Gone 'Til November

***Gone 'Til November: A Journal of Rikers Island*** is a 2016 memoir by American rapper Lil Wayne. It was first published on October 11, 2016 by Plume Books. Wayne recounts his time at the New York prison Rikers Island, where he was incarcerated for eight months in 2010. The book records his daily routine, isolation, becoming a suicide prevention aid, his own thoughts of suicide, and several incidents, such as recording a verse for the remix of Drake and Jay-Z's "Light Up" via phone.

## Synopsis

**From rap superstar Lil Wayne comes *Gone 'Til November*, a deeply personal and revealing account of his time spent incarcerated on Rikers Island for eight months in 2010.**

In 2010, recording artist Lil Wayne was at the height of his career. A fixture in the rap game for more than a decade, Lil Wayne (aka Weezy) had established himself as both a prolific musician and a savvy businessman, smashing long-held industry records, winning multiple Grammy Awards, and signing up-and-coming talent like Drake and Nicki Minaj to his Young Money label. All of this momentum came to a halt when he was convicted of possession of a firearm and sentenced to a yearlong stay at Rikers Island. Suddenly, the artist at the top of his game was now an inmate at the mercy of the American penal system. At long last, *Gone 'Til November* reveals the true story of what really happened while Wayne was behind bars, exploring everything from his daily rituals to his interactions with other inmates to how he was able to keep himself motivated and grateful. Taken directly from Wayne's own journal, this intimate, personal account of his incarceration is an utterly humane look at the man behind the artist.

## Dedication

Dedicated to Mercedes Carter and Reginald McDonald

## Background

On July 22, 2007, after his New York concert, Lil Wayne was arrested for criminal weapons possession and criminal possession of a loaded weapon. Police searched his tour bus, where they smelled marijuana, and found a .40-caliber Springfield Armory pistol, which Wayne's lawyers had denied it belonged to him. Months later, DNA evidence was showed over several legal proceedings, ultimately Wayne pleading guilty on October 22 to receive a one-year sentence in prison.

Prior to his incarceration, he recorded as much music as he could. The rock album *Rebirth* was dropped the following month on February 2, and his sentence was scheduled for February 9, which resulted in delayal as he had to undergo dental surgery, reportedly for eight root canals and work on his gold and diamond grills. He also told *Rolling Stone* that he'd still be creating music: "I'll be still rapping in there, have a gang of raps ready when I come back home." On March 2, his jail sentence was once again postponed, as a basement fire occurred at the courthouse. On March 8, he began his sentence, where he tweeted hours ahead, "Law is mind without reason. I'll return." On April 2, he launched the website WeezyThanxYou.com to keep in contact with and update his fans. On May 13, wardens found the contraband items of a charger, headphones, and MP3 player in his cell, which resulted in solitary confinement for the final month of his term.

The album *I Am Not a Human Being* was released on September 27, which topped the US *Billboard* 200 while he was still in jail. On November 4, he was released early from prison for good behavior. While in jail, he also pleaded guilty to a charge of drug possession in Arizona and was sentenced to three years' probation, which could've faced a maximum of ten years; he would later be pardoned last-minute in January 2021 by Donald Trump ahead of then-President Joe Biden's inauguation.

On October 3, 2016, an exclusive excerpt of the memoir was published online by *Vulture*.

## Critical reception

*Los Angeles Times* felt that the memoir was "a flagrant missed opportunity," which coincided with the time of mass incarceration and the Rikers prison being publicly criticized for its inhumane and dangerous conditions. They added, "While the trauma of a prison stay is usually, and sensationally, depicted in terms of physical violence, prison's psychological violence—the monotony, the loneliness, the isolation and depression—is occasionally captured by Wayne's spare, mundane, repetitive language." *The New Yorker* assessed, "Transfixing… [Wayne's] prison diary is, above all, a testament to the irrepressibility of his charisma—his is a force that can never go dormant, even when it's not plainly on display." *The Michigan Daily* penned, "offers unfiltered glimpses at the thoughts and emotions that fueled the rapper's persistence throughout his incarceration."

## References

1. ↑ Pareles, Jon (July 24, 2007). "A Southern Rapper with a Lot of Friends". *The New York Times*.
2. ↑ Singer-Vine, Jeremy (February 22, 2010). "Can Lil Wayne Bring His Teeth to Prison?". *Slate*.
3. ↑ "Lil Wayne (@LilTunechi)". *Twitter*. March 8, 2010.
4. ↑ Peltz, Jennifer (November 9, 2010). "Rap Star Lil Wayne Released from Rikers Island". *Today*.
5. ↑ Aswad, Jem (November 5, 2010). "Timeline: The Criminal History of Lil Wayne". *Rolling Stone*.
6. ↑ "Trump Pardons Lil Wayne in Florida Gun-Possession Case". *New York Post*. January 20, 2021.
7. ↑ "Read an Exclusive Excerpt from Lil Wayne's Prison Journal, *Gone 'Til November*". *Vulture*. October 3, 2016.
8. ↑ Dreisinger, Baz (October 7, 2016). "Lil Wayne's Rikers Island Memoir 'Gone 'Til November' Is a Missed Opportunity". *Los Angeles Times*.
9. ↑ DiGioia, Salvatore (November 1, 2016). "Lil Wayne Memoir ‘Gone 'Til November' Is Full of Heart, History". *The Michigan Daily*.

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