{"id":974096,"date":"2019-12-17T14:50:51","date_gmt":"2019-12-17T21:50:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rollingstone.com\/?p=928236"},"modified":"2019-12-17T14:50:51","modified_gmt":"2019-12-17T21:50:51","slug":"why-tekashi-6ix9ine-could-go-free","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kfmu\/music-news\/why-tekashi-6ix9ine-could-go-free\/","title":{"rendered":"Why Tekashi 6ix9ine Could Go Free"},"content":{"rendered":"
<\/div>\n

On Wednesday at 10am, Daniel Hernandez \u2014 better known as Tekashi 6ix9ine<\/a> \u2014 will be sentenced. The controversial rapper, who rose to prominence in 2017 before being arrested on federal racketeering charges in 2018<\/a>, currently faces 37 years to life in prison. However, since cooperating with the U.S. Attorney\u2019s office following his arrest, it\u2019s possible, or even likely, according to some following the trial closely, that he will be sentenced to time served, and walk free after his sentencing. <\/span><\/p>\n

Despite a flurry of headlines and online discussion, Tekashi\u2019s release is not certain. While he did cooperate with the federal investigation, testifying against his former crew in the Nine Trey Gangsta Bloods, that cooperation does not guarantee a light sentence. Instead, his testimony earned him a 51K letter, which states that the witness assisted with an investigation and typically comes with a recommendation for a lighter sentence. The judge may take that letter into consideration, but does not automatically lead to any specific outcome. Tekashi could walk free on Wednesday, be sentenced to life in prison, or anything in between; it all depends on Judge Paul Engelmayer. <\/span><\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

At the center of the case is an overlapping series of nine charges for gun possession, attempted murder, and gang activity. As detailed in a January <\/span>Rolling Stone<\/span><\/i><\/a> report, Tekashi began his chaotic rise in the SoundCloud rap scene of the mid-2010s, transforming from a bodega employee in Bushwick, Brooklyn, to a heavily tattooed, permanently online provocateur, releasing wildly popular music in between courting attention on social media. Prior to his biggest hits, he began to associate with the Nine Trey Gangsta Bloods, a New York City gang. His breakthrough hit, \u201cGummo<\/a>,\u201d features the gang\u2019s imagery prominently; the video is awash in red bandannas. <\/span><\/p>\n

\n

Popular on Rolling Stone <\/h3>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

Throughout the next year, Tekashi allegedly continued to work with, and fund, the gang. He would also participate in \u2014 and often gleefully post on Instagram<\/a> \u2014 robberies and shootings alongside the Nine Treys, eventually leading to his arrest and the litany of charges. In recent months, one charge for gun possession has been dropped, lowering the minimum sentence to 37 years, pending Judge Engelmayer\u2019s decision on Wednesday. <\/span><\/p>\n

Tekashi\u2019s legal team declined to comment on the record prior to the sentencing. Along with his 51K letter, Tekashi also submitted a personal letter<\/a> to Judge Engelmayer, pleading for leniency. \u201cI had a feeling of relief when I was arrested by the government because I felt stuck, like the gang had control over my life and that I would never be able to escape their grip,\u201d he wrote. \u201cI was blessed with the gift of an opportunity that most people dream of but I squandered it by getting involved with the wrong people and misrepresenting myself when I should have been true to myself and my fans.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

via:: Rolling Stone<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

On Wednesday at 10am, Daniel Hernandez \u2014 better known as Tekashi 6ix9ine \u2014 will be sentenced. The controversial rapper, who rose to prominence in 2017 before being arrested on federal racketeering charges in 2018, currently faces 37 years to life in prison. However, since cooperating with the U.S. Attorney\u2019s office following his arrest, it\u2019s possible, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[76],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-974096","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-music-news"},"acf":[],"publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2026-06-26 21:32:48","action":"change-status","newStatus":"draft","terms":[],"taxonomy":"category","extraData":[]},"publishpress_future_workflow_manual_trigger":{"enabledWorkflows":[]},"distributor_meta":false,"distributor_terms":false,"distributor_media":false,"distributor_original_site_name":"KFMU Solar Powered Radio","distributor_original_site_url":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kfmu","push-errors":false,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kfmu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/974096","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kfmu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kfmu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kfmu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kfmu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=974096"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kfmu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/974096\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kfmu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=974096"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kfmu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=974096"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kfmu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=974096"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}