"Anytime I’m around, he disappears" — “Freeway” Rick Ross digs up Rozay's correctional officer past while accusing him of ducking him

Former gangster "Freeway" Rick Ross accused the Miami rapper, who shares his name, of ducking him to avoid meeting during his appearance on The Joe Rogan Experience on June 12, 2024. Freeway and rapper Rick Ross have had a long-running dispute ever since the latter controversially adopted the gangster's name as his on-stage moniker in the mid-2000s.

During the podcast, the host asked the former gangster, who was sentenced to life in prison in the 90s for running a drug empire but was later released in 2009, if anyone had ever confronted Ross about his name. To which Freeway replied:

"Not in person, no. Anytime I'm around he disappears."

He also mentioned that Ross' extensive wealth discourages people from questioning him, adding that "everybody f*ck with you" when you have that kind of money.

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Freeway brought up Rick Ross' past career as a correctional officer

It was a well-established fact that Rick Ross worked as a correctional officer for a few months between 1995 and 1997, a detail he confirmed when he appeared on the Full Send podcast in 2022.

Freeway reiterated this fact on The Joe Rogan Experience on Wednesday, claiming to have letters from men who were in prison at that time branding Ross a "sh*tty guy."

"I got letters from guys that was in jail with him when he was a corrections officer, and they told me what a shitty guy he was," he said.

According to Complex, he also mentioned two instances where Ross was allegedly a "shi*tty" correctional officer. He mentioned that the rapper allegedly took dice and money from inmates playing dice in prison and confiscated extra soup given to some convicts.

Freeway further added:

"He [Rick Ross] was on top of the world at one time. He was a correctional officer, but when he got some money they forgot he was a correctional officer. You got gangsters doing records with him. People will say they hate snitches but they doing records with a police officer."

In his Full Send podcast appearance in 2022, Rick Ross elaborated on his experience as a correctional officer in the mid-90s. He claimed he held the position for four months, describing it as a "miserable experience" with "horrendous" pay.

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Freeway filed a copyright infringement lawsuit against Rick Ross in 2010 over his name

After his release from prison, Freeway filed a lawsuit against Rick Ross, alleging the rapper profited in the music industry by using his name and likeness. The case went to trial in 2013, but Freeway eventually lost when the judge ruled in favor of the Maybach Music Group mogul, whose real name was William Leonard Roberts II.

The judge deemed that Ross could continue using the name for his career but highlighted the influence the former drug pin had on the rapper's music.

"Roberts created a celebrity identity, using the name Rick Ross, of a cocaine kingpin turned rapper. He was not simply an impostor seeking to profit solely off the name and reputation of Rick Ross," the ruling said.

The judge further added:

"Rather, he made music out of fictional tales of dealing drugs and other exploits—some of which related to plaintiff. Using the name and certain details of an infamous criminal’s life as basic elements, he created original artistic works."

On The Joe Rogan Experience, Freeway explained that he still owed the rapper $1 million in legal fees. He added the judge's ruling was based on a technical decision, saying he crossed the statute of limitations by five days.

Freeway continued that while Ross' legal team spent over $1.5 million on the lawsuit, they never offered him any money in terms of a settlement. He stated that he would have gladly accepted the money as his mother was being evicted from her home at the time.

He also expressed anger at the rapper for not asking him before using his name or paying homage to him.

"How would you take my name and not have the decency to ask me? You should have asked. He won't even admit that he stole the name. He tells people that he invented the name. Like, how the f*ck do you invent this name?" Freeway said.

In the interview, Freeway also mentioned that Ross claimed he derived the name from his high school nickname "Big Boss," which another person misheard as "Rick Ross," which the rapper liked and stuck with.

Rapper The Game also referenced Rick Ross's inspiration for his stage name in his diss track Freeway's Revenge on May 10, 2024.