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Rapper YNW Melly, real name Jamell Demons, is being accused of perpetrating a double murder. The 25-year-old rapper is charged with first-degree murder of rappers and members of the YNW Collective Christopher Thomas Jr and Anthony Williams.
YNW Melly was arrested in February 2019. Police accused the rapper of working with YNW Bortlem to kill two of their friends and stage the crime scene to look like a drive-by shooting. The rapper maintained during the trial that he was innocent, and the case eventually ended in a mistrial in July 2023.
Since then, he has remained behind bars whilst awaiting a retrial. The rapper has applied to be released on bond on different occasions. A hearing date for the bond was fixed for May 6, 2025.
A hearing was held on April 2, 2025, in Broward County, ahead of the rapper’s retrial, which is scheduled to begin on September 10, 2025.
YNW Melly’s career journey explored as he prepares for trial for double murder
YNW Melly was born on May 1, 1999, and developed a love for music at a young age. In a YNW Melly documentary released in 2019, the rapper reveals that his interest in music grew by listening to Chris Brown and Michael Jackson.
He started having run-ins with the law at a young age. In 2015, at 16 years old, he was charged with three counts of aggravated assault and one count of discharging a firearm in public. On March 4, 2017, Melly’s viral hit, Murder on My Mind, was released.
The hip-hop ballad became his most streamed song to date. Later in the same year, the rapper posted on Facebook that he was having trouble with the law due to his “negative music.”
He wrote:
“I apologize to all my fans ... I’ll be locked up in level 6 program for 6 months. I was sentenced on my 18th birthday, MAY 1st, 2017, due to negative music."
In December 2017, the rapper collaborated with John Wicks and Lil B to release the Collect Call EP. In February 2018, the rapper performed in some shows and released another single, Virtual Blue Balenciagas. The rapper was arrested on June 30, 2018, for possession of a weapon by a convicted felon and possession of marijuana.
In August 2018, YNW Melly released his first mixtape, I Am You, featuring Murder on My Mind, Mind on My Murder, Mama Cry, Virtual Blue Balenciagas and Slang That Iron.
On October 26, 2018, Christopher Thomas Jr, YNW Juvy, and Anthony Williams, YNW Sakchaser, were shot and killed in Florida. On February 13, 2019, Melly was arrested for the murder of his group mates.
In a Billboard interview in February 2019, the rapper spoke about his deceased friends:
“They were my brothers—they were my day one brothers.”
Since then, the 25-year-old rapper has released three albums: Melly vs Melvin, Just a Matter of Slime, and Young New Wave. The first two albums ranked on the Billboard 200 charts.
YNW Melly’s trial is set for September 10, 2025. If convicted, the rapper could face the death penalty.
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