Rapper, Killer Mike was arrested following an incident at the Grammy Awards on Sunday, February 4. The arrest came after Mike won three awards at the ceremony, his first Grammy win in over two decades.
Officer Mike Lopez, speaking for the police, mentioned that Mike got into a bit of a scuffle inside the Crypto.com Arena at about 4 p.m., an incident that’s been logged as a minor offense. The Hollywood Reporter shared footage showing Mike being led away in cuffs by Los Angeles cops. He got to walk free at 8:37 p.m. the same evening, with a court date set for February 29.
The details of the incident are still unclear, but reports have indicated that Mike knocked down a security guard who was in his way outside of the arena. Los Angeles has been experiencing unprecedented rain storms, which could be to blame for the confusion. Killer Mike, born Mike Render, has refused to comment on the altercation besides reportedly calling security at the event, “overzealous.” In interviews since, he has been adamant that it was a minor blip in an otherwise fruitful night. A source told People Magazine that Mike believes he will be exonerated when the case is reviewed at the end of the month.
Mike’s Grammy wins have, for the most part, overshadowed the incident. His comments since the awards have been overwhelmingly positive. He has expressed his gratitude for the Grammy wins and announced that his son, who has been on the kidney transplant list for some time, is finally set to receive a kidney.
At 48, Mike won three awards at the 66th Annual Grammys in some of the biggest categories of the night: Best Rap Performance, Best Rap Song, and Best Rap Album. His first solo album in more than a decade, titled “Michael,” made waves by beating out other popular nominees like Drake, Travis Scott, Doja Cat, and Nicki Minaj – some of the biggest names in the business.
“The only thing that limits your age is not being truthful about your age or what you’re doing,” he said backstage. “At 20 years old, I thought it was cool to be a drug dealer. At 40, I started to live with the regrets and the things I’ve done. At 45, I started to rap about it. At 48, I stand here as a man full of empathy and sympathy for the things I’ve done.”
Prior to Sunday night, Mike’s last Grammy win was in 2003 for his collaboration with Outkast on the song, “The Whole World.” He is known for his solo works, being one half of the duo Run the Jewels alongside rapper EI-P, and frequent collaborations with prominent rappers like T.I. and Jay-Z.
The Atlanta native is also an outspoken advocate for racial equality and highly critical of police brutality. He hosted Netflix’s 2019 documentary series “Trigger Warning with Killer Mike” about issues that affect the Black community and was a vocal supporter of Bernie Sanders’s 2016 presidential campaign.
