Gunna's Parents Had His Back Amid Legal Troubles — Details
Gunna has been having quite the year, but things seem to be looking up for the rapper. Here is everything we know about his family background and parents.
By S.Y.Oct. 19 2023, Updated 1:42 p.m. ET
Georgia-born rapper Gunna took the hip-hop world by storm with his distinctive style and undeniable talent.
With a string of successful albums and hit singles, the rapper solidified his place in the music industry as a force to be reckoned with.
In 2022, the "fukumean" rapper got caught up in some legal trouble — and he was part of the 56-count RICO Act indictment involving YSL Records alongside fellow rapper Young Thug.
While friends and fans alike turned their back on the rapper amid the controversy, his family was there to support him the whole way. Here is what we know of the rapper's background.
Gunna is close with his parents and four brothers.
Gunna with his mother in 2021.
Gunna, whose birth name is Sergio Giavanni Kitchens, grew up with four siblings —one of his brothers tragically passed away in 2006.
According to Billboard, Gunna was raised in College Park, just outside of Atlanta, where his mom worked in a school cafeteria.
"I didn’t have life that good coming up,” he shared. “I wasn’t born with a lot of money. We weren’t dirt poor but we weren’t rich. All I knew was struggle. My family taught me about saving and how to stretch to make ends meet.”
While his family remains out of the public eye, In 2022, while he was incarcerated, his parents accepted his BMI Award on his behalf.
“It’s an amazing award. We wanted to say thank you for the continuous support," his father said during the acceptance speech. "We talked to him earlier today, he loves BMI and he appreciate all that y’all have done for him and continue to support him. So thanks everybody, Free Gunna, keep pushin P, baby!"
His parents also tried to cover his bail after he was arrested.
The "Banking on Me" rapper's legal troubles sprouted amid Young Thug's extensive RICO case, which caused a barrage of issues for the Southern rapper.
In the official indictment, the grand jury identified Young Thug, Gunna, and 26 other associates as members of the “criminal street gang” YSL, or Young Slime Life. The highly publicized arrests dominated the headlines.
Rappers Young Thug and Gunna.
When he was still in jail, as part of a potential deal, Gunna's lawyer proposed that his parents would have been required to list their homes as collateral, and because of that, both of his parents put their two homes up for bail, however, the request for his bail bond was declined by the court.
Gunna was eventually released from jail in December 2022. He went on to release his album "A Gift & a Curse" in June 2023.
Gunna also called his mentor, Keith “King” Troup, his "uncle."
Gunna started his music career at the age of 13 and credits Keith “King” Troup for his success.
"He was like my uncle,” Gunna explained to Billboard. “Troup would always try to tell us, ‘Get some money. Stay out of trouble.’ He always tried to let us know there’s more to this. He used to always be with people who were already doing good, like Allen Iverson."
King was also the person who introduced Gunna to Young Thug. Sadly, King was murdered in 2015, but his death brought Gunna and Thug closer together.
"Thug’s just a real good dude," Gunna added. "He helped me out a lot to perfect my craft.”
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