In a year that's seen the death of Phife Dawg, Prince and David Bowie, yet another legendary musician has died unexpectedly. Just this morning (Dec. 25), George Michael passed away at the age of 53, and the music world lost one of its brightest talents.

Billboard reports the singer died due to heart failure. His publicist provided a statement about Michael's passing. "It is with great sadness that we can confirm our beloved son, brother and friend George passed away peacefully at home over the Christmas period. The family would ask that their privacy be respected at this difficult and emotional time. There will be no further comment at this stage," the statement reads.

Michael has been described as a post-disco artist, but the shadow of his influence stretches all the way to the rap game. AZ's Nas collaboration "Time" sampled the late singer's song, "Careless Whisper," while Slim Thug's "Miss Mary" used the Symphonica creator's track "A Moment With You."

With that in mind, George Michael's untimely death has already sent some shock waves through the world of hip-hop. Shortly after news began to spread, Questlove let the world know just how upset he was with a succinct, but heartfelt tweet. "I don't have it in me anymore to write about our greats. I just knew one day I'd get to work with #GeorgeMichael. Sad Christmas," The Roots member tweeted.

Joe Budden shared a similar sentiment, tweeting out a simple "SMH," before saying, "RIP George Michael." Meanwhile, 9th Wonder tweeted out a picture of a younger George Michael for his Twitter tribute.

Today, we're taking a look at hip-hop luminaries reacting to the talented singer's death on social media. You can see what they had to say for yourself in our gallery below.

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