Trenton Rapper Lo Lyfe Opens Up About Prison, Real Redemption & Fatherhood. His Redemption Story Is Just Beginning. Chuck “Jigsaw” Creekmur Checks In.
There is something different about Lo Lyfe. Maybe it is the urgency in his voice. Maybe it is the gratitude of the smile. Or maybe it is because the emerging Trenton, New Jersey rapper has already lived several lifetimes before most artists ever get their first real shot.
Lo Lyfe recently caught attention after winning a performance contest connected to the celebrity boxing event featuring Chrisean Rock and Zenith Zion. The event, promoted through XRumble, blended combat sports and Hip-Hop culture and each fighter had a rapper walking them out. Lo Lyfe’s performance stood apart because it came from a place deeper than entertainment.
After serving 15 years in prison, on a myriad of charges, Lo Lyfe says music became the thing that literally saved his life. But this is not a cliché “Hip-Hop Saved My Life” story. During his incarceration, he battled depression, witnessed tragedy, but had a moment hearing Sam Cooke’s “A Change Is Gonna Come” shifted his entire perspective.
Now home since October 2023, the father of two is rebuilding his life through music, entrepreneurship and renewed purpose. In this conversation with AllHipHop’s Chuck “Jigsaw” Creekmur, Lo Lyfe opens up about prison, redemption, fatherhood, Trenton’s rap scene and why his upcoming EP Legacy means more than just music.
Below is an edited version of the Q&A. Watch the video for the full experience.
AllHipHop: You stood out at the XRumble event. What was that whole experience like for you?
Lo Lyfe: For me, someone who was incarcerated for 15 years, I went from watching the ring behind the cell to actually being in one. That alone was surreal. I know there are people still in there watching moments like that. I never thought I’d make it out here, but by the grace of God, I’m here. So to actually go out there and perform? Man, it was inexplicable.
AllHipHop: I could hear the hunger in your music. When did you come home?
Lo Lyfe: October 25, 2023.
AllHipHop: That’s still fresh. I could definitely feel something different in your music because of it. Did you get to meet Chrisean Rock?
Lo Lyfe: We crossed paths backstage a few times, but there was a lot going on. Everybody was being moved around everywhere. I didn’t want to overwhelm nobody because honestly, I was overwhelmed myself. But shout out to Chrisean. She did her thing out there.
AllHipHop: You actually recorded a song specifically for that fight event. Explain that record.
Lo Lyfe: Initially, I wrote it because I thought Chrisean might walk out to it. But once I started creating it, it became bigger than the boxing event itself. I think me and Chrisean have similarities in redemption. Going through trials and tribulations, battling demons, falling and getting back up again. Having God pull you out of darkness. That’s where the inspiration came from.
A lot of people hit me afterward saying the song touched them emotionally. That meant everything to me.
AllHipHop: I’m not gonna lie. At first, I thought you were a Gospel rapper.
Lo Lyfe: (Laughs.) I don’t got a halo over my head yet. But I came a long way. Usually I’m in my Hip-Hop bag, but with that song I wanted to challenge myself creatively and show I could do something deeper and more uplifting.
AllHipHop: You mentioned your daughters. Tell me about fatherhood after being away so long.
Lo Lyfe: I got two daughters. One’s 12 and the other just turned 11. Honestly, when I came home, my focus wasn’t getting them to know me. It was me learning them. That was important.
At first, it was hard. It was like pulling teeth trying to adjust to everything. But now I’m very active in their lives. They’re my fuel. They keep me grounded and give me reasons to keep fighting every day.
AllHipHop: How was the adjustment overall going from prison life back into society?
Lo Lyfe: It was a lot to acclimate to, but I hit the ground running the legitimate way. I started working, dove into the music, started businesses, flipped cars, got investments going. I’m just trying to keep building.
I refused to let prison break me. I wanted it to make me.
AllHipHop: When did music really become serious for you?
Lo Lyfe: It started young, but I really locked in while I was incarcerated. I talk about it in my song “Back From Hell.”
I was in the hole for an extended period. One of my cellmates was really into music. He used to sing all the time while everybody was trying to sleep. Then one day, he hung himself. He was doing life. That messed me up mentally.
I got to a point where I was contemplating suicide myself. But one night, around 3 or 4 in the morning, somebody across the hall started singing “A Change Is Gonna Come.” When I heard that song, it was like a light switch went off in my head.
I put the sheet down and picked the pen up.
From that point on, music saved me. I tell people all the time: I wrote myself out of jail.
AllHipHop: What were you originally incarcerated for?
Lo Lyfe: Drugs, high-speed chases, guns. Then they charged me with a double murder, but I got acquitted of that.
While I was in there, though, I changed my mindset completely. I got a college degree. Learned trades. Became a peer counselor helping younger brothers inside. I wanted to shift the narrative around my life.
AllHipHop: Let’s talk about Trenton and Jersey. What’s the Hip-Hop scene like there right now?
Lo Lyfe: Jersey has so much talent, but I feel like we don’t get the shine we deserve because we’re caught between New York and Philly. But honestly, that should make us stronger because we’re like a hybrid of both cultures.
There’s so much happening in Jersey right now too. Netflix is coming there. New studios are opening. I think Jersey’s becoming a hub for music, acting and entertainment overall.
But on the smaller level, it’s still hard for artists to break through because of the environment and circumstances people come from.
AllHipHop: Tell me about your upcoming EP Legacy.
Lo Lyfe: It’s an eight-track EP dropping in June. The project is really about my evolution. My lifestyle changed, so my message has to change too.
I named it Legacy because that’s what I’m building for my daughters and family. I want them to hear my story from me, not from other people exaggerating or minimizing it.
When I’m gone someday, they’ll still have this music. They’ll know exactly who I was.
AllHipHop: Who influenced you as an artist?
Lo Lyfe: Tupac, definitely. He painted pictures and told stories. Bone Thugs-N-Harmony had a huge impact on me too. Meek Mill, Jadakiss, Albee Al. Artists who really speak from experience.
AllHipHop: Any final message to the people?
Lo Lyfe: Keep dreaming. Keep chasing your dreams and don’t let your circumstances define you. To my family, I love y’all. To my supporters, thank you for believing in me.
And most importantly, God bless everybody. Stay safe.
