NBA YoungBoy Isn't as "Untouchable" by the Law as His Hit Songs Suggest

Rising to fame thanks to his independent mixtapes, Kentrell DeSean Gaulden called himself NBA YoungBoy to signify that he would be “Never Broke Again.” Starting in 2015, he released eight independent mixtapes, which eventually led to Atlantic Records signing him in 2018 and his Billboard Hot 100 singles, “Untouchable” and “No Smoke.” But NBA YoungBoy has had his fair share of legal drama throughout his time in the spotlight.

Growing up in Baton Rouge, La., Kentrell was raised by his maternal grandmother after his father was sentenced to 55 years in prison. He dropped out of high school in the ninth grade and spent time in juvenile detention for a robbery charge, which is where he began to focus on writing song lyrics. Now that he has been arrested again, we’re here with his entire arrest history.

In 2014, NBA YoungBoy was just 15 years old when he was caught committing robbery. He was sentenced to six months in a juvenile detention center in Tallulah, La., which is when he wrote and later released his debut mixtape, "Life Before Fame."

Attempted murder sounds pretty bad and honestly, it isn't great. When NBA YoungBoy was in Austin, Texas, before a show, Baton Rouge’s law enforcement thought he fired guns into a crowd during a drive-by. He pleaded guilty in exchange for a reduced charge of aggravated assault with a firearm, which was just nine months in prison. At 17 years old, he was released in May, after which he released his comeback track, “Untouchable.”

Before a concert at The Moon nightclub in Tallahassee, Fla., NBA YoungBoy was arrested for committing assault, weapons violations, and kidnapping. Hotel surveillance showed him assaulting his then-girlfriend, Jania Jackson, although he was released from prison in March on a $75,000 bail.

Just after a March 2019 lawsuit against NBA YoungBoy and fellow rapper NBA Tyquian “Quando Rondo” Bowman for assault, battery, and emotional distress seemingly went nowhere, he was involved in a Miami shooting.

NBA YoungBoy fired back at a shooter in a black Cadillac Escalade, who had injured his then-girlfriend, Kaylyn Marie Long, and killed a bystander, 43-year-old Mohammad Jradi. While he was acquitted of charges for the shooting, NBA YoungBoy had violated his probation by associating with Ben Fields and Trulondrick “Boomer” Norman, so he was sentenced to 90 days in jail and house arrest.

In September 2020, a major drug bust led to 16 arrests, including that of NBA YoungBoy on charges of distribution and manufacturing of drugs and possession of stolen firearms. His lawyer, however, stated (via Rolling Stone): “[YoungBoy] is not guilty of any crimes. There’s nothing in the report that indicates that he did anything wrong. They arrested several people and there was no indication that he had any guns or drugs on him at the time of the arrest.”

Once again, YoungBoy’s past caught up with him. He was released shortly after his 2020 arrest when he needed to undergo further trials for conviction and sentencing, but he fled the state after his release.

NBA YoungBoy was found in Los Angeles by the LAPD with help from police dogs, during which police also found him in possession of illegal firearms. He was released in October 2021 on a $1.5 million bail. By July 2022, NBA YoungBoy was found not guilty of California’s federal firearms charges against him.

NBA YoungBoy moved to Utah after his 2021 legal troubles to fulfill his house arrest as part of the deal in which his lawyers argued that “moving to Utah would keep YoungBoy out of trouble.” However, a search warrant was executed on his home on April 16, 2024, in which the Cache County Sheriff’s Office confirmed a pattern of “unlawful activity.”

“Due to the complexity of the investigation, we will not be releasing any additional details concerning the investigation,” Lt. Mikelshan Bartschi said in a statement (via ABC4 Utah). “Current criminal charges for Mr. Gaulden include [a] pattern of unlawful activity. The pattern of unlawful activity includes violations of the Utah Controlled Substances Act, the Identity Fraud Act, and fraud.”

It’s unclear exactly what went down in Utah, but for the sake of NBA YoungBoy’s sanity, health, family, fans, and his career, we hope that he can get back on a path toward a productive future.