Kidd Creole
Kidd Creole was arrested on Wednesday on murder charges after a homeless man was found with multiple stab wounds to his torso. Instagram/Thekiddcreole

Kidd Creole, a founding member of the 1980s rap group Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five, has been charged with murder following the fatal stabbing of a homeless man in New York.

According to TMZ, the 58-year-old was taken into police custody on Wednesday (2 August) following an altercation with the victim, identified as 55-year-old John Jolly on 21 July. Surveillance footage was used to identify Creole.

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The trailblazing emcee, real name Nathaniel Glover, allegedly used a small knife to stab Jolly twice in the chest and once in the head after the deceased allegedly made homophobic comments.

"They had no prior relationship," the source said. "They had words. Things got out of hand. It was some sort of diss."

Police said Jolly, who lived in a shelter and was a registered sex offender, later died at Bellevue Hospital.

"There were six people there, all tourists, all trying to help him," Van Scott, a witness who tried to help, told Daily News. "They thought he was overcome by the heat and then they saw he was stabbed. We just waited for the paramedics to come."

Formed in the South Bronx in the late 70s rap group Grandmaster Flash and the Furious originally consisted of Joseph ' Grandmaster Flash' Saddler, Keith 'Cowboy' Wiggins, Melvin 'Melle Mel' Glover and Kidd Creole.

Wiggins is credited for coining the term 'hip hop' and the group's greatest hits include The Message, White Lines (Don't Don't Do It) and Step Off.

In 2007, they made history by becoming the first rap act to be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.