For almost two years, fans watched closely as prosecutors tried Thug and many of his YSL Records associates for alleged racketeering and gang conspiracy. After a jury selection process that took nearly ten full months to complete, controversies that led to the recusal of two judges, and a trial that ballooned into the longest in Georgia state history, Young Thug accepted a plea deal on October 31, 2024. The plea deal came with 15 years probation and new restrictions on both his travel and his lyrics. But it also meant that ultimately, Thug would be free to resume a largely normal life.
The first half of 2025 has largely seen Thug reacclimate himself with the hip-hop world ahead of a run of festivals in the summer and his long-awaited comeback album. So what exactly has he done so far since being released from jail? Let’s retrace his steps.
November 2024: Metro Boomin Starts Working On New Young Thug Music
On November 7, 2024, Metro Boomin posted an Instagram story of him working on new beats. Fans quickly noticed that Metro’s FL Studio file was titled “jeffhome.” Of course, Young Thug’s real name is Jeffrey Lamar Williams II, and Thug was released from jail eight days earlier. There was no ambiguity as to who Metro was referring to with that one. Thug was eager to get back to work, and he and Metro reconnected as soon as they could.
A couple of days later, Thug followed his quick reconnection with Metro by distancing himself from YSL signee and former mentee Gunna with a scathing tweet and delete. “Gunna stop acting like we friends on the internet, I don't know u my guy,” read the tweet. That tweet resulted in plenty of reactions, mostly shocked ones since it was the first time where Young Thug explicitly called out his former collaborator.
Though part of Thug’s probation barred him from being able to speak to any of his other YSL associates, he specifically requested permission to have his brother and Gunna omitted from those terms. Gunna took a plea deal before YSL even went to trial. The move led to some believing he snitched, which he and his lawyers both deny. Based on that tweet, it looks like Thug was one of those people. The post marked a disappointing end to a productive relationship, leaving fans to hope for a potential reconciliation.
December 2024: Young Thug Scores Another Legal Win
One of the other terms of Thug’s probation was that he could not travel to the metro Atlanta area for the first decade of his 15-year sentence. The only exceptions? Major events, such as weddings, funerals, or the community service obligations he’s required to complete. Even then, he could only stay in the area for what amounted to three days at a time. That did not sit well with Thug, as much of his family is from that area. On December 10, he filed a motion requesting an amendment to the terms of his probation. He cited his family as the reason for that motion.
The following day, a judge agreed to amend his probation. The new terms stipulated that if Thug completed the first three years of his probation without any violations, he would have the ability to go back to his hometown. Four non-consecutive visits a year for up to two weeks per visit. The new terms outlined in the amendment provided another minor legal win for Thug.
January 2025: Thugger Drops His First Verse Out
In the immediate aftermath of accepting the plea deal, Young Thug maintained a relatively low profile, especially compared to how visible he’d been in years past. That all changed pretty quickly. On January 3, 2025, the first new Thug verse since getting out of jail was released.
“Dum, Dumb, and Dumber,” also featuring Future, was the immediate standout from Lil Baby’s latest album, WHAM. The three of them picked up right where they left off, delivering effortlessly impressive verses about living the high life. As far as comeback statements go, this track, as the equivalent of a “first day out” effort, is about as good as it gets. Lil Baby followed up his album by announcing that he and Future were working on a collaborative album. He added that Thug wanted in on the project. Whether anything more comes from this announcement is a question mark
Shortly after the Future and Lil Baby song, Thug posted a video from the studio to Instagram. In the video, he’s nodding along to an unnamed snippet. He can be heard saying “never associate with a rat.” Of course, fans assumed that he was referring to Gunna, especially after their public falling out. The song is not out yet, but it could very well appear on his next album.
February 2025: Young Thug Announces First Shows Since Release
On Valentine’s Day, Drake and PartyNextDoor released their collaborative album, $ome $exy $ongs 4 U. The album included the track “Brian Steel,” referring to Young Thug’s lawyer. In October, Thug attempted to get Future, Drake, and Metro Boomin to squash the ongoing beef. Drake addressed it on the track, seemingly indicating that he’s the reason they didn’t reach an understanding (“‘put all the beef aside,’ I can’t, I’m heated now,” Drake raps on the track).
Later in the month, Thug shouted out incarcerated rapper Pooh Shiesty, tweeting to free him. Now that Thug is out of jail, it seems that he’s interested in calling for the freedom of some of his peers. He also reportedly got back some of the items that authorities seized during the 2022 YSL raid, including Rolexes and diamonds worth thousands of dollars. On February 25, he announced his first concert since his release. It was a headlining spot at the Les Ardentes Festival in Belgium, on July 5. After a slow start on the music side, Thugger started to pick things up with a festival announcement, usually a sign that new material is on the way.
March 2025: Thug Starts Teasing UY Scuti
On March 14, Playboi Carti released his long-awaited Whole Lotta Red follow-up, the plainly named MUSIC. “WE NEED ALL DA VIBES” appears on the album’s back half, featuring appearances from Young Thug and Ty Dolla $ign. The track originally leaked as “Vibin” in 2022, only featuring Thug and Gunna. Gunna’s fell out with producer Wheezy, who also called him a rat, so Wheezy cut his verses.
A little under two weeks later, Thug and his “Makaveli” (his ride or die, so to speak) Mariah The Scientist, attended the March 25 NBA game between the Golden State Warriors and Miami Heat. The pair wore custom jerseys, with Mariah’s having “The Scientist” on the back while Thug’s read “UY Scuti,” the name of his forthcoming comeback album. UY Scuti refers to the name of the largest star in our universe. Clearly, Thug’s self-confidence did not waver in his time away.
The following day, Thug tweeted “KING SPIDER THE BIGGEST STAR,” while an Instagram account followed by him with the username “uyscutiiiiii” appeared later on. Future followed all of that social media chatter by simply tweeting “UY SCUTI.” The tweet was an expected but still significant notice that he was set to appear on Thug’s next release.
April 2025: Young Thug Drops More Teasers, Gives First Post-Jail Interview
On April 1, Young Thug posted another tweet and delete, this time focused on Atlanta gang investigator Marissa Viverito. He allegedly shared an image of her with the caption “biggest liar in the DA’s office.” That tweet led to the Fulton County District Attorney’s Office accusing him of “escalating threats and witness intimidation.” The following day, they filed a motion to have his probation revoked. The motion was swiftly denied by Judge Paige Reese Whittaker, who asserted that his post did not violate any of the terms of his probation.
Ten days later, YSL Records made a since-deleted post of a billboard that read “UNIVERSE HAS BEEN TOO QUIET. UNTIL NOW. UY SCUTI.” The numbers “5 25” appeared on the bottom right of the billboard, with open space between those numbers that may have indicated an initial release date plan. Exactly a week later, Thug posted an official pre-release link to UY Scuti merchandise, which revealed the cover art. Unfortunately, if Thug planned to drop in May, he did not deliver on that.
Near the end of the month (April 25), GQ sat down with Thug for his first interview since his jail release. It was a wide-ranging discussion about his time in jail, his relationship with Mariah The Scientist, and plans for YSL Records going forward. He also detailed his thought process while creating the new album. Thug spoke about wanting to make music where “people can hear him” and that he feels like he’s new to the rap game again because of his absence.
The day after the GQ interview, Thug dropped “Money on Money” with Future, UY Scuti’s lead single. “These f**k n***as telling for nothing and I got to be the one calling them friend,” seemingly throwing another shot in Gunna’s direction. The track is another typically high-quality collaboration from Thug and Future. It also gives a lot more insight into where Thug stands with his protégé than the “I don’t know” response he initially gave when GQ asked.
May 2025: Gunna Distances Himself From YSL, Young Thug Causes Controversy
In May, Young Thug continued releasing new snippets to the public, including one where he promised Mariah The Scientist that he’d “never cheat again.” Thug previously claimed that he talked to up to 10 women per day while in jail and that Mariah “loved him too much.” The snippet seemed to show Thug’s new commitment to her and being a faithful partner after not being that for the first part of their relationship.
A couple of weeks later, on May 18, Gunna posted a new photo where it was clear that he covered up his YSL tattoo. Thug took it in stride, saying “I mean… he said it must end lol” in response. Five days later, Thug shifted his “rat” claims elsewhere, calling Kid Cudi one for testifying against Diddy.
That tweet, which got deleted almost as quickly as it went up, received negative reactions, as fans were quick to point out that snitching (in this context) almost always refers to telling the authorities after committing a crime together. Cudi’s testimony would not qualify as snitching for that reason. That comment was the first thing Thug said post-release that spawned overwhelmingly critical responses. Neither man issued any other statements about it after that. The pair has worked together before, but those collaborations may be a thing of the past now.
June 2025: Young Thug Delivers First Post-Jail Performances
Young Thug appeared at the BET Awards on June 10 with his girlfriend, donning an odd mask, a furry “tie” and a handbag shaped like a duck. Kai Cenat, alongside Druski, caught Thug in a brief interaction during the former’s red carpet stream at the event. After that appearance, he continued to promote his album, with the latest tactic being to tie back to the aforementioned “King Spider” post by sending a live spider to different people and places, including Cenat’s home.
On June 22, a couple of weeks after the BET Awards, Thug headlined the 2025 edition of Summer Smash, the yearly hip-hop festival hosted by Lyrical Lemonade. He was originally set to headline the event in 2022, but his arrest prevented that from happening. During his triumphant return to the big stage, his first concert in over three years, Thug played all the hits. Fittingly he opened with the aptly named “Take It To Trial.” Though his set was mostly older/classic songs, Thugger looked to the future a bit when he premiered a new track with Ken Carson. Later on, he brought out T.I. and Travis Scott for fan favorites “About The Money” and “Hot,” respectively.
Thug also performed “Ski,” a popular track from YSL compilation album Slime Language 2 that features Gunna. He deliberately censored Gunna’s name while delivering his verse, yet another sign that the duo’s relationship may be beyond repair.
July 2025: What's Next For Young Thug?
Young Thug’s 2025 festival run is not ending with his appearance at Summer Smash. As of writing, Thug has four July dates scheduled in Europe. The previously mentioned Les Ardentes Festival is on July 5. On July 10, he’ll be heading to Romania for Beach, Please! The following day, he will headline the second of three nights at Openair Frauenfeld in Switzerland. On July 12, he’ll be in Warsaw for the CLOUT Festival. Later in the fall, Thugger will headline ComplexCon when the event returns to Las Vegas for a second straight year.
UY Scuti still does not have a real release date. The last update Thug gave in that regard was that it was dropping on “June 37th.” Considering his recent public appearances and festival performances scheduled for the coming months, it feels like a matter of time before he fully completes his return to the limelight by dropping one of the most highly anticipated rap albums of the 2020s.
