Artistic Expression or Confession? Analyzing the Role of Song Lyrics in Legal Cases, Assignments of Research Methods in Psychology

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Artistic

Expression or

Confession?

Analyzing the Role of Song Lyrics in

Legal Cases

Are Song Lyrics Admissible in the Court

of Law?

During their trial, the prosecution used like songs ”Bad Boy,” “Take it to Trial," and

others to paint Thug as a proud gangbanger in front of the jurors.

In May 2022, rap artists Young Thug and Gunna, alongside 26 of the associates,

were arrested on nearly 60 counts of gang-related RICO charges.

RICO- Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt

Organizations Act

Zahn

What is Artistic Expression?

• Artistic Expression is considered any activity performed by the artist in the

process of creation; expressing is something that the artist does whether it’s how they

speak, move, or create. It technically falls under the umbrella of the First Amendment as

the right one has to free speech although there is no law explicitly protecting artistic

expression.

Hospers

How Should We Perceive Artistic Works?

The definition and purpose of art changes with perception, everyone sees art differently. The

illusive nature of art leaves no clear definition; song lyrics fall under this definition as the

openly interpreted words of musician. How are these words to be treated in connection to

crimes that these artists are suspected for?

Stakeholders in this Argument

Artist Listeners

Prosecutor

s and Law

Enforceme

nt

What Does

This New

Legislation

Look Like?

• The State of New York currently has Senate Bill S1738 on the Floor Calender awaiting assembly approval before being pushed forward to the Governor.

-Bill Summary:Establishes an assumption of the inadmissibility of evidence of a defendant's creative or artistic expression against such defendant in a criminal proceeding; requires the proffering party to affirmatively prove that the evidence is admissible by clear and convincing evidence.

State of New York

Listener’s Stance

On The Matter (^) • Opponents of this

newfound legislation argue

that it will encourage

musicians to continue

producing provocative

music that negatively

affects some communities

and the younger

generations.

We Blame You!

These listeners culminate under the common

belief that the African American community is

suffering at the hand of normalized

propaganda made by these rappers. This

contributes to the seemingly unfair spotlight

that African-American rap artists receive; they

are being zeroed in on and frowned upon for

their music despite many genres having a

similar nature and tone to their songs and

lyrics.

Prosecutors

and law

Enforcement’

s Stance on

the Matter

Prosecutors and law enforcement

officers who believe these artists are

guilty and want to use their lyrics as

means to incriminate them whenever

applicable.

They feel that the legality of certain

lyrics to be used in court should be

decided on a case-by-case basis

depending on how relevant they are to

the crimes that the artist is being

charged with.

They want these artists to be held

accountable for the crimes they boast

about over social media, seeing as the

songs they create have been connected

to the crime rates within some

communities.

How Does Law Enforcement Use

These Lyrics?

Prosecutors use lyrics to establish motive, intent, or connection between artist and crimes but in RICO cases, most of the evidence tends to be circumstantial.

This strategy heavily plays on prior prosecutions, prejudice, and underlying stereotypes held by prosecutors and jurors, essentially trying to prove how likely someone is to commit a crime based on their background: looks, home life, friends, school history, etc.

Summaries and Conclusion

Artists: Musicians should

not be held to a greater

standard for their words

simply because of their

professions; they are

artists, not politicians.

Listeners: The protection of

such vulgar, explicit songs

should not be encouraged

as they contribute to the

negativity consuming

particular communities.

Law Enforcement: Artists

should be held accountable

when they’re boasting

about crimes; relevance

between artistic works and

a specific crime should be

determined on a case-by-

case basis.

This matter can only be handled if we protect artists and

their right to free speech while simultaneously preserving

the communities they market to.

Works Cited

• Richards, Mikayla. “'I'm sorry' | Young Thug Banned from Atlanta for Decade Closes YSL Trial with Apologies to Court.” 11Alive , 1 November 2024,

https://www.11alive.com/article/news/crime/ysl-trial/full-speech-young-thug-rico-trial-courtroom-ysl-plea-deal/85-24b43ffa-dc22-4c52-ad5e-087a3110acc

• State of New York. “Ny State Senate Bill 2023-S1738.” NYSenate.Gov , Brad Hoylman-Sigal, www.nysenate.gov/legislation/bills/2023/S1738. Accessed 12 Nov. 2024.
• Williams, Alexis and Lal, Anil, "Correlations between Crime Rates in US Cities, and the Popularity of Rap and Hip-Hop Music" (2015). Paper Presentations. 3.

https://digitalcommons.pittstate.edu/papers_2015/

• Young Thug. “Anybody.” Hear No Evil , Atlantic Recording Corporation For The United States and WEA International Inc., 2018,

https://music.apple.com/us/album/anybody-feat-nicki-minaj-single/

• Zahn, Jennifer. “Here Are the Rap Lyrics Being Used in the YSL Trial.” Vulture , 22 Nov. 2024, https://www.vulture.com/article/young-thug-lyrics-ysl-indictment.html