Tekashi 6ix9ine went from trying to relax to fighting for his life. A group of at least two men attacked 6ix9ine (b. Daniel Hernandez, 26) inside and outside of the sauna of a South Florida LA Fitness on Tuesday (Mar. 21). Video posted on multiple social media sites captured 6ix9ine on the floor of the gym’s bathroom, protecting his head while two men appeared to grab him by the hair and kick him. 6ix9ine’s attorney, Lance Lazzaro, told TMZ that his client tried to fight off his attackers, but since he didn’t have any security with him, the numbers game got the better of 6ix9ine.
The gym’s staff heard the noise of the attack and notified a manager. Police and paramedics were called, and 6ix9ine was transported to a nearby hospital. “He had cuts to his face and bruises,” Lazzaro told Variety. He also suffered injuries to his jaw, ribs, and back. His attorney said that 6ix9ine’s attackers fled after the LA Fitness employees heard the ruckus. It’s unclear what prompted the attack, but in one video of the attack, one of the assailants is heard saying, “Take a picture. I’m gonna be famous now.”
“I love [attention],” 6ix9ine told The New York Times in 2020, his first interview after getting out of prison after pleading guilty to firearms and racketeering charges. 6ix9ine agreed to cooperate with prosecutors and give “game-changing” testimony against his former Nine Trey Gangsta Bloods gang associates. Despite being called a “snitch” by his detractors and receiving death threats, 6ix9ine initially refused to hide. “I grew up being a nobody. 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.”
“At this point, it’s a lifestyle,” he added. ” I worry about it, ” I’m not scared of it. 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.”
When asked if he was worried about his safety, 6ix9ine gave a prophetic answer. “Without security? A lot. With security? Nah,” he said. He also added that his security team varied between “eight, twelve, [and] twenty-two.”
The incident comes days after Page Six reported that 6ix9ine was ejected from LoanDepot Park for being “heavily intoxicated and interrupting other guests’ experiences.” 6ix9ine was attending the World Baseball Classic game between Puerto Rico and Mexico. In videos posted to social media, he’s seen standing up to block others’ view, waving a large flag, and pulling on the safety net. Page Six reports that stadium officials talked with him, and the rapper ultimately decided to leave.