Who is DJ Vlad? How FBI may have used rapper Casanova's interview with VladTV to indict him
Caswell Senior, known professionally as Casanova, may be facing life in prison if the Southern District of New York makes its case against him. The Brooklyn rapper was among 18 alleged Untouchable Gorilla Stone Nation Gang members indicted in New York. Casanova was hit with three counts, including conspiracy to commit racketeering, conspiracy to distribute controlled substances, and possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug-trafficking crime, according to Vulture. After the charges last week, the rapper then shortly turned himself in.
Although, what led to his indictment may have stemmed from an unexpected source. According to Hip-Hop Wired, numerous comments on Twitter began to point out that interviews with DJ Vlad made Casanova appear suspect to the Feds and was seen as enough of a confession (whether realized or not by the rapper at the time) for some of his crimes. In one of the many interviews, Casanova spoke of assaulting "three or four" inmates while he was in prison when asked directly by Vlad, "So, you go to prison, but you don't calm down. How many people did you cut in prison?" Watch the clip below.
But who is the mystery man conducting the interview? DJ Vlad, whose real name is Vladimir Lyubovny, is an American journalist, director and former disc jockey. He is the CEO of video and news website VladTV.com while his YouTube channel, djvlad, features interviews with numerous and various music artists or entertainers. He also interviews political figures and social activists. The video for the interview such as the one above currently has over 3 million views and his channel has over four million subscribers. Additionally, Vlad also has direction and production credits on films and documentaries.
As an interviewer, Vlad's content has not always been easily welcomed. In September, Twitter previously tried to cancel the journalist after he allegedly misquoted a speech by Minister Louis Farrakhan, the Nation of Islam leader, which referenced Jewish people. Vlad received backlash not only from Twitter users but also from Royce Da 5’9. The rapper called him out and also demanded an apology from Vlad, but his response was that he would only publicly apologize to Minister Louis Ferrakhan if he was able to sit down with him and tell him directly to his face.
“I did a video telling him that I want him to apologize, but I simply stated if you don’t apologize then you can’t have a relationship with me,” Royce said. “I don’t feel like it’s that big a deal. I feel like it’s Vlad disrespecting the culture. I don’t feel like it’s that big of a deal because he’s been disrespecting the culture. Now, you’re taking personal shots at Dame Dash, one of our heroes, and making him out to be a bad father. And this is only appropriate in this business because we allow it.”
Back in 2008, DJ Vlad was assaulted by rapper Rick Ross's entourage after he covered a story on the rapper's former career as a corrections officer.
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