18 Rappers Who Are Currently In Jail

There are many styles of hip-hop, but none more notorious than gangsta rap. Popularized in the '90s thanks to hardcore rhymes penned by artists like Ice-T, Dr. Dre, and Ice Cube, the genre has been vilified by everyone from parent groups to politicians, who have argued the violence, misogyny, and promotion of gang culture represented in rap lyrics is detrimental to society.

Of course, the flip side of that argument is that gangsta rap, and any form of hip-hop, really, is merely the artistic expression of the culture in which the artists live, and no matter how ugly it may seem to an outside observer, rapping about it is certainly protected under the First Amendment.

Where this whole thing gets dicey is when rappers actually live the violent, criminal lifestyles depicted in their songs, partaking in activities ranging from drug dealing, to pimping, to misusing firearms, and even attempting and/or committing murders. The result of keeping it that real, so to speak, is a long list of rappers who have died, been injured, or were incarcerated. We're dealing with the latter here, and even more specifically, the ones who are still doing their time. These are the rappers who are currently in jail.

In March 2018, British rapper Cameron Wright, known as Killa Kam, was sentenced to six years in jail after pleading guilty to "being concerned in the supply of heroin and cocaine," reported Gloucestershire Echo. Though police did not actually catch Wright with drugs on him, they intercepted his "Jay Line," which was a phone he used to allegedly send "3,700 text messages to more than 100 customers." Wright allegedly managed "the supply chain" between Birmingham and Cheltenham.

Wright's defense attorney, Jason Coulter, argued that Wright turned to drug-dealing after he was unable to find employment following a previous jail stint he served for similar charges back in 2015. Coulter argued that in his desperation to pay back fines associated with that conviction, Wright was "lured back into it ... not for glamour this time, but for dull necessity." The sentencing judge wasn't convinced, telling Wright, "It seems unlikely that you now care about the lives ruined through the supply of class A drugs."

Wright's fortune took another hit when, in November 2018, a judge ordered him to forfeit an expensive Cartier watch he admitted to buying with drug money, as the Gloucestershire Echo reported. The judge threatened an extra six months of jail time if Wright's legal team didn't sell the watch and return the proceeds to the government, an order he seemingly fulfilled. Then in June 2022, Wright pleaded guilty to distributing methamphetamine, per WBRC FOX6, and was sentenced to 18 years in prison.

RondoNumbaNine was a rising star in Chicago's drill scene, a subgenre of gangsta rap that rose to prominence in the Windy City in the early 2000s. Rondo, aka Clint Massey, contributed most notably to drill with his 2013 hit "Hang Wit Me," which features lines such as "These rappers they really rappers, I am just a savage who doesn't have any remorse." Perhaps unsurprisingly, Massey became an object lesson in the debate over drill lyrics when he was sentenced to 39 years for his involvement in the 2014 shooting death of cab driver Javan Boyd.

According to the Chicago Sun-Times (via XXL), Massey, then just 17 years old, and an accomplice named Courtney Ealy, who was also a rapper who went by the name Cdai and was just 19 years old, shot Boyd multiple times in his car while he was waiting to pick someone up at an apartment complex. Boyd's murder was allegedly an act of retaliation. For his part in the murder, Ealy was sentenced to 38 years in prison. 

Although Massey's sentence is pretty hefty, fellow drill artist and collaborator Durk "Lil Durk" Banks has high hopes for his friend's future. "We've been back and forth with lawyers on his appeal and it's looking really good," he told Billboard in April 2018. "He's going to get out soon." At the time of this writing, however, there seemingly hasn't been any movement in Massey's case.

Convicted felon Ricardo Burgos, who raps under the handle Nation, apparently either wasn't aware or didn't care that he was no longer allowed to possess firearms when he brandished two of them while filming a music video in Deerfield, Illinois, in January 2016. According to CBS Chicago, Burgos was arrested later in the day in possession of a semi-automatic pistol, at which point he was charged with "one count of illegal possession of a firearm by a felon and one count of distribution of a controlled substance." The latter of the charges stemmed from a 2015 arrest.

While this did not necessarily add to his specific legal troubles, prosecutors were quick to point out that in the video, Burgos was "rapping about selling drugs, committing acts of violence, and disrespecting law enforcement."

The Associated Press reported that Burgos was a member of a violent Chicago-based gang known as the Conservative Vice Lords, which perhaps figured into the sentencing judge's decision to hand down the surprisingly harsh term of 188 months. For that kind of time, we sincerely hope waving those guns around in that video looked super dope.

California rapper Billy "Wild Bill" Shaffer Jr. lived up to his rap handle when he shot and killed Connie M. Sowels III outside of an Oakland nightclub on October 1, 2014, according to the East Bay Times. Shaffer, who also raps under the alias Billy Bankroll, claimed he was acting in self-defense during a scuffle between himself and Sowels over a gold chain.

The jury believed Shaffer and acquitted him on the charges of "first-degree murder, second-degree murder, and voluntary manslaughter," which could have landed him behind bars for far longer than the 13 years he got for his conviction on the remaining charges of involuntary manslaughter, as well as "using a firearm and being a felon in possession of a firearm."

Shaffer reportedly "cried tears of joy" over the court's decision, but we're wondering if there was a hint of bitter irony mixed in there since this is a guy who once rapped "check my track record, never no sucker s**t" on the 2013 song, "Tell Da Truth." No suckers in jail, we guess.

Richmond rapper and fledgling pimp Idris B. Jamerson, aka Drissy Bo, found himself swapping the recording studio for the cell block after he was sentenced to four years in prison in November 2017. Six months earlier, Jamerson sealed his fate when he reportedly recruited a woman on Instagram and began selling her services via shady websites that advertise sex work, reported the East Bay Times.

Thanks to a sting arranged by the Vacaville Police Vice Unit and FBI Violent Crime Task Force, Jamerson was apprehended on his way to deliver the woman to a prospective "customer." Upon his arrest, police recovered text messages that indicated the nature of the pair's exploitative relationship, including Jamerson giving the woman consent to buy food using the money she earned, the East Bay Times reported. In addition to the text messages, some of Jamerson's music was even used against him in court.

We're not certain which songs were played for the court, but Jamerson was a featured artist on the questionable track "Price Tag," which features cringeworthy lines such as "Put the b***h on a plate wit a price tag" and "That's why she get this money and she bring it right back." In the interest of full disclosure, we should also say that we don't even know if Jamerson is the one who uttered those lyrics. However, his name is attached to the song, so he's probably fine with the upsetting message.

Texas rapper Tay-K, born Taymor McIntyre, attracted national attention with the 2017 hit "The Race," a song about being on the run that was actually recorded while he was on the run. The same day the video was released, June 30, 2017, McIntyre was arrested after a three-month chase for his alleged role in capital murder and other crimes, The New York Times reported. He, along with six others, has been accused of killing a man in a 2016 home invasion.

The fledgling rapper pleaded not guilty to capital murder and to a separate count of aggravated robbery. He pleaded guilty to two counts of aggravated robbery by threats, according to the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. In July 2019, McIntyre was found guilty of murder and the outstanding count of aggravated robbery. He was sentenced to 55 years in prison and received a $21,000 fine, according to The Dallas Morning News. He will serve 30 years in prison on one count of aggravated robbery and 13 years for each of the remaining two counts of aggravated robbery, with the sentences running concurrently.

McIntyre's predicament worsened in November 2019, when he was indicted for capital murder relating to a 2017 robbery. Prosecutors allege he shot and killed a 23-year-old photographer named Mark Anthony Saldivar after stealing the victim's photo equipment, according to KSAT-TV. And in January 2023, McIntyre tweeted that he was being mistreated in prison. As of April 2023, his trial in the Saldivar case has yet to begin.

Rapper Terrell Davis, who's known as Ralo had a serious run-in with the law in 2018. According to WSB-TV, he was arrested in April for conspiracy to distribute marijuana after authorities allegedly discovered him shuttling 444 pounds of marijuana into an Atlanta airport on a private plane. An affidavit obtained by the outlet also reports that the "Can't Lie" musician has a leadership role in a gang known as "Famerica," which allegedly sold drugs through properties Davis rented in the city.

Despite the charges, Davis has maintained his innocence. On May 2, 2018, he pleaded not guilty to the charges against him, per VladTV, and, in a November 2018 interview with Forbes, he suggested that he'd been targeted by cops, saying, "I knew they were gonna try and come up with something to arrest me. Once these people want you, they're gonna do whatever they gotta do to get you."

But in a phone interview with 11Alive's Neima Abdulahi, Davis talked about there being a bright side to his incarceration. "Over the time, I've learned so much wisdom and knowledge that I can apply for when I do get out," he told her. "I would have never learned the things that I have learned if I was out." On June 1, 2022, a post on Davis' Instagram account said he received an eight-year sentence with five to five and half years already credited to him.

Texas-based rapper Tavores "Killah Dre" Henderson was arrested in December 2019 on a capital murder charge relating to the death of Houston-area Sgt. Kaila Sullivan. According to People, Sullivan, a 15-year veteran of the force and mother, pulled over Henderson for a traffic stop violation the night of the killing. When Sullivan reportedly discovered Henderson had an outstanding warrant involving assault, the rapper — who has worked with Soulja Boy — escaped while Sullivan and another officer attempted to handcuff him, according to NBC News. After taking off in his car, Henderson allegedly hit Sullivan with the vehicle, and she later died at the hospital as a result of her injuries.

"She was a police officer at heart," Nassau Bay Police Chief Tim Cromie said about Sullivan's legacy, according to the Associated Press. "She came to work every day, she enjoyed the job. Her blood ran blue. She was a police officer's police officer."

As of April 2023, Henderson has yet to be convicted of the crime but the outlook doesn't look good, especially since he supposedly confessed to the murder.

On May 9, 2022, everything changed for Atlanta rapper Young Thug, whose real name is Jeffery Williams. That's the day the Fulton County Sheriff's Office arrested him in Atlanta along with 27 others, as reported by the Associated Press. Authorities say that Williams is one of the founders of a street gang called Young Slime Life that's been wreaking criminal havoc since 2012. HipHopDX shows that he was hit with eight out of the 65 charges against Young Slime Life, which include murder, weapons and drug distribution, as well as violating the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO). 

"It does not matter what your notoriety is, what your fame is, if you come to Fulton County, Georgia, and you commit crimes .... you are going to become a target and a focus of this District Attorney's office," said Fulton County D.A. Fani Willis in a press conference. Williams' trial began in January 2023 after his bond was denied more than once. His lyrics will be used against him during the trial as well, per TMZ. Musically, the rapper began making a name for himself in the mixtape circuit in 2011 and by the time his 2019 debut album "So Much Fun" arrived, he was a full-blown rap star, already collaborating with hip-hop heavyweights like Drake and Kanye West.

Things seemed to be looking up for Brooklyn rapper Dusty Locane after his "Rollin N Controllin (Freestyle)" became an online hit. In November 2022, however, he told his Instagram followers that he'd be turning himself into the police while giving some context in the caption.

"Been fightin [these] cases for damn near 4 [years]," wrote Locane on Thanksgiving. "Now I gotta go handle up ima take care of dis short bid n ima be bacc nine five times stronger ‼️ C Ya when I get [back from] vacay." Billboard reports that Locane — who as of this writing hasn't revealed his name to the public — pleaded guilty to two charges of criminal possession of a weapon, related to incidents that occurred in 2019 and 2020. He's supposed to get out in one to three years.

But since announcing he was heading to prison, Locane has kept busy by releasing a new EP called "Catch Da Flu" and another one titled "-95 Degrees," as per Revolt. His Instagram account has remained pretty active as well. The way it seems, Locane was musically preparing to be a way for a while, which is a fairly common move rappers make when going to prison.

Just like Young Thug, Casanova's latest legal troubles began after a gang sweep. The Brooklyn rapper, born Caswell Senior, turned himself into the NYPD on December 2, 2020, days after he was named in an indictment. Police also said they were looking for him at one point, which AllHipHop reported. Besides Senior, 17 others were arrested and it's said they were all part of Untouchable Gorilla Stone Nation, an offshoot of the infamous Bloods street gang. Casanova was charged with one count each of conspiracy to commit racketeering; conspiracy to distribute controlled substances and had a weapons charge tacked on to boot, per the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York in Manhattan.

His music career started with the 2016 single "Don't Run." He then caught the attention of fellow Brooklyn rapper Memphis Bleek, who introduced him to Jay-Z. From there, Jay signed Casanova to his company Roc Nation. In fact, a lot of people asked the jailed rapper if Jay-Z was helping his case in any way, which seemed to annoy him. "Stop asking me what Jay Z is doing for me... he did enough already, he gave me a shot," tweeted Casanova from behind bars. 

On May 11, 2022, Casanova— who was facing 60 years in prison — pleaded guilty to two counts of narcotics conspiracy and two counts of racketeering conspiracy, according to Rolling Stone. In June 2023, Casanova was sentenced to 188 months in prison.

Dion "42 Dugg" Hayes was arrested on May 4, 2022, in his hometown of Detroit after failing to turn himself into a West Virginia federal prison camp. It was something that he was supposed to do almost one month before getting busted. The prison sentence has to do with Hayes shooting a gun at a firing range in Atlanta in 2019, according to HipHopDX — and that's a big no-no for a convicted felon. At the time of the gun range incident, Hayes was on probation for carjacking and weapons charges.

The rapper was supposed to serve six months in that West Virginia prison but after being arrested for not turning himself in, he was looking at five years. In March 2023, HotNewHipHop said that Hayes pleaded guilty to prison evasion. The following month, he received a one-year sentence. As for why he failed to turn himself in, his lawyer said they filed an appeal about violating his probation at the gun range, something that XXL specifies. On the music front, Hayes is most known for signing a joint deal with Atlanta rapper Lil Baby's 4PF label and Memphis rapper Yo Gotti's Collective Music Group.

On April 14, 2022, Bankroll Freddie, real name Freddie Gladney III, was arrested in his home state of Arkansas after police pulled him over for speeding. That's because they found 171 grams of promethazine, 21 pounds of weed, and a firearm, according to the New York Post. But that wasn't the only arrest for Bankroll in 2022. TMZ reported later that year that he was busted by the feds as part of a 61-count indictment that involved 34 others.

Per Billboard, Bankroll and his co-defendants were involved in selling large amounts of weed, cocaine, crack cocaine, and other narcotics in 2021 and 2022. The rapper was also found with various firearms, including multiple machine guns. The Arkansas Democrat-Gazette reported in March of 2023 that Bankroll worked with family members in the alleged drug operation, which included his father, Freddie Gladney Jr., as well as his brothers and sister. Bankroll's father was also arrested for drug conspiracy and weapons charges with the rapper.

Bankroll has one studio album under his belt, 2021's "Big Bank," released by Quality Control Music, as well as his mixtapes "From Trap to Rap." He first caught the label's attention after remixing Lil Baby's "Freestyle." Bankroll was then signed by Quality Control after putting his own spin on "Act Up," a song by the label's group City Girls. He also released the 2019 mixtape "Saved by the Bales," which features the popular track "Drip Like This."

Corey "C-Murder" Miller seemed to be on top of the world at one point since he was an internationally known rapper under one of the most successful rap labels, No Limit Records, founded by his brother, Percy "Master P" Miller. But in 2002, Corey was allegedly involved in an altercation at Louisiana's Platinum Club. A 16-year-old named Steve Thomas was eventually shot and killed, and the rapper was in big trouble. Two witnesses said they saw Corey fire a gun at Thomas while he was on the ground, per The Times-Picayune. Corey was then convicted of second-degree murder in a retrial that took place in August 2009 and received a life sentence.

All along, the "Trapped in Crime" rapper has denied being the shooter. He also complained about inhumane treatment at Louisiana's Elayn Hunt Correctional Center in a 2023 Instagram post and announced a hunger strike. But as Nola.com reported in 2018, the two witnesses who testified, Kenneth Jordan and Darnell Jordan, recanted their testimony. Both of them said they felt pressure from prosecutors and police to lie about what they saw. So Corey called for a new trial but the judge denied it, calling the recanted testimony "suspect." 

Corey has also received a lot of supporters during his prison stay since many believe he's gotten a raw deal. Kim Kardashian is one of those people because in 2020 she promised to help get his conviction overturned in a series of tweets.

The charges? Gun possession and witness tampering. The sentence? Fourteen years in federal prison. We're talking about New Orleans rapper B.G., born Christopher Dorsey. He grew to fame as one-fourth of the Hot Boys, which also included Lil Wayne, and they were all signed to Bryan "Birdman" Williams' Cash Money Records. In 2009 Dorsey and two other men named Jerod Fedison and Demounde Pollard were pulled over by police in a stolen rent-a-car. Afterward, three guns and magazines were found and everybody was arrested. Pollard said the guns were his, but it was later said that Dorsey put him up to making a phony confession.  

Pollard and Fedison eventually pleaded guilty, per The Times-Picayune and Dorsey was found guilty, hence the 14-year prison sentence. He's being held in California's FCI Herlong prison. In 2022 HipHopDX reported that he was denied early release more than once, the last time being in 2022. At that time, U.S. District Judge Susie Morgan said there wasn't any new evidence that would make her grant Dorsey an early release and that was that. In November 2022, however, it was reported that he'd be getting out in a matter of weeks but that obviously didn't happen. The rapper is supposed to be released on April 7, 2024.

Florida rapper YNW Melly, real name Jamell Demons, is accused of murdering his two friends and bandmates YNW Juvy (born Christopher Thomas Jr.) and YNW Sakchaser (born Anthony D'Andre Williams) in 2018. At the time, Demons said they were all victims of a drive-by shooting. But police said forensic evidence proved otherwise and that Demons killed his friends while another man, Cortlen Henry, helped. For his part, Henry was arrested after being extradited to Florida from Houston, per The Florida Times-Union. But he was released on bond in May 2020.

And Demons? He turned himself into the police after posting a message on Instagram. He was then charged with two counts of first-degree murder, as was Cortlen. "I lost my two brothers by violence and now the system want to find justice," wrote Demons in part, which was later shared by The Shade Room. "Unfortunately a lot of rumors and lies are being said but no worries god is with me and my brother." 

Jury selection began for Demons' trial in April 2023 after a few delays. Plus, Billboard reported that his lawyers appealed a decision to the Florida Supreme Court about reversing a ruling that stated he could get the death penalty if found guilty. As of this writing, the trial — which began that June — remains ongoing. In regards to Demons' music career, he scored a viral song with "Murder on My Mind" and got a major co-sign from Kanye West who was on his "We All Shine" mixtape.

In 2001, Trevell Coleman, better known by his rap name G. Dep, was living the rap dream. He was signed to Sean "Diddy" Combs' Bad Boy Records and had a popular single titled "Special Delivery." But all along, Coleman was hiding something: He committed a murder in his hometown of New York City at 18 years old, years before becoming famous. As the rapper told ABC News in 2013, he approached a man named John Henkel with plans to mug him. But Henkel allegedly grabbed the weapon so Coleman opened fire.

By 2010, the secret was too much for Coleman to keep so he walked into a New York City police station and confessed. The first time police didn't believe him but he went back a second time and they did. In the end, the Harlem rapper was sentenced to 15 years after being convicted of second-degree murder. "I think I was just at a point where enough is enough," Coleman said in his ABC News interview about why he turned himself in. "It never went away, me thinking about it, so it was like I had to do something about it."

Seventy-five years. That's the prison sentence that came down on New York City rapper Max B in 2009, who was born Charly Wingate. As HipHopDX lays out, Wingate and his stepbrother Kelvin Leerdam were accused of trying to rob Allan Plowden and David Taylor at a Holiday Inn in Fort Lee, New Jersey. Something went wrong during the robbery, though, and Taylor was fatally shot. Later, Leerdam, who was accused of pulling the trigger, was sentenced to life plus 35 years.

Gina Conway, Wingate's girlfriend, received a 15-year sentence for her involvement. Per Vibe, she met the victims two days before the murder and told Wingate they had a lot of money with them. She ended up striking a plea deal with prosecutors and testified against Wingate and Leerdam. Then in 2016, rapper Wiz Khalifa, who's often talked about being a big fan of Wingate's music, tweeted that Wingate was getting an early release, which Wingate's publicist confirmed. 

Reportedly, Wingate struck a plea deal on an aggravated manslaughter charge, so the first-degree murder and the rest of the charges are supposed to be dropped, per Billboard. And based on a January 2023 tweet from Bronx rapper French Montana, and an Instagram video update from Wingate himself that May, Wingate is expected to be released at some point in 2023. Musically, Wingate is most known for gaining success by dropping an incredibly high number of mixtapes. He's also credited for creating a more melodic style of rap known as "The Wave."