Travis Scott, Young Thug, and Killer Mike Petition Supreme Court Over Rap Lyrics in Death Penalty Case
Travis Scott, Young Thug, Killer Mike, and other artists have petitioned the Supreme Court to halt the execution of James Garfield Broadnax, arguing that using his rap lyrics in sentencing violates his First Amendment rights.
A collective of prominent artists and scholars, including Travis Scott, Young Thug, and Killer Mike, have joined forces to challenge the use of rap lyrics as evidence in criminal trials, specifically in the case of James Garfield Broadnax.
In 2009, Broadnax was convicted in Texas for a double homicide during a robbery. The prosecution presented 40 pages of his handwritten rap lyrics, influencing the primarily white jury to sentence him to death. According to the New York Times, the jury reviewed the lyrics twice before deciding on the death penalty over life without parole. Broadnax's legal team filed a brief requesting a “Writ of Certiorari,” urging the Supreme Court to review the lower court’s decision. His execution is scheduled for April 30.
Scott's brief to SCOTUS argues that using the lyrics violates Broadnax's First Amendment rights. "The prosecutors argued Mr. Broadnax was likely to be dangerous in the future simply because he engaged in ‘gangster rap,’” Scott’s brief notes. “Such an argument functionally operates as a categorical and straightforwardly unconstitutional content-based penalty on rap music as a form of expression.” The brief cites reporting from the Fader, Complex, and the New Yorker, emphasizing the need for SCOTUS to clarify the constitutional limits of using artistic expression as evidence.
Killer Mike and other artists filed a separate brief arguing that Broadnax’s lyrics were irrelevant to the guilt phase of his trial and were only introduced during sentencing. "This case exemplifies the racial prejudice that infects a criminal proceeding when the State uses a defendant’s rap lyrics to capitalize on anti-rap bias, the misinterpretation of rap lyrics, and anti-Black bias triggered by rap music,” the filing states.
This isn't the first time Killer Mike has engaged in such legal advocacy. In 2015, he supported a student suspended for his song lyrics. He also collaborated with Chance the Rapper, Meek Mill, and 21 Savage in a 2019 brief for Jamal Knox, a rapper charged over his lyrics. However, in that case, SCOTUS ruled that Knox’s lyrics were not protected by the First Amendment.
The debate around using rap lyrics in criminal trials has intensified, particularly following the indictment of Young Thug and his Young Stoner Life (YSL) collective. In response, New York and California have passed bills limiting the use of creative expression as evidence. The RAP Act, a federal bill aiming to ban the practice, was reintroduced to Congress in 2023 but remains unpassed.
Revisit Marc Hogan’s feature What Young Thug and Gunna’s Indictment Means for Rap Music on Trial.
Related Articles
Listen to Travis Scott on Foxsoundi. Click here to listen!
Comments (0)
Login to comment