According to reports, the Rolling Loud New York event has canceled three drill rappers who were slated to play this weekend. The identities of 22Gz, Sha EK, and Ron Suno have been removed from the lineup at the request of the New York Police Department. Rappers were excluded owing to their musical association with the subgenre of violence. The three-day event will take place on September 23, 2022, at Citi Field in Queens.
Rolling Loud has previously canceled performances by New York drill rap artists owing to NYPD pressure. Due to public safety concerns, artists such as Pop Smoke, Casanova, Sheff G, 22Gz, and Don Q were barred from playing in 2019.
Why are drill rappers being kicked out of Rolling Loud New York?
The announcement occurred only one day before the Rolling Loud New York Festival. One of the three drill rappers that were pulled from the lineup, 22Gz, was jailed in June. The rapper was accused of involvement in a shooting that occurred in March 2022. According to their attorneys, the other two rappers, Sha Ek and Ron Suno, have no prior criminal history.
Sha EK’s agent told XXL in a statement:
“Sha Ek is dissatisfied with the NYPD’s decision. To defend it, he has not been charged with anything. The cops attempt to link what he’s doing to violence and hatred. They don’t recognize the fact that he’s a 19-year-old musician and performer trying to improve himself and support his family.”
He went on to say:
“This year, Sha Ek has performed all across the Northeast. His shows are packed with children who are dancing and having a good time. He’s looking forward to expanding his traveling company and proving the cops incorrect.”
Ron Suno allegedly got into a brawl at last year’s Rolling Loud concert in New York. Diamond Brown, his manager, questioned the decision to cancel his interview with the Times. He inquired:
“How can a guy with no criminal past or gang ties—the youngster never even produced a diss song—be denied the opportunity to play in his hometown after all his hard work?”
What exactly is drill rap?
Drill rap is a popular yet contentious subgenre of hip-hop music that emerged in the early 2010s on Chicago’s streets. Music has been popular in the United States for over a decade, thanks to the popularity of rappers such as Chief Keef, Lil Durk, Lil Reese, Fredo Santana, and Young Chop, among others. Drill music lyrics are often aggressive, nasty, and nihilistic. The tracks have a harsher tone, with mocking and dissing lyrics that focus on the aggressive side of street life.
Jayquan McKenley, an 18-year-old drill rap artist, was slain in a drive-by shooting in Brooklyn earlier in February 2022. At the time, NYC Mayor Eric Adams chastised the drill rap genre, claiming it was partly to blame for the rise in gun violence. He described the subgenre’s association with gun violence as “alarming.”
Adams told reporters at the time:
“The issue is violent guys who use drill rapping to publish who they murdered and then provoke the ones who they are going to kill.”
The Rolling Loud event in New York is set to take place from September 23 to 25, 2022. The event will take hold in Queens, New York, at the NYC Stadium at Citi Field. The festival’s headliners include Nicki Minaj, A$AP Rocky, and Future.