Thousands of family, friends and fans gathered to say farewell to late rapper PIMP C of rap duo UNDERGROUND KINGZ on Thursday (13Dec07).

Hip-hop heavyweights including Chamillionaire, Slim Thug, Mike Jones and Willie D of the Geto Boys showed up to pay respect to Pimp C - real name Chad Butler - at the Robert A. Bowers Civic Center in his hometown of Port Arthur, Texas.

The two-hour ceremony included touching eulogies read by the mayor of the southern city and Butler’s mother Weslyn Monroe, who said her son was in heaven with fellow late rap star Tupac Shakur.

Imitating her son’s southern drawl, she said, "He’s up there and he told them the Soooouth is here! He told ‘Pac to take a break because C got it for now." Guest Chamillionaire said, "You hear so many Southern artists and hear their styles and the influence that Pimp C and Bun B had on the whole culture. "We’re created off of them. It’s a very, very big loss to the hip-hop community and you are going to see the impact globally." Butler was found dead earlier this month (4Dec07) in bed at the Mondrian Hotel in Los Angeles at the age of 33. Officials say there were no signs of foul play though autopsy and toxicology results have not yet been released.