Rapper Killer Mike is moving past his arrest at the Grammy Awards earlier this year seemingly scot-free and fired up.
The Run the Jewels musician will not face criminal charges for his alleged battery incident at the awards show at Crypto.com Arena in February, the Los Angeles city attorney’s office confirmed.
The rapper “successfully completed the Office’s Hearing process, including a community service requirement that was imposed,” the office said in a statement shared Tuesday with The Times.
A legal representative for Killer Mike did not immediately respond to The Times’ request for comment.
During the 2024 Grammy Awards on Feb. 4, Killer Mike (real name Michael Render) picked up three Grammys during the ceremony’s preshow, including one for his 2023 release “Michael.” Shortly after 4 p.m., a police officer handcuffed and arrested the Atlanta-based rapper. He was booked for misdemeanor battery.
A source close to the investigation told The Times in February that an altercation allegedly broke out after a security guard tried to prevent Killer Mike and his entourage from passing through an area in the venue. The rapper, 49, allegedly engaged in an altercation with the security guard, who was knocked to the ground. The guard injured her hand in the fall and requested a citizen’s arrest. Police were then called to the scene.
Viral video footage of Killer Mike’s arrest, captured by the Hollywood Reporter’s Chris Gardner, showed the rapper walking with his hands cuffed behind his back as multiple officers escorted him through the venue. Off camera, a bystander could be heard expressing disbelief at the rapper’s detention.
Days after the rapper’s arrest, the Los Angeles Police Commission contemplated whether the rapper’s race played a role in his arrest. Killer Mike is Black.
“I have a very hard time believing that Taylor Swift [who is white] would’ve been treated in the same way,” Rasha Gerges Shields, a commissioner for the department’s civilian watchdog, said in February.
Now, it seems Killer Mike has channeled his arrest into a new song. On the heels of his BET Awards win for album of the year, he released his newest single, “Humble Me,” on Monday. In the track, the rapper and activist recalls his Grammys sweep, representing Atlanta and how he “got sent to the slammer.”
“I walk out the door with my head up in handcuffs with pride / ’cause all my heroes wore handcuffs, the FBI shot some of them and they died,” he continues.
During the BET Awards on Sunday, which honored Usher with a lifetime achievement award, Killer Mike also referenced his arrest. He told attendees “technically, I was not supposed to be here” and recalled how he was “marched out of this building” just months ago. The BET Awards were held at the Peacock Theater and not Crypto.com Arena, though the venues are located in the same downtown entertainment complex.
“I want to tell you, look at God ’cause I’m back, baby,” he continued . “I’m back and I’m winning.”
