Tupac's Outlawz Rapper Young Noble Died by Suicide, Family Cites Depression, Financial Struggles

Tupac Shakur's protégé Young Noble died by suicide with a gunshot to the head on the morning of July 4 ... TMZ Hip Hop has confirmed. The Outlawz rapper's wife told police at the scene he had been battling significant depression.

According to police records, obtained by TMZ Hip Hop, Gwinnett County officers responded to a 911 call at 9 AM on Independence Day after someone claimed to have seen a man lying dead in the pool of a country club in Snellville, a distant suburb of Atlanta.

Police say they saw a man in tan cargo shorts and a black T-shirt sunken at the bottom of the pool with what appeared to be a gunshot wound to the right side of his head.

Cops say there was a spent shell casing on the bottom of the pool located about a foot away from the body, as well as a small black Beretta Tomcat .32 pistol.

Young Noble's wife told officers she last spoke to Noble around 2 AM, when he told her he was "going to drive around to clear my head" ... but she says he never returned, and her calls went to voicemail.

She noted Young Noble used to work in the music industry, but things had taken a turn for the worse. Because of his mounting depression, she told officers she had actively been trying to get him help.

She said Young Noble usually watched over the kids while she went to work -- they have a child with autism who can't be left alone -- but when he didn't return, she decided to drop off the kids at a relative's house, and she later spotted his parked car.

Noble's daughters also confirmed their father was depressed and facing financial hardship.

The 47-year-old is now the 5th Outlawz member, including Tupac, to pass away. The group released its only major-label album -- 1999's "Still I Rise" -- several years after Tupac's murder, covering themes such as African-American poverty, teenage pregnancy, and tragically, suicide.

He was also working as an advocate in the fight against diabetes up until his death. Young Noble's family has since started a GoFundMe account to cover expenses.