Fat Joe has defended Young Thug by claiming he’s lied in “95 percent” of the songs that he’s released throughout his career.
During an appearance on CNN with Gayle King, the Bronx rapper called it “horrible” and a “travesty” that Thugga’s lyrics can be used against him in his YSL RICO case.
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“I’ve been rapping professionally for 30 years — I’ve lied in almost 95 percent of my songs,” Joe began. “I’m being honest. I write like I feel that day. I’m just being creative. You couldn’t build a jail high enough for the lyrics I’ve said on songs which are all untrue.
“What I am is a family man, the person who gives back to my community all the time, opens businesses in my community. So the music would never amount to the actual person, Joseph Cartagena.”
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He continued: “What’s even more horrible is that the district attorneys, they know those lyrics ain’t real. They know that’s creativity. But if it helps their case, they’ll use it to put these guys in jail.
“And here, we’re having a fun show about it and discussion, but there really is six defendants in Atlanta who might spend the rest of their lives in jail for something that’s totally not true. This is very serious. This destroys families.”
Fat Joe also warned that the YSL RICO case sets a worrying precedent as Young Thug is the first artist of his stature to have his own lyrics used against him in court.
“This case right here is setting such a precedence in America because they’ve used this before in up-and-coming, aspiring artists — they’ve never took a guy off the stage in the arena,” he said.
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“You know, a No. 1 artist that my daughter and all the kids look up to, and say, ‘No, you going on trial for this.’ It’s nasty work, it’s real nasty work.”
In November, Atlanta Journal-Constitution‘s Jozsef Papp revealed some of the lyrics that could be used against Young Thug in the trial.
The lyrics include: “I just beat a murder rap, paid my lawyer 30 for that/ Me and my slimes above the law,” from 2018’s “Just How It Is” and “Honestly truth be told YSL won’t fold/ Pick his ass off from the balcony/ YSL wipe a n-gga nose,” from 2014’s “Eww.”
Upon hearing of the judge’s decision to allow rap lyrics to be used as evidence in the courtroom, fellow Atlanta rapper Killer Mike admitted the development “scares” him.
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“This decision scares me. This threatens all Americans’ 1st Amendment rights in my opinion. Please read #RapOnTrial,” he said, referencing the 2019 book Rap On Trial: Race, Lyrics, and Guilt in America.
After almost a year of delays, disruptions and frequent drama, the YSL RICO trial got underway on Monday (November 27). It’s expected to last for at least six months and Thug faces life in prison if convicted on all charges.
