T.I. is one of many hip-hop colleagues who celebrated the freedom of Young Thug, who recently took a plea deal in the YSL RICO case. He pleaded guilty to various counts in the indictment against him, save for a nolo or no contest plea for the RICO count and the gang leader count, which resulted in the judge commuting his five-year sentence to time served and releasing him from prison on 15 years of probation. The details are a bit more complex, but that’s the main idea. Recently, the two Atlanta rappers hopped on a FaceTime call, and Tip was with a large group of people who were very happy to see Thugger out and about.
“As far as Jeffery is feeling now, he knows my feelings, which I am not going to reveal for attorney-client privilege,” Young Thug’s attorney Brian Steel told reporters outside of the courthouse following his client’s sentencing. “But, this is not the same as a not guilty verdict. […] Nobody here wakes up every day on a concrete floor that they’re calling his bed, at 4:15. He gets shackled at his feet, his waist, and his hands, comes to the Fulton County courthouse to be on concrete, eating out of a bag, and then coming to the courthouse to sit there with a leg chain every single day, and hear lie after lie. So for Jeffery to go home today, and not have another 90 days, 120 days of [the trial], he is very happy.”
T.I. & Young Thug On FaceTime
Fans were very happy with both Brian Steel’s diligence and the outcome of Young Thug’s trial. However, the YSL RICO case still has a few codefendants on trial for other charges, so the entire trial is still not completely over.
For example, Yak Gotti rejected a plea deal in his case, so some developments in the near future are still crucial to consider in the grand scheme. Regardless of how you feel about Young Thug’s release, everyone hopes that he complies with all his probation terms and turns this into a successful second chance to right any wrongs and craft a more positive and beneficial story in its wake.
About The Author
Gabriel Bras Nevares is a staff writer for HotNewHipHop. He joined HNHH while completing his B.A. in Journalism & Mass Communication at The George Washington University in the summer of 2022.
Born and raised in San Juan, Puerto Rico, Gabriel treasures the crossover between his native reggaetón and hip-hop news coverage, such as his review for Bad Bunny’s hometown concert in 2024. But more specifically, he digs for the deeper side of hip-hop conversations, whether that’s the “death” of the genre in 2023, the lyrical and parasocial intricacies of the Kendrick Lamar and Drake battle, or the many moving parts of the Young Thug and YSL RICO case.
Beyond engaging and breaking news coverage, Gabriel makes the most out of his concert obsessions, reviewing and recapping festivals like Rolling Loud Miami and Camp Flog Gnaw. He’s also developed a strong editorial voice through album reviews, think-pieces, and interviews with some of the genre’s brightest upstarts and most enduring obscured gems like Homeboy Sandman, Bktherula, Bas, and Devin Malik.
…