He went by Playbwoi because he was always about the ladies.
The childhood nickname, given to him by his uncle, would later turn into the full moniker of Playbwoi Tha Great. Cornell Davis led the Midwest as a musical staple out of Indianapolis. The 37-year-old would sign under Boosie and work with other nationally recognized artists like NBA Youngboy.
It’s not known how far his career would have gone, since the prominent rapper and producer was killed on the city’s east side earlier this month. Video captures him entering the home of a woman he was involved with, before he would be heard being fatally shot inside her apartment. He leaves behind two sons and many who loved him.
“He loved very hard, and that’s what got him in the most trouble,” Lakiesha Walton, the mother of his oldest, told IndyStar. “I don’t know what his deal was with women, but he couldn’t let go easily.”
His name would be involved in numerous police reports for harassment and disturbances with other women. He was charged in 2020 for violating a protective order, but was found not guilty. Despite any troubled relationships over the years, his impact was felt in the musical space created for Indianapolis.
Walton hurts especially for their 17-year-old son, who does music under the name Cowbwoi, and who would look to his father for advice.
Family first, Becoming Playbwoi
Davis grew up in Indianapolis, but he was born in Michigan City in north Indiana.
At 9 years old, when he and his cousin were bored, Davis said in an interview with DJ Smallz Eyez that they would record themselves rapping over a beat. That’s where he fell in love with music.
Walton and Davis met when they were both 17 at the annual collegiate bike racing event, Little 500, in Bloomington.
“I knew him as Cornell. I never looked at him as Playbwoi,” Walton said. “Honestly, the biggest thing that drew me to him was that he was really kind. He had a big heart. I had my son at 19 years old. We dated up until my son was six.”
Davis started professionally pursuing music as a young adult.
And although Walton said they’d grown apart, even with his growing popularity, Davis was always accessible to his son, even taking him on stage to perform together.
A career putting Indianapolis on the map
Jon Howe is an audio engineer and owner of City Dump Records, which opened its studio doors 14 years ago.
Howe and Davis made music together for the past 12 years. Howe said the rapper’s work ethic was remarkable.
“When I first started the studio, he would be in there nonstop,” Howe said. “Like, I would have to ask him to leave sometimes.”
Howe got to tour and travel with the rapper on the road, and their kids would play together growing up.
“A lot of people know him from his association with Boosie, and that meeting happened at our studio,” Howe said. “Boosie got booked for a feature, and I was recording him. Playbwoi was next door working on beats. Boosie overheard the music, and he was so impressed that he walked next door.”
Howe called Davis a perfectionist. Davis not liking a syllable in a word would lead to take after take in the studio. They could be finished recording a song, when Davis would want to re-record it. Then there were times when issues in his personal life would arise at the studio.
“I’ll never forget he got his car egged one time by some chick,” Howe said. “I had girls knocking on the studio door, and he’d be like, don’t answer the door, bro.”
Woman says Davis came to her home before being shot
Jermyla Moore, 21, says Davis was her best friend.
They had good days, and they had bad, with an on-and-off relationship over the past two years.
“But we never went over 48 hours without talking,” Moore told IndyStar. “He was a protector, a provider, a great father. He was with me at a time when I really needed him, and he really needed me. We always took care of each other.”
Their relationship wasn’t always healthy, often ending in arguments before they would reconcile.
Just before 9 p.m. on May 5, 2026, Davis came to Moore’s apartment in the 6000 block of Windsor Drive. Ring door camera footage captures Davis walking up to her door. He’s seen messing with the handle for at least 36 seconds in the video, and at one point, he knocks.
“Did you break in my door?” Moore is heard saying on the other side, while Davis is seen trying to push the door open more forcefully. In the edited clip shared online, the scene cuts to the door open, and Davis is inside. Moore is heard telling him to get out before several shots ring out.
Indianapolis Metropolitan Police were called and found Davis injured inside the apartment. He was pronounced dead at the scene.
A man at the apartment with Moore was detained at the scene but later released after police consulted with the Marion County Prosecutor’s Office.
“He didn’t deserve to lose his life. I didn’t deserve to watch it,” Moore said. “I keep asking God, why? Why did he shoot? Why couldn’t I save him? I just want him back.”
Police said the shooting remains an ongoing investigation.
Services for Davis are scheduled for May 22 in La Porte, Indiana.
Jade Jackson is a public safety reporter for the Indianapolis Star. You can email her at Jade.Jackson@IndyStar.com and follow her on X, formerly Twitter @IAMJADEJACKSON.
This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: ‘I knew him as Cornell.’ Playbwoi Tha Great’s killing under investigation
Reporting by Jade Jackson, Indianapolis Star / Indianapolis Star
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
