Who is Will Keeps? All about the rapper shot in Des Moines school shooting

Well-known rapper Will Keeps was injured following a shooting incident during an educational mentorship program at a nonprofit organization called Starts Right Here in Des Moines. Two students were also injured in the incident but did not survive. Keeps was immediately hospitalized and had to undergo surgery.

Three suspects have been arrested and the charges against them include first-degree murder, attempted murder, and criminal gang participation. One of the accused was Preston Walls, who was 18 years old and has been taken to the Polk County Jail.

Walls started firing at all those who were present at the event and while Keeps tried to take everyone to safety, he was injured. Walls ran away from the spot but was tracked down by the police officers. Two more people have also been arrested, although their identities remain unknown.

According to Sgt Paul Parize of the Des Moines Police Department, the victims and suspects were mostly associated with different gangs, and criminal activities were a result of some dispute between the gangs.

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Will Keeps gained recognition as a rapper in the 90s

Will Keeps is mostly known as the founder of Starts Right Here (Image via willkeeps28/Twitter)

Born in 1973, Will Keeps is also known as William Holmes. He faced a lot of issues during his childhood and had a lot of problems at home as he was a victim of s**ual abuse.

Keeps was getting a lot of bad thoughts in the next few years as he tried to find a place where he could settle permanently. He eventually decided to join a gang starting with The Blackstones in Chicago and was only 13 years old at the time.

One of his friends was murdered by a rival gang member in front of him and he also became the victim of an incident where he was injured after being hit by a baseball bat. But he managed to survive and decided to dedicate his entire life to saving the lives of others.

He joined the ManUp Iowa program and became a mentor for the youth. Before that, he shifted to Des Moines and decided to do something for which people will remember him for a lifetime. He then established the Starts Right Here to prevent youth violence.

While speaking at the Des Moines Register's Storytellers Project in 2018, he said:

"I thought the streets was my family. I thought these people on the streets would have my back more than my own family would. I thought that they would protect me more than my own family would."

Will Keeps pursued his career as a rapper after moving to Iowa, and while his kids asked him to create a single related to the community, he said that he created something that spoke about opening people up in such a way that they could listen and understand each other.

Detailed information about his life is yet to be revealed.