One rainy night outside a 7-Eleven Store, Russel's companions were killed in a drive-by shooting by a gang in a black Humvee. After the shooting, the spirits of Russel's friends came to reside in his body, the most prominent being Russel's best friend Del tha Ghost Rapper.
The idea of Russel having the spirit of rappers such as Del reside inside of him is what inspired the usage of collaborators in all Gorillaz albums from then onwards.