Former Bad Boy rapper Loon was recently released from prison after serving eight years. The former artist, who now goes by Amir Junaid Muhadith since converting to Islam, was originally arrested on drug charges back in May 2012. He was sentenced to 168 months prison in addition to four years' worth of supervised release after pleading guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute and possession with intent to distribute 1 kilogram or more of heroin.
Now that he's back home, Loon spoke with The Breakfast Club for over an hour about the particulars of his case, his days in the music industry, and the role Islam plays in his life.
Loon said he was locked up over "hearsay." He took a lesser charge for a 14-year bid because he was facing life and already had two prior convictions. He fought for 18 months and maintained his innocence, but knew if he took it to trial and lost he’d never get a release date. The former music artist credited Islam with helping him keep it together during his incarceration.
"If I did this bid as Loon I probably wouldn’t have come home," Loon said.
Loon also said he fell back from making music once he found religion. Because music goes against his religious beliefs, he made the choice to leave the rap lifestyle behind. Loon added that he walked away from Bad Boy was because he found it difficult to flourish under Diddy due to Puff's star power.
"Puff has a huge impact on Hip-Hop and Hip-Hop history," Loon said. "So to come up from underneath that is mission impossible."
The rapper also disclosed that he was never signed to Bad Boy but he did own his own publishing, which allowed him to negotiate a deal with Puff that most couldn't. He also mentioned that he doesn't share the same grievances with Diddy that other former artists have expressed in the past.
During the interview, Loon spoke about originally being signed to Tommy Boy Records through Fatman Scoop before joining Arista. He also revealed that the original Harlem World lineup included himself, Big L, Cam'ron, Mase, and Herb McGruff.
"The group was supposed to consist of me, Big L, Cam'ron, Herb McGruff, and Mase," Loon said. "That's what definitely compelled me to want to sign on. But because of the relationship that Mase had with Herb and L at the time, it wasn't where it should have been. We had to go with the alternative which was Baby Stase, my man Blinky Blink, Meeno, and Huddy. So, that was supposed to be the segue from the Harlem World project Mase put out."
Currently, Loon is working with Hip-Hop journalist Kim Osorio on a book about his life.
