Bronx Police have arrested a huge number of drill rappers in the area in "Operation Dilly," using drill rap videos they have posted on social media.
With the show of force the New York City government has displayed, the future of the subgenre in the area might be heavily affected.
Drill Rap Music in New York and Allegations of Gang-Related Violence
Last February 2022, New York City has seen a sharp uptick in the death and violence of hip-hop musicians, primarily drill rappers in the area.
New York City Mayor Eric Adams has "blamed the drill rap genre for contributing" to this upward trend, per NBC New York.
Earlier that month, Mayor Adams expressed concerns about the genre, noting its nihilistic and violent lyrics allude to what the artist wanted to do to its feuding opponents.
"I had no idea what drill rapping was, but I called my son and he sent me some videos, and it is alarming. We are going to pull together the social media companies and sit down with them and tell them that you have a civic and corporate responsibility," he said in a statement.
“We pulled Trump off Twitter … yet we are allowing music displaying of guns, violence.”
— The Recount (@therecount) February 11, 2022
— NYC Mayor Eric Adams (D), after his son sent him drill rap videos, says he will try to get the videos banned from social media. pic.twitter.com/ATGmhpi4Bo
But after his statement, he pooled prominent drill rappers in the Big Apple for an open conversation about the topic.
Fivio Foreign, Maino, among many other rappers invited, has expressed a positive outlook after the meeting with the mayor.
However, in an NME article, many rap culture experts and drill rappers have disagreed with Mayor Adams's idea to pull out drill rap videos off the internet.
Per TheGrio's Matthew Allen, he described Adam's plan as "another example of people condemning Black music and rap music in general."
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New York Drill Rappers Arrested Using Their Online Videos
According to News 12, the Bronx Police have arrested alleged gang members using their drill rap videos online as evidence to indict them.
New York's "Operation Drilly" has brought forth the Gang bust.
The arrested persons were apparently "drill rappers" in the local scene.
All in all, the arrested faces 82 counts of crimes ranging from murders to grand larceny.
"They make fun of incidents of individuals that have perished prior to gunfire, opposing gang members. And a lot of the times what we'll see, immediately thereafter, is a little spread of violence. And that's what we saw predominantly throughout this case." NYPD Gang Suppression Unit Deputy Chief Jason Savino said.
In January 2022, huge hip hop artists like Jay-Z, Meek Mill, Big Sean, Fat Joe, and Kelly Rowland expressed written and vocal support for Senate Bill S7527, a law preventing New York prosecutors from using rap lyrics evidence.
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