Through The Wire: A History Of Rap Songs Recorded Over The Phone From Jail

Whether firing shots at enemies or just keeping their name in the street, the so-called "jack" has become a valuable tool in hip-hop's recording arsenal.

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Complex Original

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Currently serving a year in Atlanta's Fulton County Jail for violation of parole, Gucci Mane is set to release his all-new Burrrprint 2 mixtape tommorow, with some of the verses recorded over the actual jail phone. While a handful of prisons across the country contain recording equipment for use by inmates (as heard on the forgotten "scared straight"-style album by the Lifers Group in 1993), most prison officials would argue that pursuing a music career from behind bars is a privilege few, if any, deserve. Gucci however, who has mastered maintaining a street buzz throughout incarnation, is far from the first to skirt the rules.

West Coast legends like Mac Dre and X-Raided have recorded entire albums by phone, and even 50 Cent once called Cutmaster C during an hours-long stay in central booking for an interview "from jail" that appeared on the 2003 mixtape Live From Central Bookings Tha Holdin' Pen!!!. Whether firing shots at enemies or just keeping their name in the street, the so-called "jack" has become a valuable tool in hip-hop's recording arsenal, as you'll see in our look back at the history of rap songs recorded over the phone from jail...

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