Hip hop on trial: 5 high-profile rappers at the center of courtroom drama

Five of the biggest names in hip hop are currently at the center of high-profile trials for murder, gang activity and assault with a firearm.

Taking center stage right now is Young Thug and his ongoing RICO trial in Georgia.

The alleged suspect in the 1996 death of Tupac Shakur remains on house arrest in Nevada after being charged in the rap icon’s homicide.

The alleged killer of Migos rapper Takeoff awaits trial in Houston.

Rapper YNW Melly faces the death penalty as he heads toward his retrial in a double murder case in Florida.

A$AP Rocky, who is the father of Rihanna’s kids, is heading to trial for allegedly shooting his childhood friend on the corner of a Los Angeles street over two years ago.

Dr. A.D. Carson, a professor of hip hop culture at the University of Virginia, told Newsweek it is important to focus on the facts in these cases rather than judging the artists on their artistic endeavors.

“If this is supposed to be a country of laws, and these laws are supposed to be enforced consistently, then it is absolutely antithetical to what the laws say that an artist, because they make rap music, is somehow engaging in some kind of confession because of what they say in those songs,” Carson said in an interview with Newsweek.

Carson spoke about how the public perception of rap has impacted the trials of many famous hip hop artists.

“There’s a chapter in this book that I’ve written about this particular kind of thing where rappers are scapegoated,” Carson said. “And of course, it is atrocious when it happens to someone who is well-known, or to somebody who’s famous, or to somebody who is wealthy, because those people we presume deserve all of the same kinds of protections that any other citizen deserves.”

It can be even more difficult to navigate the justice system and public perception for rappers who are not famous, Carson explained.

“It seems that there’s a whole lot of work that that person has to do to get out from underneath the weight of the presumptions that also go along with the title or the sort of the way that the word prescribes all kind of baggage,” Carson said.

Young Thug Accused of Gang Activity

Young Thug, whose real name is Jeffrey Lamar Williams, is on trial in Georgia for charges related to racketeering conspiracy and participation in criminal street gang activity, along with drug and gun charges.

Besides his rap career, Williams is the CEO of the record label Young Stoner Life, or YSL. Prosecutors claim that YSL could also stand for Young Slime Life, an alleged violent street gang in Atlanta. Prosecutors also claim that Willams is one of the founders of the gang.

An additional 27 associates were indicted in the case as well.

The trial has been going on for over a year and has been filled with delays and difficulties, including several arrests during the proceedings. Jury selection began in January of 2023 and ended 10 months later, after contraband was brought into the courtroom and a defense attorney and courtroom deputy were arrested.

The trial was delayed another month in December 2023 after one of the co-defendants, Shannon Stillwell, was stabbed multiple times during a fight at the Fulton County Jail.

A witness was arrested on Friday after they refused to testify against Williams. Lil Woody, whose real name is Kenneth Copeland, was ordered to be held in contempt of court. Copeland tried to use his Fifth Amendment right to stay silent and avoid testifying, but he had already been granted immunity in exchange for his testimony.

Williams’ defense attorney, Brian Steel, was arrested for contempt of court on Monday. Judge Ural Glanville made the decision to take Steel into custody after he refused to share his source for information shared in a meeting between the judge, the prosecution and Copeland.

Before being taken away, Steel asked Glanville to rule a mistrial.

“Mr. Williams does not wish to move forward without me being here,” Steel said. “You are removing me against his will, my will. You’ve taken away his right to counsel and you’re conducting material parts of this trial without me present, and I can’t learn about it by watching online.”

Glanville denied the request but said he’ll “take that under advisement.”

At the center of the trial is the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act, a federal law that allows for harsher punishments for people who commit illegal acts in connection with a criminal organization.

Williams’ legal team has argued that the rapper’s music, which references shooting and drugs, is not a reflection of his real life and he does not have the time to lead a gang due to his success and busy schedule. Some of his music has been played as evidence during the trial.

“In this case, the fact that these people have misguided notions about rap and rappers becomes a way that the so-called justice system can take shortcuts,” Carson said.

Carson does not think the charges Williams is facing will affect his fan base.

“I imagine that consistent news coverage, consistent updates, I believe, keep people thinking about him and his music,” Carson said. “And so I don’t know that the case has a damaging effect on fans.”

Williams has pleaded not guilty to all charges.

The Steel Law firm told Newsweek said they were “unable to respond” to a request for comment “due to the demands of this ongoing trial.”

Newsweek also reached out to the Fulton County District Attorney for comment.

Suspect Charged in Tupac’s Death to Stand Trial

The trial for the man accused of murdering rapper Tupac Shakur is slated to begin in November.

Duane “Keffe D” Davis, a former gang leader, was arrested for the rap icon’s murder last year after he claimed he had some involvement with the murder in a book. Davis claims he was in the car that shots were fired from and he provided the murder weapon. However, he claimed his nephew fired the fatal shots the killed Tupac, not him.

The trial was originally scheduled to start on June 3, but Davis’ new attorney, Carl E.G. Arnold, requested to move the start date to give him time to review evidence and prepare.

Davis has pleaded not guilty to the murder charge. He faces life in prison if convicted.

Davis is the only person accused of being involved in the murder that is still alive.

Arnold has argued that Davis, who is 60 years old and battling cancer, should be released from custody due to his age and health. Arnold has also said his client is innocent and the confession in the book was fictional.

Shakur was 25 years old when he was fatally shot in September of 1996 while he was inside a car stopped at a red light in Las Vegas. He was considered to be one of the most successful rappers during his career, with hits such as “California Love” and “Changes.”

Carson discussed the significance of finally reaching a trial in the previously unsolved case.

“It will give people some closure, like Tupac’s family and the fans who have been speculating about the case for the past 30 years,” Carson said.

He explained that some people may view the case a bit differently.

“In some ways people might look at this, take a cynical view and say that this is just a way that a police department is trying to create positive PR for it, so to make it seem as if they’re doing a job that they have not been able to do for the past 30 years,” Carson said. “And I can certainly understand if folks approach thing in that way.”

Newsweek reached out to Arnold and the Clark County District Attorney’s Office for comment.

Murder Suspect in Migos Member’s Death Awaits Trial

The man accused of killing Migos rap group member Takeoff, whose real name is Kirsnick Khari Ball, is awaiting trial according to his defense attorney.

Patrick Xavier Clark was charged with murder in May of last year. Clark is accused of fatally shooting Ball outside of a bowling alley in Houston in 2022. Ball was 28 years old.

The incident allegedly occurred after a large fight broke out over a dice game at a private party.

Ball was a member of the rap group Migos along with his uncle Quavo, whose real name is Quavious Keyate Marshall, and their friend Offset, whose real name is Kiari Kendrell Cephus. The group had several popular songs, including “Versace” and “Bad and Boujee.”

Clark pleaded not guilty to the murder charge.

Defense attorney Letitia D. Quinones-Hollins maintained her client’s innocence when reached for comment by Newsweek.

“Patrick Clark is a tax-paying citizen who has no criminal record, and we believe in his innocence and we believe that at the end of the trial, if it gets that far, we believe that he will be completely 100% exonerated,” Quinones-Hollins said.

She also said her team believes they have a “viable” claim of self-defense or defense of others.

Carson said he hopes this trial will help bring justice as well.

“I again hope for closure and hope for justice for his family, for his friends and for his fans,” Carson said.

Newsweek reached out to the Harris County District Attorney’s Office for comment.

YNW Melly Faces Retrial for Double Murder

A double murder trial against rapper YNW Melly is still delayed after a mistrial last year. The rapper, whose birth name is Jamell Demons, remains behind bars for his alleged role in the 2018 shooting deaths of his two childhood friends.

YNW Melly, 25, is accused of murdering his two friends, Anthony D’Andre Williams (YNW Sakchaser) and Christopher Jermaine Thomas Jr. (YNW Juvy).

The group was recording at a studio. Williams and Thomas were driven to the hospital by another friend, Cortlen Malik Henry (YNW Bortlen) after what he and YNW Melly claimed was a drive-by shooting.

Police later said Henry and YNW Melly orchestrated the killings, with YNW Melly pulling the trigger and Henry helping to cover the situation up.

YNW Melly and Henry were both arrested on Feb. 13, 2019. YNW Melly pleaded not guilty.

On July 22, 2023, over a month after the start of the trial, Judge John Murphy declared a mistrial after the jury remained deadlocked on the charges for three days. They were at a 9-to-3 vote in favor of convicting the rapper on lesser offenses of manslaughter.

The trial was paused in May for the legal ruling of a video from YNW Melly’s YouTube channel as evidence.

Carson said he takes issue with a creative work tied to YNW Melly’s rap persona being used as evidence.

“There seems to be a double standard when it come to rap as art, rap as music, or rap music videos, rap media, and the kind of engagement in persona, in writing, in creativity,” Carson said. “And it’s not the same standard that other arts are held to.”

Newsweek reached out to defense attorney David Howard for comment but did not hear back.

The prosecutor, Kristine Bradley, was removed from the case.

“Even if it is unnecessary to disqualify the entire State Attorney’s Office, courts must disqualify individual prosecutors when a defendant has been irreparably harmed and has suffered actual prejudice,” Murphy said in court filings.

If convicted, YNW Melly faces either life in prison without parole or the death penalty. The jury will only need to have at least eight of the 12 appointees agree to recommend the death penalty under Gov. Ron DeSantis’s new non-unanimous death sentence law.

Due to YNW Melly’s most popular single being titled “Murder on My Mind,” the public has gained interest in the young rapper’s case.

The song was originally uploaded onto SoundCloud on March 4, 2017 and focuses on the singer’s hypothetical homicidal ideation. The lyrics depict a graphic story of the rapper shooting a close friend and having the friend die slowly in his arms. The rapper apparently thought of the chorus for the song when he was first incarcerated at 16 years old.

YNW had collaborated in the past with controversial rapper Kanye West as well as late rapper Juice WRLD.

Kendrick Lamar’s song “Euphoria,” which was released as a diss track toward Drake, has a verse that reads “Yeah, Cole and Aubrey know I’m selfish/ The crown is heavy, I pray they my real friends/ But if not, I’m YNW Melly.”

A$AP Rocky Accused of Assault with a Firearm

Rapper A$AP Rocky is heading to trial in October for allegedly shooting his childhood friend on the corner of a Los Angeles street over two years ago.

The rapper, whose real name is Rakim Mayers, has pleaded not guilty to two counts of assault with a semiautomatic firearm after allegedly firing shots at rapper A$AP Relli.

It remains to be seen whether Rihanna will be at the trial to support her partner. Carson said whether she will be there or not will most likely be a strategic move.

“In a twisted kind of way, it provides an opportunity for free publicity and if she wants her brand associated with what he’s being accused of or wants to use her significant spotlight to try to eclipse the details of what he’s being accused of, those will be calculated decisions that they deal with as they come,” Carson said.

Newsweek attempted to reach out to A$AP’s lawyer, Sara Caplan, via phone and email on multiple occasions but did not hear back.

In a preliminary hearing last November, prosecutors showed video of the alleged gun assault from Nov. 6, 2021 at the corner of Selma and Vista Del Mar Avenues in Hollywood.

The video shows a man, whose face is not seen, walking down the sidewalk near a parking garage. He turns and starts fighting another person. The two back out of the camera’s view with their hands still around each other’s necks. A third person tries to break up the two.

Prosecutors said the video captured the start of the altercation between A$AP Rocky and A$AP Relli, whose legal name is Terell Ephron.

Joseph Tacopina’s office, which is representing Relli, told Newsweek the attorney would not be making any comments.

While the video shown has no audio, other surveillance clips from separate buildings nearby captured the sound of alleged gunfire.

In his testimony, Relli claimed he was a victim of an armed ambush. He had allegedly sent A$AP Rocky a text about how the rapper is “big-headed” and wouldn’t pay for funeral expenses for a friend as promised. A$AP Rocky never responded to the text but after an alleged phone call a week later, the two agreed to talk face-to-face. Relli testified that was the set up for the alleged shooting.

A$AP Rocky, 35, has a trial date set for October 21. If the rapper plans to file a motion to dismiss the case it must be done by July 19, according to the judge.

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