When calling out prosecutors for using his music against him, the 'Drip Or Drown' rapper questions why his 'art is not allowed to stand alone as entertainment.'
- Jun 15, 2022
AceShowbiz - Gunna insisted that he is innocent amid his incarceration. In the first public statement since his RICO arrest, the "Pushin P" hitmaker declared that he will "never stop fighting to clear [his] name."
"Growing up from where I come from in a marginalized neighborhood, I never dreamt my art would change my life and the lives of my loved ones," the 29-year-old first penned in the open letter published on Tuesday, June 14. "My entire life, I've seen Black Men, Black Women and Black Children consistently attacked, hated, murdered, berated, belittled, silenced, judged, used and held captive."
"For now, I don't have my freedom. But I am innocent. I am being falsely accused and will never stop fighting to clear my name!" he stressed. "The picture that is being painted of me is ugly and untrue. My fans know I love to celebrate life, I love my family, I love travel, I love music, I love my fans. I have all faith that God will grant me justice for the purity in my heart and the innocence of my actions."
Gunna went on lamenting, "As a Black Man in America, it seems as though my art is only acceptable when I'm a source of entertainment for the masses." He then slammed prosecutors for using his music against him, "My art is not allowed to stand alone as entertainment, I'm not allowed that freedom as a Black Man in America. It is a sad reality that slavery is still alive in America today and still affecting my people. In 12 states more than half of the prison population is Black, one of those states is Georgia."
Despite the being locked up in jail, Gunna made it clear that "nnothing will stop me from chasing my dreams." He further elaborated, "I won't stop being a good person, even if some unnamed and unknown accusers want the world to see me as a bad person. When I was free, I tried to be good and kind to the community around me and, when I am released, I will do the same thing all over again."
In the caption, Gunna offered details about the situation behind bars. "22 & 2, just a bed & a shower, no windows just walls. Can't see or talk to anyone," he divulged. "I'm writing now & still praying everyday . I was raised to fight fire with water, even tho my country's amendments have failed me! PROTECT BLACK ART!"
Gunna turned himself in to police as he was named among 28 people associated with YSL who were charged in a 56-count RICO indictment. He surrendered to authorities in Fulton County two days after his frequent collaborator Young Thug was arrested on multiple charges in the RICO case.
