Rapper Lil Durk has scored a major legal win after a judge ruled that his song lyrics cannot be used as evidence in his upcoming murder-for-hire trial.
The court decision is a setback for prosecutors, who had used lyrics from his song ‘Wonderful Wayne & Jackie Boy’ as a key part of their case.
They claimed the lyrics described a 2022 shooting involving rapper Quando Rondo that resulted in the death of Rondo’s cousin. Durk’s legal team argued that the song was written and released months before the incident, and the judge agreed to remove it from the evidence.
“Durk has always used music to tell stories, to express pain to heal—and yet those same lyrics are now being used against him. We refuse to stay silent as Black artists continue to be criminalized for their creativity. Rap is art,” his le
However, Durk was denied bail again. The judge said the rapper broke jail rules by using the phone accounts of 13 other inmates to make calls.
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This was seen as a sign that he would not follow the rules if released. The judge said this behavior made it unsafe to grant bail.
Durk is accused of putting a cash bounty on Quando Rondo as revenge for the 2020 killing of his friend, rapper King Von. He has pleaded not guilty to all charges.
The rapper’s family has expressed concern about the way prosecutors are handling the case. They have said the lyrics were being used unfairly and were never meant to be taken as real-life confessions.
The family believes that Black artists are often targeted for the content of their music and that art should not be used in court.
Last week, prosecutors quietly updated the indictment and removed any mention of Durk’s lyrics. His lawyer told the court that the claims about Durk profiting from the song after the shooting were false and misleading.
Durk remains behind bars at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Los Angeles. His lawyers said other inmates often break the same phone rules but are not punished the same way.
They believe the decision to deny bail was too harsh.
