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NY senate passes 'Rap Music on Trial' bill preventing song lyrics from being used as evidence in criminal cases
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buh buh biden
May 18, 2022, 4:37:54 AM5/18/22
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NEW YORK (1010 WINS) — On Monday, the New York State Senate passed the
“Rap Music on Trial” legislation, a bill which prevents song lyrics from
being used as evidence in criminal cases, creating protections for all
artists and content creators, including rappers.
Artists like Jay-Z and Fat Joe along with academics like Michelle
Alexander previously signed their names on a letter endorsing the
legislation aimed at securing freedom of creative expression in New York,
barring prosecutors from interpreting rap lyrics literally as evidence
against defendants in courtrooms.
The bill is sponsored by Senator Brad Hoylman (D/WFP-Manhattan), Senator
Jamaal Bailey (D-The Bronx) and Assemblymember Catalina Cruz (D-Queens)
and was introduced in November with the intention of protecting all
artists and content creators from the misuse of their work in legal
battles.
Though the bill covers artists of all genres, supporters of the bill argue
that this legislation would be vital for rap artists whose lyrics have
historically been denied the status of art, instead, the music has been
referred to as an “autobiographical journal” by one prosecutor. Supporters
also said this labeling and usage of rap lyrics in courtrooms
disproportionately affect Black and Latino people.
“Rap should not be treated differently from any other art form; yet in
courtrooms across the country, artists have been unfairly targeted for
simply exercising their right to creative expression,” said Senator
Bailey. “Presuming a defendant’s guilt based solely on musical genre or
creative expression is antithetical to our foundational rights and
perpetuates the systemic racism that is embedded into the criminal justice
system through discriminatory conflations of hip-hop and rap with
criminality.”
University of Richmond Professor Erik Nielson found at least 28 cases of
New York criminal prosecutors attempting to use rap lyrics as evidence
since 2017. As recently as last week, the Fulton County District Attorney
in Atlanta allowed prosecutors to submit rap music from Young Thug in an
attempt to prove the rapper’s involvement in a criminal operation.
“Art is creative expression, not a blueprint of criminal plans. Yet we’ve
seen prosecutors in New York and across the country try to use rap music
lyrics as evidence in criminal cases, a practice upheld this year by Young
Thug’s prosecutors. It’s time to end the egregious bias against certain
genres of music, like rap, and protect the First Amendment rights of all
artists. I’m proud the New York senate passed this legislation so that New
York leads the way in treating artists fairly, no matter their race or
gender.”
https://www.audacy.com/1010wins/news/jay-z-fat-joe-and-other-artists-sign-
support-for-bill
“Rap Music on Trial” legislation, a bill which prevents song lyrics from
being used as evidence in criminal cases, creating protections for all
artists and content creators, including rappers.
Artists like Jay-Z and Fat Joe along with academics like Michelle
Alexander previously signed their names on a letter endorsing the
legislation aimed at securing freedom of creative expression in New York,
barring prosecutors from interpreting rap lyrics literally as evidence
against defendants in courtrooms.
The bill is sponsored by Senator Brad Hoylman (D/WFP-Manhattan), Senator
Jamaal Bailey (D-The Bronx) and Assemblymember Catalina Cruz (D-Queens)
and was introduced in November with the intention of protecting all
artists and content creators from the misuse of their work in legal
battles.
Though the bill covers artists of all genres, supporters of the bill argue
that this legislation would be vital for rap artists whose lyrics have
historically been denied the status of art, instead, the music has been
referred to as an “autobiographical journal” by one prosecutor. Supporters
also said this labeling and usage of rap lyrics in courtrooms
disproportionately affect Black and Latino people.
“Rap should not be treated differently from any other art form; yet in
courtrooms across the country, artists have been unfairly targeted for
simply exercising their right to creative expression,” said Senator
Bailey. “Presuming a defendant’s guilt based solely on musical genre or
creative expression is antithetical to our foundational rights and
perpetuates the systemic racism that is embedded into the criminal justice
system through discriminatory conflations of hip-hop and rap with
criminality.”
University of Richmond Professor Erik Nielson found at least 28 cases of
New York criminal prosecutors attempting to use rap lyrics as evidence
since 2017. As recently as last week, the Fulton County District Attorney
in Atlanta allowed prosecutors to submit rap music from Young Thug in an
attempt to prove the rapper’s involvement in a criminal operation.
“Art is creative expression, not a blueprint of criminal plans. Yet we’ve
seen prosecutors in New York and across the country try to use rap music
lyrics as evidence in criminal cases, a practice upheld this year by Young
Thug’s prosecutors. It’s time to end the egregious bias against certain
genres of music, like rap, and protect the First Amendment rights of all
artists. I’m proud the New York senate passed this legislation so that New
York leads the way in treating artists fairly, no matter their race or
gender.”
https://www.audacy.com/1010wins/news/jay-z-fat-joe-and-other-artists-sign-
support-for-bill
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