Rappers have a history of using songs that vary from spiteful to downright violent to try to take down their rivals.
A group of music icons, lead by Brooklyn's own Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Jay-Z, are proposing that New York law should be changed so that rap lyrics cannot be used as evidence in criminal trials.
Celebrities such as Kelly Rowland and Destiny's Child star Meek Mill have signed an open letter urging New York state legislators to support this proposed change in the legislation.
The A-listers who signed the petition claim that the law will help artists express themselves more freely.
"This is a long time coming," Alex Spiro - Jay-Z's lawyer, who drafted the letter - told Rolling Stone. "By changing the law here, you do a lot of good for the cases that it affects, but you also send a message that progress is coming. We expect it will be followed in a
lot of places."
The Rap Music on Trial Act, first filed in November by state senators Brad Hoylman and Jamaal Bailey, passed an initial stage in the Senate this week. Unless there is "clear and compelling proof" that the lyrics are connected to a crime, prosecutors cannot use them as evidence.
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"The right to free speech is enshrined in our federal and state constitutions," Bailey said at the time. "The admission of art as criminal evidence only serves to erode this fundamental right."
Bailey said that the law might also play an important role in the struggle for social justice, as the lyrics are frequently used to target people of color. In a 2019 federal trial in which he tipped off his former gang members, rapper Tekashi 6ix9ine was grilled over the lyrics of his tune "Gummo," for example.
And in Tay-2019 K's murder trial, prosecutors mentioned both the song and video from his 2017 smash "The Race," before the rapper was convicted guilty.
"The use of rap and hip-hop lyrics in particular is emblematic of the systemic racism that permeates our criminal justice system," Bailey said.
Jay-Z might be busy fighting injustice done to artists, but he makes sure he got time for his daughter with Beyonce.
She's just 10, but Blue Ivy's similarities to her famous mom has astonished admirers during an excursion with her father on Monday night.
A 34-11 Los Angeles Rams victory against the Arizona Cardinals at SoFi Stadium was seen by the Big Pimpin' hitmaker, 52.
Following their appearance at the event, social media users began sharing photographs of Blue and Whitney Houston's younger years in order to emphasize their striking resemblances.
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