Kaseem “Ka” Ryan, who died on Oct. 12 at 52. (Mark Shaw) Guest column by Jody Rosen October 21, 2024 at 4:08 p.m. EDT It is always nighttime in the music of the rapper and producer Ka. His songs are set in the wee hours, on dark avenues where bullets fly and on abandoned piers where triggermen dispose of murder weapons. When the scene shifts indoors, it is to low-lit, low-rent apartments that offer no sense of refuge or respite.