Juvenile’s Heart Goes Out to B.G.

Last month, news broke that B.G. was sentenced to 14 years in prison for gun possession and witness tampering. Like many rap fans, Juvenile was shocked. The New Orleans native and former member of Cash Money’s Hot Boys—the group that included Lil Wayne, Juve, Turk and B.G.—recently told XXL what he thought about B.G. having to do that lengthy bid.

“I mean 14 years was unexpected,” Juvenile said. “I knew he was gon’ get some time…I ain’t know it was gon’ be 14 years. It hit me like everybody else. Like, ‘Man, damn. Did it get that bad?’ He was on paper; he was on probation, and he had like a little drug charge or something that he got caught with. And, all that just fell in on him at one time ’cause he had like three open charges when they caught him.”

Juve says that B.G., who joined the Hot Boys as a teen, has been battling drug addiction—namely heroin—since he was 16. Juvenile attributes that as one of the main factors why B.G. is getting ready to serve such a long sentence.

“People in his situation and I’m not saying he no junkie or nothing like that, but sometimes man, the drugs block out the person that you really are and it stops you from being the person that you really are,” Juve voiced. “And, I think B.G. got so caught up into the drug thing, he forgot who he was. He forgot, ‘I’m a cool dude. I don’t need to carry no gun. I ain’t beefing with nobody.’ And, I think he just got caught up into the life. You know cats put him on a pedestal ’cause he B.G. B.G. means Baby Gangster. He feel like he had to fulfill those shoes.”

In retrospect, although Juve believes he was a good “big brother” to B.G., he also feels like his fellow N.O. rhyme slinger was missing other older mentors, who could have possibly helped steer his life another way.

“Like, ‘Man, I’m sorry lil buddy…there was another way out of that,’” he said. “The main thing he should’ve been focused on was his family ’cause who gon’ hurt the most is his lil’ boy. His lil’ boy up in age already. I’m sure he have other kids. I don’t know them. I don’t know what the situation is, but I hate to see him go to jail for 14 years, knowing that he got responsibilities out there that he should be taken care of right now.

“It’s gon’ be bad,” he added. “Fourteen years from now, it’s gon’ be a bad situation when he get out of jail.”

Thinking more positively, however, Juvenile does think that B.G.’s long prison bid will give him the time to completely sober up.

“I think him being in jail ain’t such a bad thing because maybe he get a chance to sober up and then he can start healing the wounds ’cause he wounded not only himself, he wounded his family,” Juve disclosed. “He has to start manning up and taking care of his business.”

At this time, Juve says he does not have a way to contact him, but hopes to run into one of B.G.’s family members in order to re-establish a means of communication.

While B.G. prepares for his prison bid, another former Hot Boy, Turk, is preparing to get out, expecting to be released from an Arkansas prison on October 12. —Christopher Minaya (@CM_3)