About Tory Lanez and Megan Thee Stallion
About Tory Lanez and Megan Thee Stallion
Mr. Lanez was found guilty of three counts after shooting Megan Thee Stallion in 2020. The case has taken place before on social media and in music released by rappers.
Tory Lanez faces multiple counts, including assault with a semi-automatic handgun. Credit... Etienne Laurent/EPA, via Shutterstock
When Grammy Award-winning rapper Megan Thee Stallion spoke during the trial of rapper Tory Lanez last year, she testified that she received the words. death threats on social media and still suffering nerve damage then he was shot in the leg after an argument.
Mr. Lanez, real name Daystar Peterson, was ultimately convicted of three counts, including assault with a semi-automatic pistol. After months of delay, the sentencing phase of his trial began on Monday.
Before the trial, the case went viral on social media and in the music released by the two rappers. In an album released in 2020, more than two months after the meeting, Mr. Lanez refuted Megan Thee Stallion's explanation; she has defended herself on Instagram, in interviews and with her own provocative song.
Prosecutors say that in July 2020, early in the morning after a party in Los Angeles, Mr. Lanez lashed out at Megan Thee Stallion after criticizing her rapping abilities, while also shooting her in the leg. her as she was getting out of their car. Riding. The defense countered that Mr. Lanez had opened fire, suggesting it could have been another woman, who they said was upset when the two rappers got intimate.
The shooting happened just as Megan Thee Stallion's fame was on the rise. Months earlier, his collaboration with Beyoncé on a remix of "Savage" became his first Billboard No. 1 hit. That year, the hit song "WAP" - a viral collaboration with Cardi B - made her an even bigger star.
Here's what you need to know about this case.
At first, the details of what happened that night were vague.
A few days after the shooting, Megan Thee Stallion - born Megan Pete - posted on her Instagram account that she had a "bullet wound" that required surgery, but gave no further details. detail. But amid rumors and speculation, she later said the shooter was Mr. Lanez, who was arrested and charged with hiding a gun in a vehicle.
Mr. Lanez addressed the situation with rapping that suggested a conflicting story, including: "We both know what happened that night and what I did / But that's not what they did. speak".
Megan Thee Stallion's career flourishes in 2020 thanks to collaborations with Beyoncé on the "Savage" remix and with Cardi B on the "WAP" blockbuster. Credit...Evan Agostini/Invision, via Associated Press
In an interview with CBS' Gayle King last year, Megan Thee Stallion said she and a friend drove with Mr. Lanez after a party at Kylie's house. Jenner, the beauty mogul, when a controversy broke out in the S.U.V.
After leaving the car, she said, Mr. Lanez shouted 'Jump!' and a sexual profanity before shooting him. He later apologized and offered her and friend Kelsey Harris a million dollars to keep quiet about what happened.
When the police arrived, she said, she told the police that her leg injury was caused by her stepping on the glass.
She later reminisces about her original decision to hide information from the police in her song "Shots Fired," rapping, "Without me/the same week, you'd be in jail. accusation". During the trial, Megan Thee Stallion testified that tensions rose after the police killed George Floyd.
She also testified how the aftermath of the encounter depressed her and hindered her career. She said she was a private individual who spoke out in defense of her name and was the target of abusive comments on social media.
"Because Tory came out and told so many lies about me, turning it all into a sex scandal, people didn't want to touch me," she said. "I feel like a sick bird."
Megan Thee Stallion, 28, has been outspoken about the shooting and what she sees as the bigger issue going on, writing in a guest essay in The New York Times that 'skepticism and judgment' following her accusations is symbolic of the Negro way. women "are not respected and ignored in so many areas of life."
Mr. Lanez, 31, did not testify during the trial and did not give an interview about his specific account of that night. On the 2020 album he deals with the shooting, called "Daystar," Mr. Lanez rapped, "If you're shot from behind, how can you identify me?"
Lanez's attorney, George Mgdesyan, told jurors during the final argument that Megan Thee Stallion lied to get attention. “The prosecution did not come any closer to proving the case,” he said. "Their case is full of holes and speculation."
Mr. Mgdesyan said that the argument in S.U.V. Harris and Megan Thee Stallion, and it stemmed from Mr. Lanez's disclosure that he had had sexual relations with both women.
“This case is about jealousy and sex,” Mr. Mgdesyan said.
Prosecutors focused on a message they said Ms Harris had sent to Mr Lanez's bodyguard that night, writing 'Help' and 'Tory shot Meg'. They also released a message in which Mr. Lanez apologized to Megan Thee Stallion after the shooting.
Mr. Mgdesyan said the apology phone call from Mr. Lanez's prison - "I am extremely sorry", he said in part - was not about the shooting, but about the relationships that were revealed.
Mr. Mgdesyan also argued that there was a lack of physical evidence to substantiate the case against Mr. Lanez beyond a reasonable doubt. Experts testified that Mr. Lanez's DNA was not found on the gun's magazine.
Blanca Begert, Lauren Herstik and Jack Ross contributed reporting.
A version of this article is printed on , Section A, Page 21 of the New York edition with the caption: Megan Thee Stallion testifies at the Trial of the rapper accused of shooting her. Order reprint | Today's Newspaper | Subscribe
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