Big30 argues he should be able to hit the recording studio while awaiting trial for his alleged involvement in the Pooh Shiesty kidnapping case, and he’s hoping a judge will see things his way.
In a Texas court filing dated June 15 and viewed by Complex, lawyers for Rodney Wright Jr., a.k.a. Big30, request that their client’s pretrial release conditions be modified to allow him to “leave his approved residence for local recording studio sessions and directly related music production meetings as part of his lawful employment.”
Made clear in the docs is that the request “does not seek” to remove home detention, location monitoring, drug testing, or other restrictions currently in place. Instead, “a controlled, employment-specific exception” is being sought.
Further outlined is the fact that Big30 remains employed as a recording artist with N Less Entertainment, with his projected obligations in that capacity expected to include the delivery of master recordings, and more.
“These obligations create a need for access to professional recording studios and production personnel in the Memphis area,” reads the filing’s argument.
Presented in support of Big30’s effort for a pretrial release exception are letters from N Less Entertainment and Connect Music execs, plus one from a county commissioner in Tennessee pointing to the “substantial time and resources” the artist has devoted to assisting local communities.
As previously reported, a Texas judge ordered Big30’s release on $100,000 bond earlier this month, despite efforts from prosecutors to keep him behind bars. In their argument, prosecutors pointed to a then-pending deal with Connect Music.
The 26-year-old is among those accused of holding Gucci Mane at gunpoint inside a Texas studio, at one point allegedly forcing the 1017 founder to sign paperwork releasing Pooh Shiesty from his deal. At a press conference in April, Ryan Raybould, U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Texas, described the alleged incident as a “coordinated, armed takeover” of the studio.
Both Shiesty and Big30 have pleaded not guilty to the charges they’re facing in the case. In a statement to Complex in May, Kent Schaffer, an attorney for Shiesty, said his team was “starting to gather the evidence” while conducting their own investigation.
“We believe we will have a strong case,” Schaffer added at the time.
