Young Thug: a price on his enemies’ heads?

Is YSL (Young Stoner Life), the rap label founded by Jeffery Williams, better known by his artist name Young Thug, an offshoot of Young Slime Life, the Atlanta branch of the Bloods street gang, a criminal organization whose illegal activities include murder, armed robbery, racketeering, witness tampering and drug dealing?

That’s the question at the heart of the « YSL RICO » trial, which opened on Monday November 27 in the Fulton County Courthouse in Georgia (which encompasses most of the city of Atlanta) and sees alleged gang leader Jeffery Williams and five other defendants charged in a massive racketeering and organized crime case.

The far-reaching action, which follows the arrest in May 2022 of the artist and 27 rappers and YSL associates, and convenes a grand jury to examine facts unfolding over more than seven years (from 2015 to 2022), is the initiative of District Attorney Fani Willis, the first woman in this position in Fulton County, who was also behind the indictment of Donald Trump.

Targeted by numerous charges, the Atlanta native is risking a great deal in this affair. A few hours ago, it was also announced that seventeen songs by the thirty-two-year-old artist would be studied during the trial. Lyrics from the songs could be used against Jeffery Williams (real name).

While the trial is expected to last many months, one element is causing chaos. We learn that a phrase uttered by Thugger, « 24 million on a nigger’s head », has created numerous interpretations.

While the state believes that the lyrics are evidence of Young Thug putting a contract out on someone’s life, the rapper’s defense explains that it was a phrase aimed at Lil Uzi Vert.

The American rapper made a name for himself in 2021 by having a $24 million diamond implanted in his forehead. We should know more about this in the coming weeks.