Source: Erika Goldring / Getty Gospel artist Kirk Franklin is facing difficult times this week when he announced that his sister was sentenced to 30 years in prison. He revealed the news in an Instagram post saying “I now feel the weight of wondering if I could’ve done more…” It’s not clear what caused his sister’s long sentence. However, Kirk has been pretty public about the struggles she’s faced, including an addiction to crack-cocaine. In a 2015 interview , Kirk said, “For over ten years, my younger sister was incarcerated in a facility here in Texas. She was in love with a young man who was drug dealer. He introduced her to not only selling drugs, but using as well. When he was arrested for drug trafficking, she was arrested along with him. After she served her time, she was brought before the review board who determined she was ready to be released and brought back into society. The documents were signed and she was set free… but only on paper.” Kirk continued, “After a few months back into the free world, it became obvious to me rather quickly that my sister was still in prison. It’s what they call being institutionalized. She quickly started using again, becoming very reckless with her body, which turned into her using it as a means to pay for her habit.” With more talk about prison reform and harsh sentencing , questions do arise on if Kirk’s sister deserved her 30 year sentence in the first place. Is it because of distributing drugs? Using? If she’s been committed to an institution before, shouldn’t her intervention be in the form of rehabilitation instead of prison? Kirk has yet to go into details about his next steps following the intense news, but we’ll continue to keep you updated if anything major should surface.
Image via Erika Goldring/Getty Images Lil Wayne And Drake “Family Feud Freestyle” Drake has been relatively quiet after dropping More Life earlier this year, but he’s going out with a bang. Last night, Lil Wayne released a scathing new freestyle featuring a dagger-sharp Aubrey Graham over Jay-Z’s “Family Feud” beat. There’s a lot to take away from these bars. Drake appears to make amends with Meek Mill , while still vowing to “verbally abuse” those who challenge him in the future. Both “6God” and Wayne don’t mince any words addressing the BIG bread that Birdman owes his “son”. ‘Nuff said. Press play. Suffice to say, Twitter was ecstatic. Flip it to see the reactions.
Tune into HunterHayes.MTV.com to see MTV’s Artist to Watch LIVE show tonight until 10:30 p.m. ET. By MTV News Staff Hunter Hayes Photo: Erika Goldring/ Getty Images
After some controversial rape lyrics from Rozay, Rocko records safer remixes, releasing one with Wiz on Thursday. By Rob Markman Rocko Photo: Cindy Ord/Getty Images
MTV Artist to Watch will celebrate Encore LP with an MTV.com concert live from Webster Hall; Hayniacs can buy tickets Friday. By MTV News Staff Hunter Hayes Photo: Erika Goldring/ Getty Images
Fun.’s six Grammy noms brought on a ‘crazy rush of images and experiences,’ they tell MTV News. By James Montgomery Fun. Photo: Erika Goldring/ Getty Images
Weezy’s Friday-night headlining set was fierce, fiery and even saw the end of a long-running feud. By James Montgomery Lil Wayne performs during the 2011 Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival Photo: Erika Goldring/WireImage MANCHESTER, Tennessee — Over its 10-year history, the Bonnaroo Music & Arts Festival has played host to all sorts of acts, but few of them — if any — ever took the stage to a prerecorded message from the New York State Department of Corrections (not even Phish). Lil Wayne did just that on Friday night (or, more correctly, early Saturday morning), bounding onstage while the last strains of a DOC phone message — recorded after he was released from prison last November — faded from the rather formidable stacks of speakers that flanked him. And it was just one of the history-making moments during his headlining set. Bonnaroo has had hip-hop acts headline previously ( Kanye West took a rather disastrous turn in 2008, and Jay-Z mainstaged without much incident last year), but they weren’t Wayne. He’s not a household name on par with ‘Ye or Jigga, and there existed the very real question of whether his set would translate to the Bonnaroo crowd . But when Wayne wrapped his set just before 3 a.m., that question had been answered. Not only did he go over like gangbusters, but he did it in gritty, sweat-drenched glory. He worked it hard, hanging from his microphone stand, descending into the crowd below and rolling around on the stage floor. He tore off his yellow tank-top mid set and stalked the stage in only a low-slung pair of shorts, aqua-colored socks and checkered Vans. And he spit verses at a staggering rate. You could call it a star-making turn, but Wayne’s already a star … though, perhaps, on this night, he truly became one in the eyes of the Bonnaroo elite. Song-wise, his performance didn’t stray too far from the set he’s been working on his I Am Still Music tour — he opened with “I’m Goin’ In” and segued into “Bill Gates,” thundered through “A Milli,” deftly moved through “Swag Surfin’ ” and “Hustle Hard,” worked in swatches of “Green and Yellow,” slowed things down for the ladies on “I’m Single” — and he brought out members of his Young Money family (Mack Maine, Lil Twist, Shannelle, Jae Millz) to give them some shine too. And in that regard, his Bonnaroo set was pretty historic too. He was one of the first headliners to put on a genuine revue, a musical, multiple-act bill that just so happened to double as his set. As can be expected, his performance tended to lose some steam when Weezy was sharing the stage with his associates (or when he’d disappear and let them perform on their own), but he more than made up for it in the sheer tenacity of songs like “Welcome to My Hood” or “Drop the World” (which didn’t suffer from the lack of Eminem). Backed by a lock-step live band, songs like “Forever” and Lollipop” pulsed and surged with icy precision. Songs from his upcoming Tha Carter IV album, “How to Love” and “6 Foot 7 Foot,” expanded and contracted with elasticity, particularly the latter, which brought his set to a close — eternally buoyed by his rasping voice and staccato cadence. Perhaps to mark the momentous nature of his headlining performance (which, if it wasn’t his biggest show to date, has got to be in the top three), or, maybe just to make actual history, Wayne even brought out his former in-house producer — and, by all accounts, former friend — Mannie Fresh, who parted ways with Cash Money in 2005 under less that harmonious circumstances. The two embraced onstage, while those in the audience who were wise to the backstory cheered wildly, and though the moment was brief, it served notice that whatever disagreements the two may have had, they were all but forgotten by now. After all, no one — not even Lil Wayne — would let a petty feud stand in the way of history. Stick with MTV News for show reports and interviews from Bonnaroo 2011 all weekend long. Related Photos Bonnaroo Music & Arts Festival 2011 Related Artists Lil Wayne
Florence Welch talks fame and ghostly visits before her Bonnaroo set on Friday. By James Montgomery Florence Welch of Florence and the Machines performs during the 2011 Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival Photo: Erika Goldring/WireImage MANCHESTER, Tennessee — When Florence Welch began writing the songs that would become her breakout Lungs album, she was just 18 years old and had no idea of what lay ahead of her. Now, as she begins putting the finishing touches on the follow up to that album — working in the iconic Abbey Road studios — she finds herself a few years older, but oddly enough, in much the same position. “It’s nearly finished, but, of course, that’s the hardest part for me, because once it’s finished, you have to share it with others,” she told MTV News on Thursday before her sundown set at Bonnaroo . “So, I’ve found myself obsessing over the way I’ve sung one little word, and wanting to go back and do it over again. I’m going to try and hold onto it as long as possible.” While Welch admits the album is in its final stages, she still has a difficult time describing exactly what it sounds like. But from what she does say, it seems like the still-untitled effort won’t sound like Lungs. “I wrote so much of my first album at different times and places — some songs when I was 18, some when I was 21 — so there are so many pieces and styles on it,” she said. “And that’s one of the things I love about it, but for my new record, I wanted to do things differently. It’s why I worked with one producer in one studio. I want to tie all those things together … in one piece, if possible.” The new album also reflects everything that’s happened to her on her rather rapid ascent to fame. But she’s also taking inspiration from far different, far more ethereal places, too. “There’s a song on it that’s inspired by a visit [from] my dead grandmother — like, I had really, really vivid dream about her and, um, she was giving me advice in this dream,” she said. “And it was really emotional, and I woke up crying. And there’s one song that’s inspired by that experience.” Stick with MTV News for show reports and interviews from Bonnaroo 2011 all weekend long. Related Videos Bonnaroo 2011: Florence And The Machine, Lil Wayne, My Morning Jacket And More Related Photos Bonnaroo Music & Arts Festival 2011 Related Artists Florence + the Machine
