Believe me
Since returning home from prison last year, YFN Lucci has been on the road to upgrade. New music, national tours, and a clearer understanding of the possibilities that come with freedom.
Words: Peter A. Berry
“I just want to hear my voice again,” YFN Lucci said on a cold night last November in the cozy Manhattan offices of Atlantic Records. He’s referring to the moment he returned to the studio for the first time after being released from prison more than nine months ago. It’s a humble enough request for a multi-platinum selling artist to ask, given that behind bars there are only lonely nights, no recordings, and more worries than new lyrics.
This time last year, Lu Qi had just made his debut. No more sitting alone in a cell at Forsyth Burroughs Correctional Training Center in Georgia. Tonight, he sits with his sock off his right foot, a $500,000 smiley face pendant hanging from his black sweater like a flat disco ball. The 35-year-old rapper is available to record at any time, but currently, he’s doing a press tour in New York City to promote “Already Legend,” his first album since returning home last January. The plan, released on September 26, 2025, has been several years in the making. While in prison, Lucci had to endure prison attacks and rumors of snitches and betrayals. “It’s time for me to finally speak out,” he said. But he had to hold his breath.
Four and a half years ago, Lucci (born Rayshawn Lamar Bennett) was near the peak of his career when he was arrested on 13 RICO charges that could have sent him to prison for decades. His blend of blood-drenched melodies and yearning trap-glorious anthems established himself as a classic rap star on the Atlanta continuum, but all of that momentum was lost with his freedom. Now that 12 of the 13 RICO charges have been dropped, he has pleaded guilty to one count of violating the Street Gang Terrorism and Prevention Act, and is back home after nearly four years in prison, ready to continue at the level he started years ago.
More directly, he was eating bacon cheese fries from Wingstop! His team surrounds him. Typically, he would hit the studio after the first recording sessions two days after release. As a result of his probation, he is no longer allowed to drink or smoke. His sobriety and all the time he had to spend away from his four children gave him a clearer perspective on life. Furthermore, through a more unstable perspective. “I just feel like I’m more mature and business-savvy now,” Lucci shared. “A lot of things don’t matter; just family, my music, my career and my time.”
On the business front, he launched his own label, Already Legend, and said he has signed Atlanta rapper BHM Pezzy. Lucci is also involved in real estate. “I’m also trying to buy buildings right now,” he revealed. “Here it comes. You have to crawl before you walk.”
On the family front, Lucci spends as much time as possible with her children. “I can finally hold them and be present,” he said. “I always spent time with my family and my kids, but just more time. I know you can never take that time back.”
Lucci was free and riding the success of an album that sold 28,800 equivalent album units in its first week of release. By any measure, this is a series of monumental victories, yet getting to this point has been an odyssey of violence, frustration, and unflattering speculation. Like many rap stories, the journey begins with tragedy.
On December 12, 2020, one of Lucci’s friends was seriously injured in a shootout with another party while they were in a moving car on the streets of Atlanta. During the attack, Lucci’s friend James Adams, who was fatally wounded, was pushed from the car as he and his group fled from the attackers. Adams died a short time later in a nearby street in front of witnesses. On January 13, 2021, Lucci surrendered to the police for murder and subsequently paid a $500,000 bail and was placed under house arrest. Months later, in May 2021, Lucci and 12 other men were indicted in a RICO case, including one charge related to Adams’ death.
Since being imprisoned that year, Lucci has been separated from his children for the first time. He also faced rumors that he cheated on his friend by pushing him out of his car, but said he was not affected by the accusations. “Ultimately, it’s just an opinion. You weren’t there. So you don’t know the facts,” he insisted. When he wasn’t facing isolation or attacks on his character, he was experiencing real attacks. In March 2022, he was stabbed by another inmate and claimed he feared for his life. When Lucci no longer fights for his life, he faces despair and boredom.
Giles, an attorney who serves as Lucci’s creative director, remembers using his status as a lawyer to visit the rapper at a time when pandemic-era prison restrictions prevented inmates from seeing friends and family in person. Giles was freed from the protection of his wealth, infrastructure and inner circle, and Lucci was visibly distressed. “You go from living such a great life to having people telling you what to do and when to do it,” Giles said. “and [prison guards] ” he added. “This is an opportunity [them] Not just putting anyone in their place, but putting YFN Lucci in his place. “
Lucci’s quarters were a concrete cell, and Giles remembers the moment Lucci told him he was being harassed by prison guards. It’s understandable to feel frustrated while not giving up on your future. “I was like, ‘Man, you know where you want to go,'” Giles recalled. “‘You want to go home, but it doesn’t matter. Once you get out, you’ll never think about these people again.'”
To help Lucci escape the prison walls—at least mentally—Giles began maxing out the institution’s four-book-per-month limit, bringing Lucci copies of books like Don Miguel’s The Four Agreements: A Practical Guide to Personal Freedom or 50 Cent and Robert Greene’s The 50th Rule. During certain visits, Giles would bring an empty Green Book to his cell. They called it “We Are Making History,” in which he would write notes about future versions of Lucci, potential legal strategies and more.
This book is a way for them to look toward the future. But before that can happen, Lucci must win the case at hand and put past conflicts to rest. That said, Young Thug’s feud turned deadly when Thug’s crew member YSL allegedly shot and killed YFN Lucci’s close friend Donovan “Nut” Thomas Jr. in January 2015. The murder was a central part of the RICO case against Thug. Lucci was arrested on separate RICO charges just a year before Young Thug’s arrest. Lucci, for his part, was willing to overcome their issues with the encouragement of another local Atlanta superstar.
“[21] While I was incarcerated, Savage contacted me and asked me, “What do you think about the [Young Thug], [and] “You guys talk about your differences and see?” Thug and Lucci couldn’t have direct contact due to legal rules, but a truce was reached and they each included songs on their latest albums, UY Scuti and Already Legend, respectively. This reconciliation is at least vaguely reminiscent of Gucci Mane and Jeezy’s Verzuz feud.
It comes at a time when people are saying that Atlanta hip-hop — a scene plagued by the deaths of Takeoff, Trouble and Rich Homie Quan — is weaker than ever. When it comes to seeing the city’s place in culture, Lucci is agnostic but hopeful. “To a certain extent, that may be true, but it’s all about unity,” he said of Atlanta rap’s decline. “Once everyone starts getting back together, it’ll be nice.”
If you let the naysayers tell you, the future of the region’s rap scene is in doubt. In Lucci’s mind, his status as a regional giant was anything but. That’s certainly what his latest record, Already Legend, is about. Clear and relentless, the album is a bloody diary that encapsulates all of his frustrations between prison walls. “It was really easy because I had a lot to say,” he said of recording the project. The weight of his experiences is only sustained through his soaring melodies, which provide an exhilarating sense of catharsis.
On tracks like “Practice What You Preach./RoboCop.,” he denounces the Atlanta District Attorney’s Office while lamenting the bonds his RICO charges have broken. The soft bass line and harsh piano keys give a sense of clarity. Meanwhile, on “January 31 (My Truth),” he spoke on the day his friend was killed. Lucci says he hasn’t let discussions about the incident get to him, but the song’s plaintive piano bassline and his own confessional bars tell a story of dormant pain that never left his cell: “See, they say I threw my man out? / When you move, sometimes it doesn’t go as planned / Ordeals got me to this point / Rest ’cause your grandkids move” point.
While that’s more cause for celebration, his album’s title track tells a similar story of trauma and triumph: “Look what I’ve done/I took every loss and then I turned it into profit/I couldn’t achieve my goals, everybody was in my pocket/I can’t trust the soul, but I know the pain, but I can’t stop it.” At least enough for some well-deserved self-congratulation. “This isn’t the legendary status anyone gave me; this is how I feel about myself,” he raps. “I’ve been in this sport for 10 years. I’ve had success and I’m going to have more success.”
With prison and a new album behind him, he can look toward a future he hopes includes owning half of Atlanta and becoming a Rick Ross or Jay-Z-style mogul. “They started with music, but they got a lot of other things,” he explains. He is also interested in a career in acting, although he has not signed up for any acting classes. Now, he’s released a couple of new songs called “You Special.” and “On My Mind.,” which he’s on the road to on his “Already a Legend” tour. The hike runs throughout February. He said his final stop will be Atlanta’s State Farm Arena, where he performed last August. Years later, Lucci has not forgotten the significance of that special performance. “It’s very emotional,” he said. “I know I’m back.”
He was back on stage, but he was no longer the same person. Giles remembers that on his first day back in the studio, Lucci’s eyes were brighter and he confirmed that he didn’t need drugs. He also noticed a new sobriety. “He’s really awake now because he has to be,” Giles said, comparing Lucci’s authenticity to that of Tupac Shakur. “But I think his experience of surviving this ordeal is also sobering. So today I’m going to look at [Lucci] as someone [who says]”I’m not going to screw this asshole under any circumstances.”
It’s easy to divide Lucci’s life into a before and after, and even if that’s a simplification, Lucci knows that has changed. “I took a lot of things personally at the time, but now I know it wasn’t personal; it was business,” he admits. If there’s an old version of Lucci, there’s a new one too. There is much to celebrate.
“I think [the younger version of me] “I would be very proud of myself,” Lucci insisted. “Everything I said I was going to do, I’ve been doing.” I’m not done yet. “
