All eyes have been on Tekashi 6ix9ine ever since he pleaded guilty to firearms and racketeering charges, which stemmed from his role in the Nine Trey Gangsta Bloods, the Brooklyn gang he testified against, in court last year. Now that the 24-year-old rapper is out of prison, he’s admitting that although he worries about his safety, he’s not planning on walking away from the spotlight because he is loving the attention. “I love it. I grew up being a nobody,” he told The New York Times in his first interview since being released from jail. “Genuinely, as a kid, I felt like I was just walking invisibly. I never want to feel that way. My goal is to feed me and mine.”
When asked how often he worries about his safety and dying, 6ix9ine, whose real name is Daniel Hernandez, said he does worry but he’s not really “scared” because he tries to not take unnecessary risks. “At this point, it’s a lifestyle. I worry about it, but I’m not scared of it,” he told the outlet. “The streets is a myth. Right now, if I left this interview and took the train by myself to Bed-Stuy, I wouldn’t come back. If you took a trip to an island full of cannibals, are you coming back? But you don’t put yourself in stupid situations.”
As far as whether or not he worries on a day-to-day basis, he admitted it depends on his security. “Without security? A lot. With security? Nah,” he said. He went on to call his security team “amazing” and said the size of the team “varies” and can include “like, eight, 12, 22” people. He also added that he’s spending “a lot. Like a lot,” when it comes to how much he’s paying to keep himself protected.
The topic of witness protection then came up in the honest interview and 6ix9ine said he’s never thought of going into it because he was told it “wouldn’t work.” “They were like, ‘Yeah, it wouldn’t work anyway because your face tattoos. You’re too noticeable’,” he explained.
6ix9ine’s freedom comes after his prison sentence, which was given last year, was shortened and he was able to go into home confinement. Even before his home confinement ended on Aug. 1, he was back at it in the music business and even released a number one hit – his first- called “Trollz” with Nicki Minaj in June. The passionate artist revealed that he “loves music” in his NYT interview, and further explained that despite all that’s happened, he isn’t considering living a quiet life that doesn’t let him showcase his talent with the world. “I fell in love with the life,” he said. “I fell in love with the fact that I inspire people. When kids see me, they go crazy.”
Tekashi 6ix9ine’s newest album, Tattle Tales, will be released on Sept. 4.