DJ Akademiks believes RICO cases are "cleansing" hip hop

In a recent sit-down interview with Vlad TV, hip hop podcaster and radio personality DJ Akademiks declared that RICO cases are ‘cleansing’ hip hop. RICO, which is effectively a legal acronym for charges related to racketeering and corruption, have been all too common in recent times within hip hop.

DJ Akademiks believes that because authorities are using rappers’ lyrics against them in court, rappers are beginning to watch what they say and hold their tongues when it comes to potentially self-incriminating lyrics.

From Tekashi 6ix9ine to Kodak Black, 21 Savage, and now Young Thug, more and more rappers are seeing themselves faced with charges related to racketeering, but Akademiks believes that this is going to come at the expense of authenticity in hip hop. In his interview, Akademiks stated that he believes that authorities should be able to use lyrics, but it has to be as a last resort, not their first port of call.

Speaking to Vlad, the DJ and podcaster said, “I think rap is going through a cleansing right now because all these district attorneys, they’re following each other…the Philly (Philadelphia) district attorney literally said like hey we know so-and-so is beefing with so-and-so – it was two gangs – they said if you are in these gangs you better stop and if you’re around these gangs you better get the hell away from them, indictments are coming. The police are kinda keen to what’s going on, and they’re also linking a lot with music.”

The DJ continued to say, “they’re gonna incarcerate way more rappers than ever before.” 

The DJ and podcaster believes that a new, toned down, and less criminal style of hip hop will now be brought to the forefront as police and district attorney’s across the US show their eagerness to lock up rappers with gang affiliations and ties to criminal activity in any form. All of this comes in the wake of Young Thug’s arrest in the YSL case. Young Thug, having been denied bond for the third time, will remain in Cobb County Jail until his proceedings start in January of 2023.