Lil Wayne has been released from prison after an eight-month stint at Rikers Island serving for attempted possession of a weapon, MTV reports.
There was initially some ambiguity as to whether Lil Wayne was to be released today, as this morning officials told reporters that Wayne had “lost a day of good time” and would be released tomorrow, November 5. Suffice to say, that was not the case, and he’s out now.
MTV also reported that Wayne does not face any additional probation or parole from the gun charge, though he does face three years of unsupervised probation and community service after pleading guilty in Arizona to one count of possession of a dangerous drug.
So how is Lil Wayne going to spend his first few days of freedom? According to MTV, Wayne plans to fly to Miami to spend time with friends and family before he begins recording new material. There have also been rumors of him showing up at a Drake show in Las Vegas this Saturday, November 6.
Surprisingly, among those excited about Lil Wayne’s release is former President Bill Clinton.
Rap website AllHipHop.com reported that Clinton was interviewed on a Pittsburgh radio station yesterday, and was inquired about Lil Wayne’s imminent release from prison. Clinton had the following response:
“I know this is kind of a funny question for you to ask me. But my daughter introduced me to rap and hip-hop music after I said some things that she thought were not very smart. She said, ‘Dad, you need to listen. A lot of these guys are smart.’ This guy’s smart, and he’s got ability. And he’s got a new chance now. And what I hope is that this is not just something to brand him as a cool guy but that it’ll never happen again to him. I think a lot of these people, they don’t get successful in that– just like any other area of life– by being dumb. They’re really smart. But a lot of them have tough lives, and they almost think it’s cool to get in trouble every now and then, or they don’t know how to stay out. What I hope will happen is that he has a good life now.”
Rap fanatics probably won’t have to keep their eyes peeled for Lil Wayne, as he is sure to leave an indelible mark on the hip-hop landscape in the impending year.
UCF students, what do you think? Do you have faith in hip-hop again?
