both close friends with Trevon McKoy, who was fatally shot in the head April 1, 2018 at Seattle Center after a rap performance at The Vera Project. Robinson performed as his DJ that night and Muhammad expected to go to school with him the next day at Bellevue College. less Shakir Robinson, left, and brother Amir Muhammad, were both close friends with Trevon McKoy, who was fatally shot in the head April 1, 2018 at Seattle Center after a rap performance at The Vera Project. ... more Photo: Lynsi Burton/SeattlePI Photo: Lynsi Burton/SeattlePI Image 1 of / 29 Caption Close 'He's still here': Friends release posthumous track of slain Seattle rapper 1 / 29 Back to Gallery

Trevon McKoy's friends didn't realize how famous he was until after he died.

He might have gotten two retweets on Twitter for a new track he released when he was alive, they said, but in anticipation of a posthumous song released Tuesday, people all over Instagram changed their profile pictures to the track's cover art. They heard from fans across the United States about how his music touched them.

"Why didn't they do it when he was alive?" friend and DJ Shakir Robinson asked Monday.

RELATED: 'He was everything': Friends remember slain Seattle rapper, basketball player

McKoy, a 21-year-old known by his rap name, JuiceTheGod, was a Bellevue College basketball player and West Seattle-based rapper when he was shot in the head early the morning of April 1 after he finished a performance at Seattle Center's The Vera Project, with Robinson backing him with his beats.

On Tuesday, Robinson released "Everyday," a posthumous track by McKoy that he turned into a postcard of sorts, containing greetings from family, friends and fans who mourn him.

Warning: This song contains explicit lyrics

McKoy's slaying remains unsolved. The Seattle Police Department confirmed Monday that they're still investigating the case without releasing any details.

At the time of his death, he was working on a solo album and had planned to follow that up with a joint effort with Robinson.

"Everyday" was the only song recorded for the duo's mix tape, Robinson said, playing it back on his computer while wearing a denim jacket and hooded sweatshirt featuring McKoy's image. He'd sent the beat to McKoy in December and McKoy told him not to sell it; he wanted to use the beat, himself.

He pulled up old texts with him to remember the date.

Robinson reached out to people on social media to contribute to the song with tributes and fielded dozens of voice memos from people such as his grandmother, cousin, aunt and brother.

"I love you so much, Trevon," his aunt said in one voice memo. "I miss you dearly. You are definitely missed, baby."

Fans from as far as San Francisco and Louisiana contributed, as well as a basketball player he used to play with who's now playing in Germany.

"It shows how loved he was," Robinson said.

McKoy's rhymes last for two minutes, while the tributes persist for another 11 minutes.

"A lot of people we didn't know knew him," said Amir Muhammad, Robinson's brother who attended Bellevue College with McKoy every day. "He's really famous, but we didn't know that when he was alive."

Every day remains a shock that McKoy is gone.

"It's still like April 1," Muhammad said.

He was known to call his friends multiple times a day, each day. Robinson recalled that McKoy would FaceTime him about five times a day, even if he didn't have anything new to say.

Friends still maintain a vigil at the intersection of 24th Avenue Southwest and Southwest Kenyon Street in the Delridge neighborhood of West Seattle, where he grew up and shot some of his music videos. People still bring candles and adorn the stop sign at the corner with "money rags," bandanas with a dollar bill print he was known to wear with friends.

Muhammad endures his grief by continuing to listen to McKoy's music.

"It's like he's still here," he said of the tracks. "We're trying to make him famous even though he's gone."

Robinson is now a custodian of McKoy's legacy, with five more tracks to drop that he'd already recorded. He plans to space out their release to extend the interest in his work.

"I know what to do with the music and how to do it strategically," Robinson said. "... That's what he wanted, for everyone to listen to his music."

The song is available on iTunes, Spotify, Tidal and SoundCloud.

Though it's bittersweet to see McKoy's star rise after his death, his friends hope his influence will continue for a long time to come.

"We just want the music to last a long time," Muhammad said.

SeattlePI reporter Lynsi Burton can be reached at 206-448-8381 or lynsiburton@seattlepi.com. Follow her on Twitter at @LynsiBurton_PI. Find more from Lynsi here.