Since his release from prison back in February after serving nearly seven years, things have been fairly quiet for Bobby Shmurda. He hasn’t released any new music and has kept a relatively low profile. However, news of his recent management deal with Roc Nation along with a spruced-up record deal confirms that new music is definitely on the way!
The Brooklyn-bred rapper reflected on his time since leaving prison in a detailed interview with the New York Times recently.
In the piece titled “Bobby Shmurda’s New Lust for Life,” the artist explains why he didn’t rush out the gate with a typical “First Day out” type track. “Instead of saying, boom, ‘I want to go in the streets and cause hell,’ I’m saying, ‘I want to go in the streets and give back,’” Shmurda said. “I feel like that’s gangster.”
True to his word, Bobby organized a day to give back in his hometown of Brooklyn, New York, earlier this year. On Father’s Day, he treated 200 underprivileged families to a day of food and drinks and fun and games. He also gifted toys and clothes to the families in attendance and provided free haircuts to the dads and their kids.
Having already appeared on a track with J Balvin and Daddy Yankee, Shmurda confirmed he’s also been working on his own music. Singles and videos are on the way as well as performances at Summer Jam in New York and the Made in America Festival in Philadelphia.
Shmurda only released a handful of singles and features on a few projects before being locked up and is now coming out with a whole new sound-based around rhythm and movement.
If you have seen social media clips of Shmurda since his release, then you’ve seen him dancing. Whether at exclusive parties, dance battles in New York studios, or on stage at Rolling Loud, the Brooklynite has barely kept still for a moment, and his new music will reflect this.
“We’re going to be dancing 24/7,” Shmurda said. “When I dance, it’s to show you that I came through the struggle, but I overcame it and we’re still overcoming it.”
Of his time in prison, Shmurda says, “I ain’t mad about going to jail, because my mind-state now versus my mind-state before — I probably would’ve been in jail for life before. The stuff that’s going to get you in trouble or put you in that situation, you can see that from miles away.
Contrary to opinions like those of Wendy Williams, who said that Shmurda would be back in prison before the end of the summer because of his parole conditions, he sees them as a benefit to his freedom. The current restrictions on his life, Shmurda said, are “not holding me back from nothing — they’re keeping me out of jail.”
The rapper seems like he’s enjoying life since his release and has no shortage of projects to keep him busy. He’s recently been “TikToking” with his godchildren and is even teaching himself how to produce beats. Roc Nation is also fielding offers for a film about his life.