Several artists, industry leaders, and legal experts have released an open letter in a call to Protect Black Art.
The open letter was published in The Latest York Times and The Atlanta Journal-Structure and urges legislators across the US to limit how creative expression may be used against defendants on trial. The open letter specifically addresses the usage of treating rap lyrics as criminal confessions.
The lengthy list of diverse signatories includes the Big Three (Warner, Sony, Universal) in addition to BMG, Kobalt, Atlanta-based LVRN and Quality Control, AEG Presents, Audiomack, Deezer, Live Nation Entertainment, SiriusXM, SoundCloud, Spotify, TIDAL, TikTok, and YouTube Music, amongst many other industry bodies and associations.
“Beyond the plain disregard free of charge speech and inventive expression protected by the First Amendment, this racially targeted practice punishes already marginalized communities and their stories of family, struggle, survival, and triumph,” reads the letter partially.
“Throughout history, artists have created characters and forged narratives that reflect the culture around them,” adds Julie Greenwald, Chairman & CEO of WMG’s Atlantic Music Group. “That freedom of expression is crucial to the creative process and the role of art in society. The cruel reality is that black artistic creativity is being threatened at an unprecedented level, and we must make every effort to stop this unethical, discriminatory approach to prosecution.”
Experts examining past legal cases have found greater than 500 examples of rap lyrics used as evidence in public records. That number doesn’t account for indictment proceedings, juvenile cases, or cases that end with a plea bargain–the overwhelming consequence in criminal prosecution. Researchers found only 4 instances of non-rap lyrics being submitted as evidence for the reason that Nineteen Fifties. Three of those cases were thrown out and one was overturned after conviction.
Some state legislators are already taking motion to guard artistic expression. California Governor Newsom signed a bill into law that requires prosecutors to satisfy stringent requirements before lyrics may be entered as evidence in a criminal trial. Other bills are in consideration in Latest York and Latest Jersey. The RAP Act (Restoring Artistic Protection) has also been introduced within the U.S. Congress by Rep. Hank Johnson (D-GA) and Rep. Jamaal Bowman (D-NY).
The complete letter is published below.
“In courtrooms across America, the trend of prosecutors using artists’ creative expression against them is going on with troubling frequency. Whatever the medium – music, the visual arts, writing, television, film – fans implicitly understand that creative expression is rooted in what artists see and listen to; it’s a mirrored image of the times we live in. The ultimate work is a product of the artist’s vision and imagination.”
“Rappers are storytellers, creating entire worlds populated with complex characters who can play each hero and villain. But greater than every other art form, rap lyrics are essentially getting used as confessions in an try to criminalize Black creativity and artistry.”
“For instance, currently in Georgia’s Fulton County, quite a few members of the Young Stoner Life record label, led by Grammy-winning artist Jeffery Lamar Williams (aka Young Thug), are facing greater than 50 allegations, including RICO charges that the label is a criminal gang. The allegations rely heavily on the artists’ lyrics, which prosecutors claim are ‘overt evidence of conspiracy.’ Within the indictment, Fulton County prosecutors argue that lyrics like ‘I get all kind of money, I’m a general’ are a confession of criminal intent.”
“Using lyrics against artists in this manner is un-American and easily fallacious. Beyond the plain disregard free of charge speech and inventive expression protected by the First Amendment, this racially targeted practice punishes already marginalized communities and their stories of family, struggle, survival, and triumph.”