NEW YORK (CelebrityAccess) — The New York Times reported that at least three rappers with ties to New York’s drill rap scene have been dropped from the lineup of the New York edition of the Rolling Loud festival at the request of local law enforcement officials.
The rappers included Sha Ek, 22Gz, and comedian/musician Ron Suno, the New York Times reported.
According to The Times, neither the festival or the NYPD respond to requests for comment on the removal of the rappers from the festival’s lineup. However, the newspaper noted that the removals followed a similar pattern to 2019 when five artists, including 22Gz and Pop Smoke, who was killed in 2020, were dropped from the bill.
A letter sent from an assistant chief at the Police Department to the festival organizers in 2019 claimed that department believed that the rappers had been “affiliated with recent acts of violence” and that their performance at the festival would increase the likelihood of violence.
Tariq Cherif, a co-founder of the festival told the NYT that the company had no choice but to comply with the 2019 request. Reps for several of the artists told the Times that their clients had been fully paid for their canceled performances.
Rolling Loud is set to take place this weekend at Citi Field.
