Mainstream Rap
Travis Scott, Gunna and Young Thug, Takeoff, and Tory Lanez are among Hip-Hop’s top talent facing crisis.
The hip-hop community continues to be affected by tragedy and legal disputes.
12/07/2022
Travis Scott is still dealing with the legal repercussions of the catastrophic Astroworld Festival in 2021. A trial for Gunna and Young Thug is set for the following year; they are now detained on RICO-related allegations. Takeoff, a member of the Migos and a cast member of “Feel the Fiyaaah,” was murdered on November 1. The immigration matter involving 21 Savage is still being handled. In the Megan shooting case, Tory Lanez is slammed with a third felony charge.
Travis Scott
In Travis Scott’s hometown festival, the 2021 Astroworld Festival, hundreds of victims claimed to have suffered injuries of varied severity. Eight individuals died on the evening of November 5, and two more guests subsequently passed away while being treated in hospitals, bringing the total number of victims to ten. The youngest of them was nine-year-old Ezra Blount, whose family declined Scott’s offer to pay for his funeral.
The offer to cover burial costs was allegedly made in a letter, and Scott’s legal team claimed that it would not affect the family’s lawsuit against the artist.
The lawsuit wasn’t the only legal action Scott had to deal with as a result of the tragedy. Scott and Drake, who both performed at the festival, were initially mentioned in the $750 million lawsuit, which was filed shortly after the disastrous crowd crush incident. Axel Acosta, 21, who was one of the victims, and at least 125 other festival attendees filed the case.
Gunna and Young Thug
A new court date has been set for Young Thug, Gunna, and 26 other defendants in a significant RICO case after the case was postponed. According to officials from the Fulton County Court, the new trial date has been scheduled for January 2023. Jury selection will also start on that day. The real identities of Young Thug and Gunna are Jeffery Williams and Sergio Kitchens, and they are both incarcerated among 23 other co-defendants waiting for trial.
Takeoff
According to Houston Police Chief Troy Finner, Patrick Xavier Clark, 33, has been accused of killing Migos rapper Takeoff. After Takeoff’s passing, the notification came roughly 31 days later. On November 1, Takeoff (real name Kirsnick Khari Ball), was shot and killed outside a party at a bowling alley in Downtown Houston. The shooting also resulted in two more injuries.
21 Savage
The effects of 21 Savage’s 2019 detention by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) personnel are still being felt. His case, which might result in him being deported to the United Kingdom because his Visa has expired, is still pending according to TMZ because of an active criminal investigation against him in DeKalb County, Georgia. The “a lot” rapper allegedly dumped a bottle of codeine outside his car, according to federal officials. Additionally, they found a weapon inside his car.
Tory Lanez
As he awaits the start of his trial for allegedly shooting Megan Thee Stallion in the feet more than two years ago, Tory Lanez has been charged with a third crime.
In the midst of the trial’s continuing jury selection, prosecutors introduced the new charge of negligently discharging a firearm on Monday.
Lanez, whose real name is Daystar Peterson, has previously entered a plea of not guilty to a single felony charge of assault with a semiautomatic weapon and a charge of transporting a loaded, unlicensed firearm. He is also accused of using a gun to cause serious bodily harm with his own hands.
The new charge is a deportable crime with a maximum six-year prison sentence. If found guilty on all counts, Peterson would still be subject to the same maximum sentence of 22 years and 8 months (the performer of Alone at Prom is a Canadian). Because the new accusation relates to the same alleged behavior, it doesn’t increase the exposure. Therefore, any associated sentence would be served concurrently.
EXCLUSIVE: Tory Lanez has been hit with a third felony charge as he awaits opening statements in his trial over claims he shot Megan Thee Stallion. https://t.co/91NyvwiDYp
— Rolling Stone (@RollingStone) December 6, 2022