Government Approved Hip Hop
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A US federal judge has refused prosecutors’ request to prohibit the maker of the 1990s rap classic Bling Bling “from promoting and glorifying future gun violence/murder” in songs and at concerts while on supervised release from prison, saying such a restriction could violate his constitutional right to free speech.
But the artist known as BG must provide the government with copies of any songs he writes moving forward, ahead of their production or promotion – and, if they are deemed to be inconsistent with his goals of rehabilitation, prosecutors could move to toughen the terms governing his supervised release.
That mixed ruling came Friday from US district court judge Susie Morgan in the latest development to a case that prompted discussions in some circles about an American musician’s rights to free expression under his country’s constitution – as well as his need to financially support himself – with federal authorities’ obligation to enforce the supervised prison release plan which he accepted.
Music industry giants including Megan Thee Stallion, Jay-Z, Coldplay and Christina Aguilera have condemned prosecutors’ practice of using rap lyrics as evidence in US criminal courts, saying it disproportionately targets Black artists. But prosecutors have generally not cared to halt the tactic, as the case of BG, whose legal name is Christopher Dorsey, demonstrates.
Morgan is an Obama appointee, once again demonstrating the kind of Tipper Gore Democrat who freaks out about the lyrics of popular music and then tries to suppress it.