Rapper Young Thug pleads guilty to gang, drug and weapons charges | US News

Rapper Young Thug pleaded guilty to gang, drug and weapons charges in Atlanta, Georgia on Thursday.

The 33-year-old Grammy-winning artist, whose real name is Jeffery Williams, filed his lawsuit without reaching a deal with prosecutors after negotiations between the two sides failed, said lead prosecutor Adriane Love. The verdict therefore remains entirely up to the judge.

Young Thug pleaded guilty to one gang-related charge, three drug charges and two firearm charges. He also entered a no-contest plea to another gang charge and a conspiracy charge, meaning he decided not to contest those charges and accept punishment for them.

The judge listened to Love and defense attorney Brian Steel before making a sentencing decision.

Young Thug, a hugely successful rapper, founded his own record label, Young Stoner Life or YSL. Prosecutors said he was also a co-founder of a violent criminal street gang and that YSL stood for Young Slime Life.

Two years ago, he was indicted in a sprawling indictment that accused him and more than two dozen others of conspiring to violate Georgia's anti-crime law. He was also accused of gang, drug and gun crime.

Young Thug's plea comes nearly a year after prosecutors began presenting evidence in the troubled trial. Jury selection at the Atlanta courthouse began in January 2023 and lasted nearly 10 months. The trial of six defendants began with opening statements last November, and prosecutors have called dozens of witnesses since then.

Three of his co-defendants had already pleaded guilty this week after making deals with prosecutors. The plea deals still leave the fate of two other co-defendants unclear.

Nine of those charged in the indictment accepted plea agreements before the trial began. Twelve more are being negotiated separately. Prosecutors dropped charges against a defendant after he was convicted of murder in an unrelated case.