Rolling Loud held its inaugural New York festival this year, and some fans were disappointed to learn that the NYPD banned New York artists like Casanova, Pop Smoke, Don Q, Sheff G, and 22 GZ.

According to law enforcement, the aforementioned individuals “have been affiliated with acts of violence citywide. The New York Police Department believes if these individuals are allowed to perform, there will be a higher risk of violence.” Clearly the festival organizers agreed and pulled the plug on the rappers.

Pop Smoke did an interview with Justin Credible on Power 106 and finally talked about the incident. The Brooklyn rapper revealed that although NYPD portrayed him to be a “super bad guy” he’s optimistic for the new year. When asked about an update about the situation he quipped, “I don’t know police.”

He added that he’s open to having a conversation with the authorities to build a relationship and come to a solution. Artists like Pop make a lot of their revenue from performing at shows, so ultimately this is messing up the bag. “We come from places where it’s like, it ain’t the sweetest,” he said. “When you stop us from doing shows like that, you hurt us, you know what I’m sayin’? Like, you trying to keep us there.”

Check out the full interview below:

The post Pop Smoke Breaks Silence About Rolling Loud Ban appeared first on The Source | The Magazine of Hip Hop Music,Culture and Politics.

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