Famous rapper and New Jersey native Willie Junior Maxwell II, better known as Fetty Wap, is back in the rotation following his release from prison on Jan. 8. He was sentenced to six years in prison in May of 2023 for conspiracy to distribute controlled substances, according to a United States Attorney’s Office statement. Now, he is under home confinement and plans to move forward in life by making a positive impact on the people around him.
Born and raised in Patterson, N.J., he likes to make plenty of references to New Jersey in his music, including his iconic tagline, 1738, the year New Jersey was established. He attended Eastside High School in Paterson before becoming a worldwide phenomenon for his catchy raps. In 2016, his career took off, earning him three songs on the Billboard top 100: “Trap Queen, “679,” “My Way” and “Again.” Fetty Wap was also iHeartRadio’s 2016 Top New Artist, and “Fetty Wap” was ranked as the 15th most popular album of the year on the Billboard 200.
In 2021, his world turned upside down when he was accused of being a part of a drug scandal. In August, he admitted that he was guilty. According to a May 2023 NBC News article, he apologized and acknowledged that he “hurt [his] community, people who look up to [him], [his] family and [him]self.” However, the suspicious behavior of drugs being handled by kids was foreshadowed in the “Trap Queen” music video. Some hoped he would be sentenced to more than six years, but he was actually in prison for only three years.
Following his release just over three months ago, he has been spotted in New Jersey, especially at Garden State Plaza mall in Paramus, where he has been meeting fans and performing flash concerts. With his soft return, his music has resurfaced on social media, bringing back the vibes from a decade ago. Fetty Wap also had a concert on April 4 at the Wellmont Theatre in Montclair that sold out within minutes.
Fetty Wap’s return excites his old fans, and he has already hinted that he is back in the studio, in an Instagram post of him creating new music. According to a January 2026 ABC News article, he thanks his family, friends and fans for their support and his focus is “to give back through initiatives and a foundation, supporting at-risk young children by expanding access to education, early tech skills and vision care for young kids and students so they can show up as their best selves.
Photo credit: “Fetty Wap – Slide Still (cropped).jpg” by B.S. Ballout is licensed under CC BY 3.0
