‘Never gave no statement’: Rapper Gunna drops first single since plea deal release in YSL RICO case
Gunna #Gunna
In his first release since being indicted in the Young Stoner Life Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act case, rapper Gunna speaks on a lot of allegations surrounding his decision to take a negotiated plea, known as an Alford plea, back in December 2022.
“Never gave no statement or agreed to take no stand on ‘em,” Gunna says on Bread & Butter. “Lawyers and the DA did some sneaky (explicit), I fell for it.”
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The rapper released the track titled Bread & Butter by dropping a video to his Youtube page.
Since taking the Alford plea, Gunna has received a lot of backlash in the Hip Hop community. In an Alford plea, a defendant doesn’t admit he committed the crime, but acknowledges that it is in his best interest to plead guilty.
Rappers like Lil Durk and Lil Boosie have publicly called Gunna a “rat,” suggesting that he snitched on rapper Young Thug in exchange for his freedom.
Young Thug, whose real name is Jeffery Williams, along with 26 others was arrested in May 2022 in a sweeping gang indictment that claimed YSL is a violent criminal street gang that has committed multiple murders, shootings and carjackings over the course of a decade. Prosecutors said that the rappers promoted the gang’s activities in songs and on social media.
“Love my bro so much, never changed on him,” Gunna raps on the new single.
In his statement back in December 2022, Gunna said that when he joined YSL in 2016, he didn’t consider it a gang, but “more like a group of people from metro Atlanta who had common interests and artistic aspirations. My focus of YSL was entertainment — rap artists who wrote and performed music that exaggerated and ‘glorified’ urban life in the Black community.”
Gunna said he cherishes his association with YSL music and always will.
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During his December 2022 court appearance, the rapper said he wouldn’t testify in the case, despite the fact that’s it’s a condition of his release. If he is called he can claim the Fifth Amendment.
The rapper also swore at that court appearance that he has personal knowledge that members or associates of YSL have committed crimes in furtherance of the gang — but seemed to distance himself from “YSL the gang” versus “YSL the label.”
“I recognize, accept, and deeply regret that my talent and music indirectly furthered YSL the gang to the detriment of my community,” Gunna acknowledged in the signed statement. “YSL as a gang must end.”
Gunna also attested in the plea deal that he was in a car with Williams when officers pulled them over and found hydrocodone, methamphetamine and a firearm. According to the plea agreement, Gunn claimed the gun and drugs weren’t his. It’s unclear if anyone else was in the car at the time.
Per the plea agreement, the rapper has to perform 500 hours of community service, a substantial portion of which will require him to speak to young people about the hazards and immorality of gangs and gang violence.
He is also not allowed to carry a gun during the term of his sentence. If he violates the terms of the plea agreement, the district attorney has the right to revoke his suspended sentence.
Young Thug remains in jail. Trial proceedings have started, but jury selection is still not complete, despite proceedings starting in January.
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