Trump
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Count Azaelia Banks as one of the people who supported President Donald Trump who is rethinking that decision. In a series of posts on X, formerly Twitter, made on Wednesday (April 16), the Harlem native was frank about Trumpâs disastrous second term to this point. âOk I think itâs time everyone who voted for Trump admit that we made a fâ-g mess,â Banks wrote. âLike this is an absolute disaster.ââHeâs so petty and vindictive rn,â Banks added in a follow-up post. âTbh, rightfully so, but not when the wellbeing and livelihood of billions of people â damn near the entire world lay in ur hands . Someone needs to get him a cute little lorazepam rx and a high-grade ashwagandha supplement because it canât happen like this. Nobody on earth is afraid of crazy old white man anger. Old white men need to reinvent the archetype because itâs too predictable. Like China is just DUNKING on everyone right now.âBanks has been an avid supporter of Trump dating back to before his first term in 2016 and demonstrated it by appearing at a campaign rally of his in Miami, Florida, last July along with a music promoter, Jake Inphamous. She did leave some slightly confused when she stated that she would vote for Democratic Party nominee Kamala Harris in the presidential election last year. But on the day after the election, she wrote on X: âLmao I lied, I voted for Trump yesterday.âThe â212â rapperâs regrets are no doubt due to the chaotic way that Trumpâs second term has unfolded, particularly on the economic level with his âLiberation Dayâ decision to impose tariffs on every countryâs imported products with a severe rate imposed on China. Other moves, such as attempting to dismantle the Department of Education and his executive orders leading to the deportation of hundreds of people to El Salvador have shaken his base of supporters.
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Now that Donald Trump has decided to accelerate Americaâs path to a recession and implement unnecessary tariffs on every country and penguin inhabited island outside of Russia (of course), stocks have plummeted for every single sneaker brand as they make all of their merchandise overseas.
According to Complex, the new Trump Tariffs sent Nike stock plunging 13% as both China and Vietnam were hit with huge tariffs and as any sneaker head knows, their favorite grails are made in both the aforementioned countries. Unfortunately this was before China announced retaliatory tariffs in which they clapped back at the U.S. with a 34% tariffs on U.S. imports instead of ânegotiatingâ as the âdealmakerâ known as Trump had hoped theyâd do.
How this will affect Nikeâs stock going forward is anyoneâs guess, but already thereâs word that Nike will indeed be raising the prices of their sneakers due to the new tariffs and with the kind of 2025 sneaker lineup that dreams are made of (for sneakerheads anyway), one can only wonder if heads will continue to copp or pass on highly-anticipated releases given that weâll more than likely be in a recession by the middle of the year, if not earlier.
Per Complex:
The plunging stock prices of Nike are a direct response to Trumpâs tariffs of 10 percent for all imports taking effect on April 5, with steeper tariffs on imports from select countries being imposed on April 9. For the latter, the higher tariffs include 34 percent on imports from China, 32 percent on imports from Indonesia, and 46 percent on imports from Vietnam. Nike said in an SEC filing last year that factories made roughly 50 percent of its footwear in Vietnam, 27 percent in Indonesia, and 18 percent in China.
Nike isnât the only sportswear company being affected by the news of the tariffs. Stock prices took a huge tumble for brands like Adidas (16 percent), Crocs (15 percent), On (15 percent), Under Armour (17 percent), and others on Thursday, with percentages expected to fluctuate throughout the day.
Well, at least grocery prices are down, right? Oh wait.
Though there is word that Democratic and Republican congressmen and women are working on a bill to reiterate that only congress has the power to implement tariffs, with the way MAGA Republicans bend to their orange overlordâs every whim and demand, weâre not sure that will actually happen anytime soon.
Get ready to pay an extra $20 to $30 for your favorite Air Jordans going forward as no way Nike is going to eat the cost of Trumpâs tariffs. Donât get us started on $2300 iPhones.
But hey, at least trans men canât play in womenâs sports anymore, right? SMH.
What do yâall think about Trumpâs new tariffs? Let us know in the comments section below.

Ana Navarro took aim at Snoop Dogg during Tuesday morningâs (Jan. 21) episode of The View, likening the rapper to a âtrained sealâ after he performed at a pro-Donald Trump event during inauguration weekend. Explore Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news The host, who is both a GOP Republican […]
With the inauguration of a new president just six weeks away, many in country musicâs creative community recognize they have a role to play.
In his first administration, Donald Trump was frighteningly comfortable making life difficult for people who exercised their First Amendment freedom of speech rights â threatening, for example, to revoke TV licenses over negative coverage and calling for a federal investigationof Saturday Night Live over a skit.
For his second administration, Trump and some of his cabinet nominees have vowed to exact revenge on his perceived enemies, including journalists whose coverage he deems unflattering. Some former White House staff and advisers say Trump aspires to rule as an autocrat.
Songwriters, artists and musicians â like reporters â make their living transmitting messages, and many are aware that on certain days, they may be led to create music that might seem contrary to a thin-skinned ruler. Do they self-edit and slink to the next subject? Or do they stand up and speak their piece?
Songwriter Dan Wilson, who co-wrote Chris Stapletonâs âWhite Horse,â which won the Country Music Associationâs single and song of the year, is familiar with the issue. He worked with The Chicks, co-writing the Grammy-winning âNot Ready To Make Niceâ after they were booted out of countryâs mainstream for criticizing then-President George W. Bush and the Iraq War.Â
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âAs Iâve learned firsthand in the past, critiquing the president can be a fraught and dangerous thing to do,â Wilson said on the red carpet before the CMA Awards. âGenerally, doing what artists do anyway, which is pointing things out that no one else will talk about, that could be a dangerous thing to do, but I donât think thatâs going to stop.â
Most songwriters, particularly in country music, donât address political topics in their work on a regular basis. And plenty of those creators â when pressed in recent weeks on how Trumpâs return to the White House might influence their art â shrugged off the subject, saying they were apolitical or didnât feel comfortable talking about it publicly.
But others were particularly sensitive about the subject. In the past, Trump has incited his followers to intimidate his detractors, and many see his return to office as a threat to their personal freedoms and, possibly, to their safety. Artists are already acutely aware of the potential reaction of the audience and media gatekeepers.
âYou always think about that stuff,â Phil Vassar noted at the ASCAP Country Awards red carpet. âYouâre writing songs â âCan I say that in a song?â â
Under normal conditions, songwriters ask that question to avoid commercial and/or artistic repercussions. But in authoritarian regimes, expression is tightly guarded, creating additional emotional hurdles. In Russia, the population is famously loath to speak ill of top government officials. Vladimir Putin has jailed artists whose music opposes his rule. In Afghanistan, music has been outlawed in its entirety.
âThe arts are frightening because the arts reveal people to themselves,â Rosanne Cash said at a Dec. 4 party for her new Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum exhibit, âRosanne Cash: Time Is a Mirror.â âThe arts are inherently political in that bigger sense, that it changes people and wakes them up.â
Not everyone sees the incoming administration as a threat. Jason Aldean, Chris Janson and Brian Kelley all participated in the Republican Convention in July, and Big Loud artist Lauren Watkins is hopeful that âwe are going to have more freedom of speech.âÂ
Meanwhile, Julie Williams, a mixed-race, queer artist, is already concerned about being canceled by emboldened conservatives under a Trump administration. The day after the election, she wasnât convinced she had the strength to play a Nov. 7 show celebrating her new EP, Tennessee Moon. But the audience response helped her recognize that her songs might be even more important over the next four years.
âFor me, when I get a chance to be onstage and sing songs about growing up in the South or my queer journey, it makes me feel like I have a little bit of control, a little bit of power, over whatâs happening in the world,â she said on the CMA Awards carpet. âWhile I canât change whatâs happening at the national level at the moment, at my shows, I can help create an environment that people feel like they belong, that they feel like thereâs somebody that loves them, and just to share my stories and hope that the audience hears themselves in it.â
Itâs not only the songwriters and artists who sense they have a mission. Found Sound Media founder Becky Parsons, who specializes in management and PR for women and minority artists, is encouraging her acts â including Sarahbeth Taite and Fimone â to present themselves authentically through their art. And she intends to do that herself.
âIâm not going to be silent,â Parsons said on the CMA Awards carpet. âIâm not going to sit down and play by your rules. Iâm going to break your rules. Iâm going to create the world that I want to see. Not everybody has the luxury to do that, but thankfully, I do, and thatâs the kind of future in country music and the world that I want to see.â
For many artists, the mission headed into the new administration is less about confrontation than about bringing disparate people together. Willie Nelson famously did that by attracting an audience of cowboys, college students and hippies with country music in the mid-1970s. Today, The War and Treaty, Charlie Worsham, Home Free, Frank Ray and Niko Moon aim to act as a bridge between communities.
âIâm kind of over being on any one team, and Iâm ready to talk to people â especially people that I donât agree with â and better understand what their plight is,â Worsham said on the CMA carpet. âAnd I think country music is uniquely poised to speak to this moment.âÂ
Moon is similarly dedicated to putting âlove and positivity out there into the world.â
âWeâre living in strange times,â he said, âbut that doesnât mean we have to be strangers. Weâre more similar than we are different.â
That said, if Trump follows the Project 2025 agenda, as many fear he may, it is likely to embolden his most ardent supporters, who have at times resorted to violence â in Charlottesville, Va., in 2016 or in the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol, to name two examples. It would be easy, in such an atmosphere, for cultural groups under siege to withdraw from the public space. But thatâs all the more reason, openly gay country artist Chris Housman said, for creatives to speak out. He concedes that he went into a mini-depression after the election and admits that heâs among the faction of Americans who considered leaving the country. But heâs not going anywhere.
âI get so much inspiration and motivation out of challenging stuff and uncertainty and being uncomfortable,â Housman said on the CMA carpet. âIt kind of feels like itâs ground zero here in the South, and in America in general, right now. If everybody leaves, if all the queer people leave, then itâs not going to change anything. So Iâm just trying to dig in for that motivation and inspiration.â
Digging in against an autocrat is not comfortable. But staying quiet has consequences, too. As Thomas Jefferson noted, âAll tyranny needs to gain a foothold is for men of good conscience to remain silent.â Creatives who self-censor to avoid controversy might make their lives a little easier for the short-term, but they also wonât make much of a long-term difference. Artists who stood up in the past â such as Bob Dylan, Woody Guthrie, Bob Marley and Johnny Cash â influenced the eras in which they made their music, but they also helped to improve future generationsâ understanding of their times.
âA lot of the reason that we are able to remember fascists and dictators is because of the work of creatives, because of the work that weâve done in documenting things from our authentic perspective,â said Supreme Republic Entertainment founder Brittney Boston, whose clients include rapper DAX and country singer Carmen Dianne. âI think itâs really important as an artist right now to be honest, to write from your heart, because a lot of people are going to be too scared to do that, and people are going to be craving that authenticity.â
If nothing else, the creative class has an opportunity as Trump moves into office threatening retribution. On those occasions when artists or songwriters have something to say, but hold back to avoid scrutiny, they chip away at their own freedoms. Those who decline to self-censor their work often discover a greater sense of empowerment, even as they continue a free-speech tradition that was etched into the Constitution.
âYou find the limits of your courage, donât you?â Rosanne Cash said rhetorically. âLetâs just go for it.âÂ
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Is the music business, traditionally an arbiter of cool, out of touch with U.S. consumers? Itâs a tough question to ask â and a tough time to ask it. But if you compare the results of the presidential election with the politics of artists and executives, itâs hard not to.
The dominant mood among people I know is shock at the scale of Donald Trumpâs victory â most expected a race so close that ballot-counting would continue all week â and an unsettling feeling that the U.S. is not the country we thought it was. What happened and why will be discussed for years. Thereâs also a more immediate question: Why didnât more people see this coming?
Part of the reason is that this still seems so weird â Iâm old enough to remember when talking about a professional golferâs private parts would have been disqualifying in politics, let alone the Republican party. But part of it is that, unintentionally, many people in the media business now live in a bit of a bubble. Iâm one of them: I live in Berlin and spend most of my time in the U.S. in or near New York, and I read The New York Times and The New Yorker. When it comes to music, none of my favorite artists supported Trump, and one, Bruce Springsteen, actively campaigned against him. Some of the biggest musicians in the world also supported Kamala Harris â Taylor Swift, BeyoncĂ©, Ariana Grande, Sabrina Carpenter â as did most music executives. Many of them must share my surprise.
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Are they â are we â too detached from the mainstream?
A significant number of Trump supporters are right-wing racists â certainly enough to make one worry. But itâs hard to make the case that Trump supporters are extremists if they account for more than half the vote. By definition, theyâre mainstream. Worryingly, the Democrats donât seem to know how to talk to them in a way that addresses their concerns. Calling them deplorables didnât work, and making the case that Trump would be a disaster for democracy didnât, either. (Democracy means that people vote for their leaders â it doesnât mean that they vote for the leaders you want.) The Democrats focus more on what people can do for their country at a time voters seem more interested in what their country can do for them. Ideas are important, but many people seem more focused on the affordability of groceries.
For whatever reason, itâs now clear that there are more Trump voters than many people, including musicians and music executives, thought. They are also younger and more diverse than people realized. Many of them must listen to pop music. But is the music business listening to them? The idea that itâs controversial just to endorse Trump, without echoing any of his uglier rhetoric, means turning oneâs back on more than half of American voters. Thatâs not how mass marketing works.
The challenge Trump presents to American democracy is far more important than selling music, of course. And I suspect I will get a few emails about how crazy it is to suggest that anyone market music to people who think immigrants are eating cats. But reaching different kinds of people with different kinds of art is what the music business does.
Itâs also what politics is supposed to do. Both the music business and politics need to do better at reaching large, diverse audiences. That often means connecting with existing fans, but it has to also mean reaching out to new ones. Often, people simply wonât buy what theyâre being sold, whether itâs a new album or a new candidate. But itâs important to have those conversations â both for those of us who want to help elect a new president in four years and those of us who want to argue that this one is going to do a great job.
More and more, politics seems stuck in a loop, in which ideas are marketed to, and cheered, by those who have already decided on them. In music, thatâs known as a superfan strategy, and itâs very important. But building one requires reaching new people to turn into fans, or supporters, in the first place.
When Lee Greenwood released âGod Bless The USAâ in the spring of 1984, âit was not a massive hit,â the 82-year-old country music icon tells Billboard.
The song peaked at No. 7 in July 1984 on Billboardâs Hot Country Songs chart, but it has returned to the charts several times over the decades, including over Fourth of July weekend 2020, the first year of the pandemic â when it hit No. 1 on the Digital Song Sales chart.
The anthemâs enduring appeal has led to it being played in the wake of the Sept. 11th terrorist attacks and the assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump. It has been covered by BeyoncĂ©, Dolly Parton, and on Friday (Nov. 1), Drew Jacobs released a rock version. And, of course, it is consistently played at political events, including every Republican National Convention since 1988 â Greenwood sang it live at the last one in July â and now as the walk-on music for former President Trump.
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âTo be honest, having President Trump use âUSAâ as the song he walks out to every single place he goes is a dream come true for any artist,â says Greenwood, who adds he wrote the song for all Americans.⯠âMillions of people hear my song on a weekly basis all because President Trump uses it.â
So what is that worth? Billboard spoke with Greenwood and ran the numbers to estimate how much he stands to gain from the Trump bump.
STREAMING
Greenwood says he owns the writerâs and publishing rights to âGod Bless The USA,â and that peermusic administers the publishing and synch licensing for it and other songs in his catalog.
Greenwood says he has never charged for the use âUSAâ at rallies by the former president, whom he knows from his wife Kim Greenwoodâs work with the Miss Universe Organization. He says that he did charge the Ronald Reagan campaign $1 to use the song in 1988, but âjust because they wanted to have âpaper on the deal.â
âI donât look at money as the driver for my music,â he adds.
That said, âGod Bless The USAâ has earned Greenwood a nice bit of coin this year. The song enjoyed a noticeable increase in consumption, especially in the immediate weeks following Greenwoodâs performance at the Republican National Convention.
In the 16 weeks since the RNC, âUSAâ has averaged over 4,100 song equivalents in the United States, according to Luminate. Thatâs an increase over the roughly 3,000 U.S. song equivalents it averaged in the 27 weeks of 2024 that preceded the convention.
That post-convention total includes an average of 568,000 U.S. primarily on-demand audio streams compared to 468,000 in the weeks leading up to the convention.
Compared to Greenwoodâs âUSAâ, Sam & Daveâs âHold On Iâm Comingâ has seen a smaller average bump. That song is currently the subject of a copyright infringement lawsuit filed in August by the estate of Isaac Hayes, who co-wrote the song. The complaint alleges that the song has been used multiple times during rallies without authorization.
âHold On Iâm Comingâ averaged over 5,200 song equivalents in the U.S. since the RNC, just a smidge over the 5,000 U.S. song equivalents it averaged in the 27 weeks before the convention.
Looking at U.S. streaming and download revenue for the songs, the master recording rights for âHold Onâ generated more revenue overall than âUSAâ after the convention â an average of $4,613.81 per week, compared to an equivalent $3,337.24.
However, the bump the songsâ master recording rights netted was bigger for âUSAâ than âHold On.â Greenwoodâs signature songâs master recording rights generated $744 more per week on average since the convention, compared to $148 for âHold On.â
That adds up to an estimated Trump bump of an additional nearly $12,000 from the songâs master recordings over the past 16 weeks. These calculations are for label revenue, and Greenwoodâs share of that figure would depend on his contract, details of which are not known.
On the publishing side, Greenwood songâs earned an average of about $675 a week from U.S. streams and downloads in the 27 weeks leading up to the convention and $845 a week after.âŻThat means the song produced an average of $3,267 a week â master recordings and publishing combined â leading up to the convention and $4,182 a week after the convention.
Billboard estimates Greenwoodâs U.S. master recording catalog revenues, not including publishing, brought in $219,000 for his label so far this year compared to almost $184,000 in 2023 â a Trump bump of approximately $35,000 year to date.
THE TRUMP⊠SLUMP?
Not all songs used at Trump events enjoyed the same post-rally glow. The Foo Fightersâ âMy Heroâ was played to introduce Robert Kennedy Jr. at an August rally for the former president in Arizona without permission, according to the band. At the time, a spokesperson for the Foo Fighters said any royalties gained from post-rally plays of the song would be donated to Trumpâs challenger, Vice President Kamala Harrisâ campaign. (A spokesperson for the band did not respond to a request for comment for this story.)
Since âMy Heroâ was played at the rally, it has declined in popularity, according to data from Luminate. Prior to the convention, the songâs U.S. streams and downloads averaged almost $10,100 in master recording revenue a week. But after the band denounced the songâs use by the Trump campaign, the audio stream counts average weekly plays fell by almost 200,000âŻfrom 1.668 million to 1.488 million. Consequently, revenue that had averaged nearly $10,100 a week fell to just below $9,200 a week, a weekly decline of approximately $900.

Puerto Rican reggaetĂłn stars Anuel AA and Justin Quiles took the stage to support Donald Trump during a rally in Johnstown, Pennsylvania, on Friday night (Aug. 30). Both reggaetĂłn stars were called to the podium by Trump, who introduced them as âtwo amazing Puerto Rican musical legends,â and then added: âEvery Puerto Rican is going to vote for Trump.â
Wearing Make America Great Again red baseball caps, Quiles and Anuel walked up to the podium and firmly shook Trumpâs hand before Anuel took the mic and introduced himself to a crowd that clearly was not familiar with the two Latin artists and initially was subdued in its cheering.
âThank you, Mr. President, for having us here,â said Anuel. âFor me, itâs a real blessing to be here. Iâm from Puerto Rico. Since Trump hasnât been around, itâs not a secret, weâve been going through a lot as a country. Biden always promised, promised. A lot of politicians promised through the years. All of us know ⊠the best president the world has seen, this country has ever seen, his name is President Trump. So, all my Puerto Ricans, letâs stay united. Letâs vote for Trump. I personally spoke with him, he wants to help Puerto Rico grow and succeed as a country. He wants to keep helping Latinos in the U.S. Letâs keep doing things the right way and letâs make America great again,â said Anuel, this time to louder cheering.
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Then Quiles took the podium and added, reading from a sheet of paper: âIâll also say a few words. Mr. President, Iâm beyond honored. Mr. President, above all, I like you because, Iâve always said this, youâre not a puppet. I back you because I feel youâre the most honest president we ever had. Thatâs true!,â Quiles said, looking up at the now more energized crowd as Trump smiled behind him. âSaying things how they are, not what you think people want to hear, and thatâs very important. A lot of Latinos, we stand strong next to President Trump. Thank you for sharing back there how important building Puerto Rico up again is, and not just Puerto Rico â letâs make America great again!â
Quiles and Anuel then shook Trumpâs hand again and walked out to cheers, as Trump reclaimed the podium and said, âWow, thatâs great.â
Latin artists have been largely muted during the U.S. presidential campaign, and no major Latin artist had shown up at any rally until Friday night. Anuel and Quilesâ endorsement of Trump is the most prominent endorsement of the Republican candidate so far. Prior to the rally, Anuel and Quiles both posted videos to their respective Instagram stories of Trumpâs campaign plane. Quiles also posted a photo of a white baseball cap emblazoned with the words âMake Puerto Rico great again.â
Watch Anuel and Quilesâ speeches at the rally below:
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As we approach the presidential election, Lil Pump will be voicing his support for Donald Trump in song. The âGucci Gangâ rapper took to X on Tuesday (Aug. 13) to reveal that he will no longer be performing a diss track aimed at both President Joe Biden and Vice President Harris during Trumpâs next rally, […]
Country star Jason Aldean turned up the political heat at his recent concert in Nashville on July 13, dedicating his controversial hit âTry That in a Small Townâ to former president Donald Trump.
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The singer, who has long been a vocal Trump supporter, took his admiration to new heights during the performance.
In a TikTok video shared by user @susanelizabethphoto, the âDirt Road Anthemâ singer is heard saying, âWhat happened in Pittsburgh today with our former president, Mr. Trump, you guys know about this, right?
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âPresident Trumpâs a friend of mine so I want to send this next song out to him. We all know whatâs going to happen come November, so itâs all good.â He continued, âJust goes to show you thereâs a lot of bullshit in the world, and thatâs kind of what this song right here was about, so this one goes out to the pres.â
Aldean also shared his support via Instagram, âThis is what a warrior looks like! This is MY guy,â sharing the famous photo of a bloodied Trump raising his fist in defiance.
âDonald Trump, we are thinking about you and praying for you and your family. God has a bigger plan for you, my friend, and I think we all know what that is by now.â He also extended his condolences to the families of the victims affected by the incident, calling it a âcowardly act.â
The dedication aligns with Aldeanâs ongoing support for Trump. He and his wife Brittany have been fixtures at Trump events and recently promoted merchandise supporting Trumpâs campaign.
Aldean wasnât the only musician to rally behind Trump following the apparent assassination attempt. Kid Rock posted a fiery video on social media, declaring, âYou fâ with Trump, you fâ with me,â and shared a link to a GoFundMe page for the victims of the shooting, which has raised over $2 million.
âTry That in a Small Townâ has been at the center of heated debate since its release, with critics arguing the lyrics promote vigilantism and contain racial undertones.
Aldean has consistently defended the song, maintaining it celebrates small-town community values.
The controversy surrounding the track, however, has not hindered its success; the song rose to No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100, marking Aldeanâs first leader on the chart. It generated major buzz after CMT pulled its video after some labelled it as pro-gun, pro-violence and akin to a âmodern lynching songâ.
âTry That in a Small Townâ also topped the Digital Song Sales chart and vaulted up the Streaming Songs chart, and topped Googleâs 2023 Trending Musicians list, with âTry That in a Small Townâ leading song searches.
Watch Jason Aldean dedicate âTry That in a Small Townâ to Donald Trump in Nashville below.
Facing a sweeping racketeering case in Atlanta, former President Donald Trump has hired attorney Steven Sadow, a veteran Georgia criminal defense attorney who just represented Gunna in the high-profile criminal case against Young Thug and other rappers.
Sadow, who has also represented Rick Ross, T.I. and Usher in the past, filed legal papers Thursday morning (Aug. 24) in Fulton County Court stating that he was âlead counsel of record for Donald John Trump.â When reached by Billboard, Sadow confirmed that had been hired to represent the former president.
âThe President should never have been indicted,â says Sadow. âHe is innocent of all the charges brought against him. We look forward to the case being dismissed or, if necessary, an unbiased, open-minded jury finding the President not guilty. Prosecutions intended to advance or serve the ambitions and careers of political opponents of the President have no place in our justice system.â
Trump, who is expected to surrender to prosecutors on Thursday, is facing 13 felony counts as part of a massive racketeering case against 19 defendants accused of trying to illegally overturn his 2020 election loss in Georgia. Fulton County DA Fani Willis filed the charges under Georgiaâs Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, a state-level version of the federal RICO law used to prosecute drug cartels and Mafia families.
Thatâs the same RICO statute that the same Fulton County prosecutor used in May 2022 to indict Young Thug, Gunna and dozens of others over their alleged involvement in a violent Atlanta street gang. The case claims that their âYSLâ is not really a record label called âYoung Stoner Life,â but a criminal enterprise called âYoung Slime Lifeâ that committed murders, carjackings, armed robberies, drug dealing and other crimes.
Represented by Sadow, Gunna pleaded guilty in December to exit that case by taking a so-called Alford plea â a maneuver that allows a defendant to enter a formal admission of guilt while still maintaining their innocence.
At the time, Gunna insisted that the deal did not involve cooperation with prosecutors. But when he entered his plea, Gunna admitted in court that YSL was both âa music label and a gang,â and that he had âpersonal knowledge that members or associates of YSL have committed crimes in furtherance of the gang.â
Young Thug and many others are still facing those charges. A trial technically kicked off earlier this year but has faced long delays in selecting a jury to hear the case and has not substantively begun yet. Young Thug has repeatedly been denied pre-trial release on bond.
Sadow will take over representing Trump from Drew Findling, another Atlanta lawyer with an extensive history representing rappers in criminal matters, including Gucci Mane, the members of Migos and Cardi B in her recent microphone-throwing incident in Las Vegas.
Though Findling has not formally departed the case yet, a person with knowledge of the situation confirmed to Billboard that he will no longer be retained by the former president. Findling himself did not return a request for comment on Thursday.
Trump is expected to surrender Thursday evening at Fulton County Jail in Atlanta, though heâll only be there briefly before he is released on a negotiated bond. While some of the defendants in the YSL case are being held in the same building, Young Thug is detained in neighboring Cobb County Jail.
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