Lil Wayne is off to Chookie today. The rapper will begin serving [at least part of] a one-year jail sentence related to a .40 pistol found on his tour bus in The Big Apple. In case you’re not au fait with the rap scene, CNN gives you the 411 on the future felon. “Lil Wayne is a multiplatinum-selling and Grammy-winning rap artist. His hits include ‘The Block is Hot’ and ‘Lollipop,’ and his album ‘Tha Carter III’ was the top-selling disc of 2008. His latest album, ‘Rebirth,’ was released last month.Dwayne Carter (for it is he) was convicted on felony gun charges after cutting a deal with prosecutors October 2009.” Several news orgs—and Lil Wayne himself—have pointed out that Dwayne Carter (for it is he) will enter city jail at the height of his career, unintentionally drawing a parallel with Elvis’ Army service. My how times change. After the jump, Dime Wars drops the dime on a potential problem Mr. Carter may face inside. Not to mention the Arizona drug charges he faces upon his return. Or Justin Beiber, who wants to work with Dwayne upon his release.
On the outide – prison speak for the non-institutionalized world – Lil Wayne’s clothing, hand gestures in music videos and rap lyrics all suggest that he’s a member of the notorious L.A.-based street gang ‘The Bloods’ aka ‘The Damu Riders’. Now, Lil Wayne is not from L.A. nor does he have any ties to the city, however, in the past 6 years or so, he has made numerous references to the gang, i.e.:
Soo-Woo gang, and if you didn’t know then you in the food chain’
Lines like the one above sound good in a song, but we can’t help to wonder how those lyrics sound to hardened inmates who spend their lives defending gang life. Rikers island is known to house both Bloods and Crips – rival gangs who have been in the midst of street warfare since the early ’70s. Both gangs would have something to prove by making an example of Lil Wayne; the Bloods for Lil Wayne’s “false-flagging” and the Crips for Lil Wayne’s allegiance to the Bloods.
SMH! Lil Wayne may be between a rock and a hard place – not a good thing at all for a newbie prisoner!
