A$AP Rocky's 2017 Interview Used Against Him In Assault Case

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ASAP Rocky and the cast of Monster participated in a live Q&A hosted by Stella Artois and Deadline.com at Cafe Artois during the Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah on Sunday, January 21, 2018.
A$AP Rocky stood trial earlier today in his assault case.

I think a fairly competent individual would be able to determine that A$AP Rocky's whole situation is being blown out of proportion. The rapper's been incarcerated in a Swedish jail for the past month after an altercation that occurred in the street. The rapper took the stand today where he was able to give his side of the story. Unfortunately, the prosecutors are looking for anything to bag Rocky at this point, including an old interview from 2017.

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According to The Blast, the prosecutors are reviewing an interview Rocky did with RapRadar back in 2017. After he took the stand, they played a video of Rocky explaining how he met Casanova. It's the same interview where Rocky admitted to "slipping on semen" during a jail fight. The video was brought up because of the nickname "Harlem" which has been brought up on several occasions. The rapper admitted in the interview that when he introduced himself to Cas, he said, "In here they call me Harlem but my name Rocky."

Officials in the case handed over text message evidence from Rocky's assistant, Abby, who wrote, "Harlem came out he grabbed a empty bottle on the street and smashed it." When questioned about what she meant, Rocky said, "I don't know who Harlem is." He added, " don't know, you may ask her. She says lots of things I don't know why she says." 

Question: You've told me you're from New York, where in New York are you from?

A$AP: Upper Manhattan. From Harlem.

Question: Is anyone in your company called Harlem?

A$AP: No.

Question: Neither are you?

A$AP:No.

Mind you, Rocky spent two weeks in prison. It seems unlikely that the nickname Harlem stuck, especially if that's what he was referred to by other inmates during his short stint behind bars. 


About The Author
Aron A. is a features editor for HotNewHipHop. Beginning his tenure at HotNewHipHop in July 2017, he has comprehensively documented the biggest stories in the culture over the past few years. Throughout his time, Aron’s helped introduce a number of buzzing up-and-coming artists to our audience, identifying regional trends and highlighting hip-hop from across the globe. As a Canadian-based music journalist, he has also made a concerted effort to put spotlights on artists hailing from North of the border as part of Rise & Grind, the weekly interview series that he created and launched in 2021. Aron also broke a number of stories through his extensive interviews with beloved figures in the culture. These include industry vets (Quality Control co-founder Kevin "Coach K" Lee, Wayno Clark), definitive producers (DJ Paul, Hit-Boy, Zaytoven), cultural disruptors (Soulja Boy), lyrical heavyweights (Pusha T, Styles P, Danny Brown), cultural pioneers (Dapper Dan, Big Daddy Kane), and the next generation of stars (Lil Durk, Latto, Fivio Foreign, Denzel Curry). Aron also penned cover stories with the likes of Rick Ross, Central Cee, Moneybagg Yo, Vince Staples, and Bobby Shmurda.
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