Times Rap Lyrics Have Been Used As Evidence

The legal battles involving 6ix9ine, aka Tekashi69, have transfixed the hip-hop community since 2018, just as he was breaking into the industry. The New York City rapper, born Daniel Hernandez, was widely known for his affiliation with the infamous Nine Trey Gangsta Bloods, described by the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of New York as a "violent set of the Bloods street gang."

Shortly after his rise to stardom, 6ix9ine was arrested and charged with committing multiple offenses, including "racketeering, carrying a firearm, assault with a dangerous weapon, and conspiracy murder charges," according to the BBC. Before the trial, he was facing a minimum of 47 years to life in prison.

But in a move that outraged many of his former affiliates, 6ix9ine chose to cooperate with prosecutors, who used the trial to highlight lyrics from his single "GUMMO," which they claimed were threats seemingly referencing inter-gang feuds. The prosecution also used footage of Nine Trey members from his music videos to paint an incriminating picture of the gang, numerous members of which were tried alongside 6ix9ine, per The New York Times.

During the trial, it came to light that 6ix9ine wasn't, in fact, a gang member, as his lyrics and image had suggested, and his affiliation with the Nine Trey Gangsta Bloods was an arrangement designed to give the rapper credibility. He was sentenced to a total of two years in prison and has remained ostracized from his former circle despite some continued commercial success.