Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez says a Crown Heights man was sentenced for fatally shooting a Brooklyn rapper, Nick Blixky, in 2020.

Caliph Glean, 33, will serve 23 years to life behind bars for killing Nickalus "Blixky" Thompson, 21, in Prospect Lefferts Gardens, blocks from the rapper's home, on May 10.

Prosecutors say Glean approached Thompson just before 9:30 p.m. and shook his hand before drawing a gun. Glean waited for a witness to move out of view before opening fire, striking Thompson five times, two of those shots piercing his heart and lungs.

Thompson died at the hospital a short time later.

The up-and-coming rapper had over 40,000 followers on social media at the time of his death and was set to release his first mixtape the following month.

Glean attempted to evade law enforcement by concealing his identity following the shooting, according to the investigation.

Authorities arrested Glean in Philadelphia in June 2020. He was convicted of murder and criminal possession of a weapon in December 2025.

"This was a calculated killing carried out on a Brooklyn street. The defendant approached the victim, shook his hand and then fired numerous shots at point-blank range,” said DA Gonzalez. “As we continue to drive down crime in Brooklyn, acts of gun violence such as these will not be tolerated, and we will aggressively prosecute anyone who leaves families in mourning and communities fearing for their safety."