YSL Woody is Kenneth Copeland, the 34-year-old Atlanta rapper who was called as the prosecution’s star witness in the YSL RICO trial and instead dismantled the state’s case against Young Thug — refusing to testify, recanting the statements he had given police in 2015, and admitting on the stand that he had fabricated allegations against the rapper to deflect from his own legal problems.
Who Kenneth Copeland Is
Copeland, who performs as Lil Woody, is a local Atlanta rapper who moved in the same circles as Jeffery Williams, better known as Young Thug. Prosecutors described him as an associate of Young Slime Life and a participant in violent acts they attributed to the group. He is a convicted felon, and in October 2021 he was arrested in Fulton County for possessing a loaded gun in a vehicle.1FOX 5 Atlanta. Young Thug Trial: Lil Woody Arrested After Refusing to Testify That arrest is what pulled him into the orbit of the investigators building the YSL case. After it, he began telling police about what he called “several past and future crimes” and indicated he could help obtain a confession from Young Thug.
Why Prosecutors Needed Him
When Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis unsealed a 65-count RICO indictment against Young Thug and 27 associates in May 2022, the state’s theory was that YSL was not a record label but a criminal street gang tied to the Bloods, responsible for murders, armed robberies, drug trafficking, and witness intimidation dating back to 2012.2FOX 5 Atlanta. YSL RICO Case: What Happens Now for Other Defendants Copeland was the witness who could put Young Thug personally into that story.
In a 2015 police interrogation, Copeland had described Williams’s alleged role in the January 2015 drive-by shooting that killed Donovan “Nut” Thomas Jr. outside an Atlanta barbershop, claiming Williams had supplied a rented Infiniti used in the attack.3Rolling Stone. Young Thug Witness Kenneth Copeland at YSL RICO Trial Those statements were the backbone of the state’s case against Young Thug personally.
To get Copeland to repeat them on the stand, the DA’s office granted him immunity: nothing he said in testimony could be used to prosecute him, even confessions to serious crimes, as long as he did not commit perjury or willfully obstruct the state’s case.4Atlanta News First. Lil Woody Again the Focus as Young Thug’s Trial Jury Returns The state charges from his 2021 gun arrest were dropped, though prosecutors noted the immunity did not extend to potential federal charges from that same incident.5Rolling Stone. Young Thug Trial Witness Held in Contempt
The Leaked Interrogation Video
Before Copeland ever took the stand, video of his 2015 interrogation surfaced on social media in 2023, publicly branding him a snitch. Copeland later testified he believed Fulton County prosecutors leaked the footage after he stopped cooperating, and that the leak “harmed his reputation and put his family in danger,” forcing him to hire an attorney to “go after the state.”6FOX 5 Atlanta. YSL RICO Trial: Defense Aims to Prove Copeland Pressured by State Prosecutors said Copeland had been “threatened” as a high-profile witness. The defense argued the leak was a pressure tactic to force him to testify.
Refusing to Testify and the Secret Meeting
Copeland was called to the stand on June 7, 2024. He refused to answer. Judge Ural Glanville, then presiding, held him in willful contempt and ordered him jailed.1FOX 5 Atlanta. Young Thug Trial: Lil Woody Arrested After Refusing to Testify Prosecutors raised concerns about witness tampering; defense attorneys said the state was coercing Copeland by surrounding him with law enforcement.7Atlanta News First. Lil Woody Remains the Focus as Prosecutors and Lawyers Spar in Young Thug’s Trial
Three days later, on June 10, Judge Glanville held a private meeting with Copeland and the prosecutors without notifying any defense attorney. The judge said the purpose was to make sure Copeland understood his immunity agreement. In the meeting, prosecutors told Copeland he could not be prosecuted based on any confession he made on the stand, and warned that if he kept refusing he could sit in custody until every remaining defendant’s case was resolved.8FOX 5 Atlanta. Young Thug YSL Trial: Transcript of Ex Parte Meeting Released
When defense attorney Brian Steel learned about the meeting, he confronted Judge Glanville and called it coercion. Glanville held Steel in contempt. Steel alleged Copeland had confessed to killing Donovan Thomas during the meeting, but the 56-page transcript released on July 2, 2024, contained no such admission.9Legal Affairs and Trials. Judge in Young Thug YSL Racketeering Trial Glanville was removed from the case. His replacement, Judge Shukura Ingram, recused two days later over a conflict of interest. Judge Paige Reese Whitaker became the third judge to preside.10Courthouse News Service. New Judge in Young Thug RICO Case Denies Rapper’s Request to Be Released From Jail Judge Whitaker struck Copeland’s earlier testimony and ordered it redone, finding that he had not been adequately represented during the initial appearance because his attorney, Jonathan Melnick, had been absent for a scheduling conflict.11Atlanta News First. Attorney for Star Witness in Young Thug’s Trial Suspended Six Months
What He Said on the Stand
Copeland returned to testify under Judge Whitaker on August 12, 2024. Asked whether he would cooperate, he told the judge it depended on “how I wake up.”1211Alive. Key Witness Lil Woody to Redo Testimony in YSL Young Thug Trial He answered many of the prosecutors’ questions with “I don’t recall,” “I don’t remember,” or “I don’t know.”13Newsweek. Young Thug Trial: YSL Case
Then he recanted. Copeland told the court he had lied to police in 2015 about Young Thug’s involvement in the Thomas shooting, inventing the story to get investigators off his own back. “So what I did was, to get them off me, I said, ‘Thug did this, Thug did that.’ Because I knew he didn’t do it,” he testified. “They want to hear about Thug, so I’m about to sit right here and gas them up. I’m about to sit right here and say he killed 19 people, all types of stuff… I’m about to sit right here and make him look like the worst person on Earth, so that they could believe and let me go.”13Newsweek. Young Thug Trial: YSL Case
He said the recantation was not about helping Williams. “Y’all have pressured me, I’m tired of y’all… I care about the truth,” he told the court.14iHeart. Key Witness in Young Thug YSL Trial Admits He Lied During Testimony He also gave a personal reason for having turned on Williams in the first place: a grudge over the Young Thug song “Halftime,” which contained the lyric “Lil’ Woody pull up and pop at his noggin.” Copeland testified the lyric publicly linked him to the Thomas shooting, and that he had been “plotting on” Williams because of it.13Newsweek. Young Thug Trial: YSL Case
Copeland’s testimony was not all denial. Under his immunity agreement, he admitted to his own violent acts. He confessed that in September 2014, he and an associate called “Threat” opened fire on a barbershop in Atlanta’s Bankhead neighborhood owned by Corey Lamar, the father of rapper Rich Homie Quan, hospitalizing Lamar. Copeland said the shooting was meant “to send a message” that “we ain’t the ones to play with.”4Atlanta News First. Lil Woody Again the Focus as Young Thug’s Trial Jury Returns Before making the admission, he asked the judge to confirm his testimony could not be used against him.15Billboard. Young Thug, Woody, Rich Homie Quan at YSL RICO Trial
He acknowledged receiving a rental car from Young Thug but denied it was used in the Thomas shooting. On cross-examination, defense attorney Brian Steel pressed the point that Copeland himself had once been charged with the Thomas killing before the charge was dropped.3Rolling Stone. Young Thug Witness Kenneth Copeland at YSL RICO Trial
How His Testimony Affected the Case
Legal analyst Tom Church described Copeland’s performance as an “implosion” of the state’s case. Former prosecutor Manny Arora said a conviction was still possible if the state could prove the underlying acts through other evidence.16FOX 5 Atlanta. Kenneth Lil Woody Copeland Back on the Stand in Young Thug YSL RICO Trial
The trial resolved without murder convictions. On October 31, 2024, Young Thug entered a non-negotiated plea, pleading guilty to six counts including participating in criminal street gang activity and drug and firearm possession, and no contest to two counts of leading a criminal street gang and conspiracy to violate Georgia’s RICO act. Judge Whitaker sentenced him to time served plus 15 years of probation, and he walked out of Fulton County jail that night.17The New York Times. Young Thug Guilty Plea in YSL Young Slime Life Trial The two co-defendants who went to trial, Deamonte “Yak Gotti” Kendrick and Shannon Stillwell, were both acquitted of murder; Stillwell was convicted only of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon.18The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. YSL Trial: Who’s Who and What Are They Charged With The prosecution secured no murder convictions in the entire case.19FOX 5 Atlanta. YSL Trial: Murder Convictions, Defendant Plea Deals, Young Thug
Where Copeland Is Now
Copeland has said publicly that he is done with rap and gang life. He told reporters he no longer wants to make music because the hip-hop industry pressures artists to project a violent image, and said he wished the culture would change so “you could be an educated graduate to be a rapper.”20FOX 5 Atlanta. YSL Witness Lil Woody Won’t Make Any More Music, Decries Gang Life To people still in gangs, he said: “They want us to believe it’s two ways out, dead or jail. No, it ain’t. Just turn your back, just walk away.”
He has written a book titled Books Up, Guns Down, has said he plans to produce a documentary about his life, and has described working on community safety efforts including distributing donated helmets. On August 31, 2025, he was injured in a dirt bike crash on Peters Street in Atlanta, suffering a mild concussion and minor injuries; he was treated and released.21FOX 5 Atlanta. YSL Trial Witness Lil Woody Reportedly Injured in Crash There was no evidence the crash was connected to his role in the YSL case.