Rapper Young Thug to go to trial in gang, racketeering case

[jack]

Rapper Young Thug to go to trial in gang, racketeering case​

Rapper Young Thug, accused by prosecutors of co-founding a criminal street gang responsible for violent crimes and using his songs and social media to promote it, is set to go to trial starting Monday.

The Atlanta-based artist, whose given name is Jeffery Lamar Williams, was charged along with more than two dozen other people in a sprawling indictment last May, with more charges added in a second indictment in August. Fellow rapper Gunna, whose real name is Sergio Kitchens, was also charged.

Young Thug, 31, began rapping as a teenager and has become tremendously successful — performing around the world and starting his own record label, Young Stoner Life or YSL, where he serves as CEO. Artists on his record label are considered part of the “Slime Family,” and a compilation album, “Slime Language 2," rose to No. 1 on the charts in April 2021.

He co-wrote the hit “This is America” with Childish Gambino, which became the first hip-hop track to win the song of the year Grammy in 2019. His hits, including “Stoner” and “Best Friend,” feature his squeaky, high-pitched vocals.

But prosecutors say YSL also has a darker connotation — a violent street gang called Young Slime Life founded by Young Thug and two others in 2012 and affiliated with the national Bloods gang. The alleged gang members named in the indictment are accused of committing violent crimes — including murders, shootings and carjackings — to collect money for the gang, burnish its reputation and expand its power and territory.

The indictment includes rap lyrics that prosecutors allege are overt acts “in furtherance of the conspiracy,” including a line from a song they say Young Thug released on YouTube: “I'm in the VIP and I got that pistol on my hip, you prayin that you live I'm prayin that I hit." Another of his lyrics quoted in the indictment says, “I never killed anybody but I got something to do with that body.”

The original indictment charged 28 people with conspiracy to violate Georgia's Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations, or RICO, law and also included other charges against many of them. Fourteen of them are set to proceed to trial, which starts Monday and is expected to last months.

Eight others, including Gunna, have already taken plea deals in the case, and six — four of whom don't have lawyers and two who haven't been arrested — will be tried later, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported.

 

[jack]

What you need to know about the Young Thug trial​

Jury selection is underway for the massive Atlanta gang trial targeting Grammy award-winning Atlanta rapper Jeffery Williams known as Young Thug — and 13 others.

• The Fulton County District Attorney has zeroed in on an alleged gang named YSL or "Young Slime Life," but Williams maintains YSL is only a music label.

Why it matters: In her announcement of a 65-count indictment last May, District Attorney Fani Willis told reporters that gangs are responsible for an estimated 75-80% of all violent crime in Atlanta.

Driving the news: The charges range from murder and theft to aggravated assault and possession of illegal drugs. Prosecutors listed more than 370 possible witnesses, including hip-hop artist Lil Wayne. (A shooting of his tour bus in 2015 allegedly involved Wiliams and YSL.)

Be smart: Lawyers and the judge have estimated the massive trial could take six to twelve months. Jury selection could take weeks.

Catch up quick: Another high-profile defendant, Sergio Kitchens, also known as Gunna, pled guilty to one charge last month and was released. But in a statement reported by Fox 5, the rapper said the plea was “in my best interest” and maintains his innocence.

• He defended YSL as "a group of people from metro Atlanta who had common interests and artistic aspirations…I love and cherish my association with YSL music, and always will."

The intrigue: The trial has spurred a debate over the use of music lyrics as evidence against artists and whether it violates first amendment rights. The DA's indictment cites some of Young Thug's music, including the 2018 song "Anybody" where he wrote: "I never killed anybody but I got something to do with that body, I got the streets on my back…I told them to shoot a hundred rounds." The citation was not listed as connected to an incident.

• Young Thug last summer urged supporters to sign a petition to "Protect Black Art," challenging prosecutors' use of rap lyrics against artists in criminal prosecutions.

What they're saying: "This isn't just about me or YSL. I always use my music as a form of artistic expression and now I see that Black artists, rappers don't have that freedom," he said in a recorded call from jail.

The other side: Willis said last year she believes the lyrics are fair game. “I have some legal advice. Don’t confess to crimes on rap lyrics if you do not want them used,” she told reporters.

Of note: Rep. Hank Johnson (D-Ga.) last year introduced a bill to prohibit prosecutors from using lyrics against artists.

Between the lines: Willis' prosecution is centered on the state's racketeering or "RICO" law targeting a "pattern of racketeering activity," something she used successfully to prosecute educators in the 2015 Atlanta Public Schools cheating scandal.

• It's also a law many speculate she could also use to prosecute former president Trump and his allies.

Go deeper: 11 Alive’s documentary “Jeffrey” dives into the trial and Williams’ career.

 

[jack]

Lil Wayne Could Be Called To Testify In Young Thug Trial, Takeoff’s Alleged Killer Out On Bond​

Young Thug​

Jury selection for Young Thug’s YSL trial began this week in ATL. There are over 300 witnesses on the state’s list. The defense is planning to call music executives, Killer Mike, Thug’s dad, fiancé, and more to the stand. Prosecutors could call Lil Wayne, Birdman, & Rich Homie Quan. It’s not clear if they will. Gunna, who was recently released, could also be called to testify, but his lawyer says he’ll plead the fifth. The trial begins on Monday, January 9.