Rapper Tory Lanez has been sentenced to 10 years in prison for shooting Megan Thee Stallion. Three years after the incident and 8 months after he was found guilty in a US court – he’s still denying it.
Rapper Tory Lanez has been sentenced to 10 years in prison for shooting fellow musician Megan Thee Stallion.
Lanez was found guilty of three gun-related felony charges in December 2022, including assault with a semi-automatic firearm. The shooting left Grammy-winner Megan Thee Stallion, real name Megan Peters, needing surgery on her foot.
Lanez, real name Daystar Peterson, has maintained his innocence and in an Instagram post last week implied he intended to fight the sentence.
But at least for now, it draws to a close a case that has polarised the music industry and played out on social media, and in both rappers’ music, for over three years.
The incident occurred in July 2020 as Lanez and Megan Thee Stallion drove away from a pool party at reality star Kylie Jenner’s Hollywood mansion. After an argument Megan Thee Stallion exited the vehicle. Lanez then shouted “dance” before shooting at her multiple times.
He was arrested at the scene on firearms charges.
News of an altercation quickly went viral and a month later Megan Thee Stallion, by this point subject to online harassment and rumour, named Lanez as her attacker.
He has continually denied shooting Megan Thee Stallion – and which rapper to believe became a dividing line online and in the music industry.
Prosecutors asked for Lanez to be sentenced to 13 years in prison, in part, they said, because he had embarked on “a campaign of disinformation” to “humiliate and re-traumatise” Megan Thee Stallion after the attack.
Lawyers for Lanez argued that he should serve his sentence outside prison with time in a residential treatment programme for alcoholism. Following the sentencing his lawyer called it “harsh” and said that Lanez had been “targeted” because of his celebrity status.
In a statement Megan Thee Stallion said: “Since I was viciously shot by the defendant, I have not experienced a single day of peace”.
“He not only shot me, he made a mockery of my trauma.”
Megan Thee Stallion’s case demonstrates the difficult reality that many women face when coming forward about their experiences of violence, particularly Black women.
Megan Thee Stallion said she was “healing” but that she “will never be the same.” She has had to endure two trials: one in the courtroom, the other on social media – which Lanez continues to encourage.
Today’s episode was written by Claudia Williams and mixed by Imy Harper.