As far as controversy is concerned, rappers only take a backseat to politicians. Whether manufactured, being at the wrong place at the wrong time, injustice or sheer ignorance, the two have appeared tailor-made for one another. Usually, this controversy presents itself in the form of legal trouble. Pac seemingly lived it, DMX can’t seem to escape it and a laundry list of others are still experiencing it.

T.I., however, seems to have an uncanny knack to predict it. Read the rest of this entry »

B.G.’s verse > Jeezy’s > T.I.’s but T.I.’s ad-libs & trash talk save his appearance. Read the rest of this entry »

Normally when we break the week down we go through and pick what we deem worthy of being highlighted again or feel was missed the first time. But in reality, your remarks play a big part in what we around here and this week our comments section had the internets going nuts © Paul Wall so to speak. So for TWTW, we decided to go with what you deemed worthy, by tallying which posts had the most comments. Read the rest of this entry »

“…Ya’ll remember me?
Way back in ’83, TI stayed up the street from me Read the rest of this entry »

What path would you choose if you were handed a 304 month sentence for selling drugs as a first-time, non-violent offender? Seth Ferranti opted to take the path less chosen. In the fifteen years since his conviction for being a “drug kingpin”, Seth has founded Gorilla Convict Publications, penned articles for the likes of Don Diva, Elemental, Feds, FHM, King, Slam, and Vice, as well as written a realistic fiction book titled Prison Stories. As if that weren’t enough, after earning a BA from Iowa University from behind bars, Ferranti is currently working towards a Masters Degree from California State University.

With a new book titled Street Legends out in stores, an active blog, and several regular writing gigs for magazines, Seth is a candid voice that will continue to have prison administrations shook. Find out more about Seth and his incredible story as he discusses his life, work, and inspirations with TSS’s DJ Sorce-1.

TSS: Tell us how you were able to successfully launch Gorilla Convict Publications.

Seth Ferranti: I got the initial idea for the company in 2004 after getting a lot of interest but no concrete offers for my first book, Prison Stories. I was like, “Fuck it; I’m going to do it myself.” I saw what Teri Woods and Vickie Stringer were doing and thought, “Why can’t I do this?” I had a bigger obstacle with being in prison and all, but I wasn’t going to let that stop me. I had various contacts with editors and writers through the different magazines I had been writing for like Don Diva, Slam, and King. They helped me get publicity for the company when Prison Stories was released. I am blessed with a wonderful team that consists of my wife Diane and my parents. Diane basically did all the legwork. She provided the inspiration, direction, and ideas.

Initially I experienced a lot of problems with the prison administration. They weren’t happy with what I was doing. They tried to intimidate me into not doing it with trips to the hole, transfers, and basic harassment. They tried to make it seem like a prisoner wasn’t allowed to do the things that I was doing in regards to the writing, publishing and marketing of my writing, but I persevered through all their harassment. I studied BOP policy and case law and found that several writers such as prison authors Danny Martin and Mumia Abdul Jamal had taken their plight to the courts and won. Armed with BOP policy and case law, I fought back against the administration and won. They pretty much leave me alone now. They still contend that I am running a business from prison, but since nothing is legally in my name, not even the copyrights for my books and writing, they have no grounds to do anything. The First Amendment guarantees even prisoners the right to write, mail out, and promote their work.

TSS: What do you consider to be your proudest accomplishment as a writer?

Seth Ferranti: My first feature for Don Diva was big. It was a Supreme Team cover story from the fall of 2005. That was right after they took Supreme from the FCI Gilmer compound for the Murder Inc case. I was in the pound with him and he wanted me to write the piece. That was big because so many people were after him for his story and he wanted me to write it for Don Diva. At the time Prison Stories had just come out and I’d been doing little pieces for magazines, but basically all I had written was Prison Stories and some prison basketball pieces for Don Diva, Slam, and the HoopsHype website. That is in retrospect, but I honestly have to say Street Legends is my proudest accomplishment to date. The time and effort put into that and all the help I received from other prisoners, the dudes in the book, their co-defendants, and relatives is amazing and a story in itself.

TSS: What writers have inspired you the most?

Seth Ferranti: George Jackson, who wrote Soledad Brother, and Jack Henry Abbott, who wrote In the Belly of the Beast were my two biggest inspirations to write Prison Stories. I wanted to do what they did but I wanted it to be from my perspective. Edward Bunker, Irvine Welsh, and John King are also big inspirations. Teri Woods and all the other street lit authors have been inspiring. I have watched this thing grow from nothing and seen some close friends like Wahida Clark, Kwame Teague, Eyone Williams, Nikki Turner and Joe Black have tremendous success. Their success has inspired me to step up my game. Kevin and Tiffany Chiles from Don Diva, Ethan Brown, and my man Ben Osborne, the editor in chief at SLAM magazine, have also inspired me tremendously.

TSS: I’ve heard that your first book, Prison Stories, is based heavily on real life experience. Are your accounts of moving weight in jail a realistic representation of what happens at some prisons? Read the rest of this entry »