Issue #84 – Freeway Ricky Ross interview
By Julia Beverly • Jun 23rd, 2010 • Category: Interviews, Issue #84FREE AT LAST:
AFTER AN APPEALS COURT OVERTURNED HIS LIFE SENTENCE, INFAMOUS DRUG KINGPIN ‘FREEWAY’ RICKY ROSS HOPES TO REDEEM HIMSELF BY TEACHING THE YOUTH THE HARD LESSONS HE’S LEARNED AND SHOWING THEM A BETTER PATH
For anyone who isn’t familiar with “Freeway” Ricky Ross, what’s your claim to fame?
I’m from L.A. I’m known as a drug dealer. I became one of the biggest drug dealers in South Central. I was the guy that most of the guys who got big got their first drugs from. I was the one they modeled themselves after; guys like Harry O, Bo Bennett, Young Tommy, Pat, the list goes on and on. A lot of [well-known drug dealers] basically modeled their drug dealing pattern after me or copied my format. Some of them got bigger than I was. (laughs)
When you see what the drug game has evolved into today, do you approve or disapprove?
I mean, I can’t knock anyone for what they do, because I did so much wrong myself. It’d be like Satan throwing rocks at somebody for doing something wrong; he can’t do that. So I can’t knock the game. It has evolved into what it was supposed to come to. But I do feel that my job now is to try to figure out other things for these young guys to do now. I’m trying to show them that there’s a different route and a different path, and I believe I can do that.
















