"I kind of stepped up in a father figure role" — Larry Jackson recalls writing letter to judge to keep Chief Keef out of jail after signing him

Former Apple Music music executive Larry Jackson opened up about Chief Keef while recently appearing on The New York Times’ Popcast on December 13. For those unaware, Jackson has worked with some popular artists, including Keef, Whitney Houston, Drake, and Lana Del Rey.

During the interview, Jackson spoke about Keef and also said that he had to write a letter to the judge to keep the rapper out of jail.

Jackson also revealed that he got to know that Chief Keef was getting serious threats after he was signed by Interscope, back in 2012. According to Jackson, he was contacted by a friend who was closely associated with the FBI and gave information about the rapper. Jackson mentioned during the latest interview:

"He told me that this kid [Chief Keef] was on a watchlist. He also told me that there is a $50,000 hit out on this kid and you may want to do something about it."

This was when the music executive wrote the letter to the judge. He continued:

"I kinda stepped up in a ‘father figure’ role. So it’s so much deeper than, ‘Yeah, lemme sign this guy because everybody wants him, he has a bidding war.’ No, this was so much deeper in terms of a vision — for not just the music but for his life."

Jackson also claimed that he has still been on good terms with Keef in the present. According to a Hot97 article dated December 24, the rapper was only 16 years old when he signed a deal with Interscope Records.

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Larry Jackson assisted Chief Keef in curating his debut album under Interscope Records

While Keef was signed under Interscope Records, he released his first studio album titled Finally Rich in December 2012. According to Hot97, it was this album that was responsible for making drill rap a more mainstream genre of music. Several other artists like Wiz Khalifa, 50 Cent, Rick Ross, and French Montana had featured in the album.

Jackson, the co-founder of Gamma, opened up about his contribution to the debut album. During the interview, he said:

"I went in and picked the songs for the album. I came up with the intro, came up with the interludes. I mixed the album with Chris Cheney. I sequenced the album."

Elsewhere in the interview, Larry Jackson said that he was satisfied and proud that Chief Keef stayed out of prison and away from his turbulent life. HipHopDX also revealed in an article dated December 24 that Keef was entangled in legal issues since a very young age.

He had been arrested for heroin manufacture and distribution back in 2011 and was then tried as a minor. Chief Keef served house arrest based on the charges back then. Later, he also faced charges like aggravated assault with a firearm on a police officer and aggravated unlawful use of a weapon. The rapper currently stays out of legal trouble.

As reported by AllHipHop, the album ranked at no. 29 on the Billboard 200 when it debuted, and about 50,000 copies of the same were sold in the very first week.