Baton Rouge has always been known for creating some of the most violent music known to man. Glorifying pill popping, gunplay and murders, artists still manage to attract fans all over the world.
One rapper in particular by the name of Torrence “Lil Boosie” Hatch managed to break down the doors of the industry and cement his name in the hip-hop stonewall. This rapper’s lifestyle unfortunately led to Boosie being even more hated, and caused him to react in a less than admirable manner.
After being incarcerated for five years, Boosie released March 5, announced an inked deal with Atlantic Records. He then held a live-streamed press conference Monday and was interviewd by Angela Yee.
Both talked about the rapper’s time in jail, his family, and how he plans to spend his time as a free man.
Boosie stated that once he got out, the first person he hugged was his mother. He then went to Baton Rouge to pick up his kids.
”Even though my lawyer was saying I’m not allowed, I still went and got my kids,” said the rapper during the press conference.
Since Boosie was a young boy, he lived the street lifestyle. He grew up on West Garfield St., which is located in a poverty stricken neighborhood located on the South Side of Baton Rouge. He lived with his mother and father, whonamed him after the legendary Bootsy Collins. Even though his father died while he was at a young age, Boosie still managed to continue on to high school and start a career on the basketball team. He was expected to move on to the college level, but drugs and expulsion deleted that option. Once this happened, he began to put more time into his music, eventually leading to his first official release in 2000 under Camp Life Entertainment, Youngest of Da Camp.
At 17-years-old, his album began to strike Baton Rouge like an infection. This over the top attention led to him doing things he wasn’t supposed to be doing, ultimately, leading to his incarceration that same year.
Once he was released, he continued to make music which lead to the opportunity of a lifetime for Boosie. In 2001, he joined up-and-coming record label Trill Entertainment, which was ran by the late Pimp C of UGK. The next year would bring forth the next full-length project from Boosie, For My Thugz, which has sold over 90,000 copies as of 2013.
n 2003, Pimp C took it upon himself to put together a project featuring Boosie and his longtime friend and label mate, Webbie. The project was named Ghetto Stories and was only the beginning of two long list of songs provided from these two artists together. Releasing mix tapes and freestyling over the hottest instrumentals, they released a second compilation album Gangsta Muzik, which sold over 320,000 copies, and brought both artists notoriety from larger audiences. Boosie finally inked a record deal with Warner Bros. Records, and released his first Major Label debut album, Bad Azz.
In 2009, as promotion of his upcoming album, he released his mixtape, The Return of Mr. Wipe Me Down. Within months, Superbad: The Return of Boosie Bad Azz was released as his second major label album which included even more radio hits, and lead to Boosie coming up with his own recording label, Bad Azz Entertainment.
Boosie then took a major unexpected fall nobody expected. He was on trial facing multiple counts of murder and conspiracy charges. These events lead to him being incarcerated in 2009, possibly being hit with the death penalty.
Despite all of what was going on, he still managed to release his fourth studio album, Incarcerated, on Sept. 28, 2010. Nobody expected for this to turn into a five year bid, leaving fans all over the world in disbelief as we watched everything take place.
Over the years of his incarceration, he wrote 1,018 songs, a book and movie script based on his life called Boosie: The Movie. Although he gained a few pounds, the rapper now has a new and improved state of mind.
He says that the music he composes now is the best music he’s ever written. It contains more pain and heart striking lyrics as he has always provided. He calls his new genre of music “reality rap”.
Although Boosie has been gone far longer than anyone could have expected, even after being said to have more release dates than Jordan, his music continues to live on; and his new tunes are long over due.
Boosie will be on supervised parole until 2018.