A lot has happened in the two months since Bobby Shmurda (born Ackquille Pollard) was arrested outside of Quad Studios in New York City. He has been indicted on a variety of charges, changed lawyers, plead not guilty in court, and had his bail withdrawn. His defense lawyer Kenneth J. Montgomery has called the charges "trumped up," saying it all ultimately comes down to a "constructive possession gun case" that is being overblown. For now, Pollard sits in jail, unable to come up with the $2 million bail. In a new interview with The New York Times, Pollard expresses his frustration with his label for not supporting him and claims that his violent lyrics were fabricated to sell records.
Pollard says he had expected his label Epic Records to come to his aide after his arrest, considering he has made them a decent amount of money.
"When I got locked up, I thought they were going to come for me, but they never came," he told them.
Prior to his arrest, Epic signed Pollard with a seven-figure, mutli-album deal thanks to his viral hit "Hot N***a," which eventually reached No. 6 on the Billboard Hot 100 with the label's support. He has now sold almost 1 million downloads, more than 800,000 for "Hot N***a" alone. Pollard's entertainment lawyer Matthew Middleton says that the based on sales and advances thus far, Epic has "made their money back at least two or three times over."
This is why both he and Pollard are frustrated that they won't pitch in to get Pollard out on bail, especially because he hasn't been proven guilty of anything.
"These companies for years have capitalized and made millions and millions of dollars from kids in the inner city portraying their plight to the rest of the world," Middleton said. "To take advantage of that and exploit it from a business standpoint and then turn your back is disingenuous, to say the least."
The East Flatbush rapper added that his lyrics, which often dealt with violence and drug dealing, were largely "fabricated" in an attempted to get himself off the streets by selling records, which goes against Pollard's previous claims that the lyrical content was autobiographical.
"That's what's selling these days," he told them. "I was desperate to get out of the 'hood. I knew I was going to lose my life or go to jail."
Although in the past it might be possible for labels to bail out their artists, money is tight these days, so Pollard might have to look elsewhere for money. Should he get out of jail, he plans to break his ties with Epic, who have been of little help to him despite his belief that they were his ticket out of the 'hood and prison.
"I'm going to try my best to go back on the deal," he said. "If not, I'll give them their music and bounce."
