| Turk (rapper) |
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Turk was first discovered in 1996 when the owners of Cash Money Records (brothers Ronald "Slim" Williams and Bryan "Baby" Williams ) discovered him rapping and rhyming in the nearby Magnolia projects of New Orleans. Later that same year, Turk made his recording debut with a cameo on Juvenile 's solo debut, ''"Solja Rags"''. Turk was billed as "Young Turk" and welcomed into the newly formed Hot Boys (who also included Juvenile, B.G. , and Lil' Wayne ), issuing ''"Get It How You Live!"'' in 1997 and ''"Guerilla Warfare"'' (which would eventually go Platinum ) two years later. Turk continued to make cameos on other rapper's recordings, including Juvenile's big hits ''"400 Degreez"'' and ''"Tha G-Code"'', Lil' Wayne's ''"Tha Block Is Hot"'' and ''"Lights Out"'', as well as B.G.'s ''"It's All on You, Vol. 1"'' and ''"It's All on You, Vol. 2"''. June 2001 saw the release of Turk's solo debut, ''"Young and Thuggin'"'', on Universal Records . Turk's first solo album also coincided with the dissolution of the Hot Boys and the departure of B.G. and Juvenile from the Cash Money label over a royalties dispute with CEO Bryan Williams . While Turk cut another album, ''"Untamed Guerilla"'', for Cash Money as a follow-up to ''"Young and Thuggin'"'', it was never released as Turk became embroiled in a similar contractual conflict as Juvenile and B.G. In 2003 , Turk followed B.G. to Koch Records , where he recorded ''"Raw and Uncut"'', technically his second solo album. In January of 2004 , Turk was in a Memphis, Tennessee apartment when narcotics officers and SWAT team members stormed in. According to police, Turk shot an officer during the drug raid, but the rapper claimed he was hiding in the closet without a gun. In the shootout, SWAT team member Deputy Chris Harris had been shot in the jaw, hip, arm and calf. At a preliminary hearing a charge of first-degree attempted murder was reduced to second-degree attempted murder but Turk was not granted bail. He was awaiting trial in prison as his third album, the aptly-named ''"Penitentiary Chances"'', hit the streets in April of 2004 . In August of , 2005 and the jury took just five hours to convict the chart-topping rapper. Virgil’s attorney expressed disappointment at the time the jury spent deliberating and has vowed to appeal. Virgil faces between five and 10 years in prison and is scheduled to be sentenced on October 26 , 2005 . He is still facing an attempted-murder trial stemming from the shooting, but a trial date has not been set. Virgil was sentenced to 12 years in prison on April 26, 2006 by a Memphis judge after entering a "best interest plea" in the 2004 shooting of a sheriff's deputy. Virgil entered an Alford plea, also known as a best-interest plea, in which a defendant may dispute some of the allegations but accepts an agreed-upon sentence, to avoid a longer sentence if convicted at trial. The plea has the same legal effect as a guilty plea. Turk pleaded to attempted second-degree murder and was handed the 12-year sentence. He faced up to 25 years if convicted as charged of attempted first-degree murder. |
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