Fetty Wap was one of the biggest rappers in the world for a span of two years. The New Jersey artist exploded onto the scene in 2015, with a self-titled album that spawned four smash singles. Two of these singles, “My Way” and “Trap Queen,” were top 10 hits on the Billboard Hot 100. The artist’s blend of rapping and catchy, sing-songy melodies made him a natural fit for the radio, and co-signs from the likes of Drake and Snoop Dogg made it seem as though he’d be around for years to come.
Fate had other plans, however. Fetty Wap wasn’t able to capitalize on the success of his first album because he spent the next decade embroiled in various legal battles and personal tragedies. Fetty’s daughter, Lauren, died at the age of four in 2021, and later that year, he was indicted on one count of conspiracy to distribute and possess controlled substances. Fetty Wap is currently behind bars due to this indictment, and is slated to be there for quite a while. How long exactly? Let’s discuss.
Fetty Wap spent years going in and out of jail
The artist was first locked up in 2017, when he was pulled over for drunk driving and subsequently charged with “drunk driving, reckless endangerment, aggravated unlicensed operation of a motor vehicle,” according to New York Daily News. It was the aforementioned indictment, however, that really initiated Fetty Wap’s legal nightmare. He was arrested soon after the indictment was made public, and was taken into custody at Citi Field in Queens, New York. He pleaded not guilty to the federal drug charges, and posted a $500K bond to secure his release in November 2021.
Fetty Wap was allowed to be free as long as he upheld the terms of his bail. Unfortunately, he did not do so. Fox 8 News reported that the artist threatened to murder a man during a FaceTime call on December 11. “Imma kill you and everybody you with,” he said to Willie Maxwell, which led to a revoking of his freedom and imprisonment in August 2022. It was during that same month that the artist changed his tune and plead guilty to “conspiracy to distribute and possess controlled substances.”
This was not the only charge made against Fetty Wap, but it was the most serious, as it carried with it a mandatory minimum sentence of five years in prison. To make matters even worse, NBC News reported that federal sentencing guidelines generally recommend that additional years be added to cases involving the distribution of controlled substances. Fetty’s reasoning for pleading guilty, according to The Guardian, was to avoid a potential life sentence.
Fetty Wap will not be eligible for release until 2029
Fetty Wap was sentenced to six years in prison on May 24, 2023. During the hearing, the artist read a statement in which he expressed his regret. “I hurt my community, people who look up to me,” he explained. “My family and myself. I am truly sorry for any pain I caused.”
Fetty Wap revealed that his main reason for distributing controlled substances was because he was struggling to make ends meet as an artist. It took him years to release his second album, 2021’s , and it sold abysmally compared to his debut. “Like, aight, the music wasn’t really doin’ that good,” he told XXL in 2023. “I’m putting out music, but nobody’s payin’ attention. So, I’m like, man, f**k it. I’ma go back to what I know how to do.”
The decision stemmed from a point of pride, and a desire to maintain a luxurious lifestyle, but it was something Fetty now regrets. “Like if I’m fallin’ off, f**k it,” he recalled. “I ain’t about to look like it, you know what I’m sayin’? I was a coward for that. And I was just like, I can’t let my family down.”
While there are often instances of prisoners getting released early for good behavior, the severity of Fetty Wap’s crimes mean that this will not be an option for him. He will be forced to serve the entirety of his six year sentence, which means he will not be released until 2029. The artist will also be on parole for five years following his release.