Another Look at Rap Lyrics on Trial
Listen now
Description
A few weeks ago, rappers Young Thug, Gunna, and 26 of their YSL crew members were charged in a Georgia RICO case. And prosecutors are arguing that YSL is actually a criminal gang instead of a record label.  One of the things they plan to use to prove that: Young Thug’s rap lyrics.  Violent lyrics show up in a lot of music genres. But when it comes to rap and hip hop, it’s not unusual for those lyrics to be used in court as evidence to convict artists of crimes. But is it a violation of first amendment rights? Today, we look back at the history of rap lyrics on trial, and talk to a media attorney about RICO cases and a New York bill that would make it harder for artists’ words to be used against them.  Plus, what’s #Swedengate, why art museums had a bad weekend, and the two TV show premieres bringing us all the ’80s vibes.  You’ll hear from: J. Christopher Hamilton, entertainment attorney, author and professor Want more Skimm?  Sign up for our free daily newsletter Subscribe and leave us a review wherever you get your podcasts Skimm'd by Senior Producer and Host Bridget Armstrong. Produced by Alaisha Key. Engineered by Andrew Callaway and Elie McAfee-Hahn. TheSkimm’s senior director of audio is Graelyn Brashear.
More Episodes
Sadly, we’re saying goodbye to Pop Cultured. In the last year, we’ve done some memorable pop culture deep dives (think: Queen Bey’s “Renaissance” and the history of house music) and broken down some of the biggest stories in the news (like: the Oscar’s slap and Serena retiring as the GOAT). We’ve...
Published 09/27/22
Published 09/27/22
Don’t know about you, but we’re still processing everything that went down at the VMAs — from that totally weird Johnny Depp appearance (can we call it that?) to Lizzo responding to haters. Again.  We’re also going to break down the Olivia Wilde–Shia LaBeouf beef, the Euphoria season three drama,...
Published 08/30/22