Young Lay
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| Young Lay | |
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 The cover of Young Lay's 1996 album Black 'N Dangerous.
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| Born | 1975 Vallejo, California |
Lathan Williams (1975), better known by his stage name, Young Lay, is a San Francisco Bay Area based gangsta rapper from Vallejo, California. He has worked with artists such as Tupac Shakur and Mac Dre, and is recently known as the father of Le-Zhan Williams, a boy who was raised by his abductors after they killed his mother and set fire to the house.
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[edit] Career
Lathan Williams began his rapping career in Vallejo, California, and grew to take part in the bay area rap scene that grew up around radio station KMEL, and spawned such artists as E-40, Mac Dre, and the Digital Underground's Shock G and Tupac Shakur, among many others.
Young Lay released his first album in 1996, entitled "Black 'N Dangerous." One of the songs off of the sophomore album, "All About My Fetti," appeared on the soundtrack of the film New Jersy Drive, and became an instant hit.
Because of a series of personal tragedies and mishaps, Young Lay only recorded one more album, "Unsolved Mysteries," dedicated to his missing son Le-Zhan and the deceased mother of the child.
[edit] Tragedy, Violence, and Legal Troubles
Several months before the release of his first album, "Black N' Dangerous," Williams was shot at point blank range in the head while sitting in a car. He was comatose for several days, but - remarkably - he survived. Many cited jealousy from street associates as the cause of the shooting, and the shooter was never found.
Then, only a few weeks before the release of the same album, Williams' girlfriend Daphne Boyden was killed in her home, set on fire, and her child with Williams, Le-Zhan, was abducted from the scene. Witnesses said they saw two young women leaving the home with a small bundle in hand. The child was only 25 days old.
Police were unable to find the culprits or the child. The story was featured on the program, Unsolved Mysteries, for which Lathan Williams granted an interview.
Not long after Boyden's death, Williams was stabbed repeatedly by an assailant, and again survived.
The rapper released his second album, "Unsolved Mysteries," in tribute to Daphne Boyden and to spread awareness of Le-Zhan's abduction.
Remarkably, six years later, on 6 December 2002, Le-Zhan Williams was found living two miles away from where he was kidnapped. He was raised by the abductor, Latasha Brown, as her own son. Latasha's mother, Dolores Brown, helped conceal the child, and Latasha's cousin, Ocianetta Williams (unrelated to Lathan), helped abduct the child. Brown is serving a 37 year to life sentence, Ocianetta Williams is serving a 13 year sentence, and Brown's mother served a one year sentence.
Latasha Brown had apparently killed Daphne Boyden out of jealousy that she had had a child with Lathan Williams, who she had been involved with before.
Lathan Williams did not learn of the child being found right away, as in 1999, he was tried and convicted for armed robbery, and sentenced to 12 years in prison. He is currently interred at Susanville state prison.
[edit] External links
- Background on Young Lay and his life
- Story from 1996 on the kidnapping and murder
- Story detailing the abduction, catching of suspects, and Young Lay's Career
- The culprits in the Le-Zhan case are sentenced
[edit] Discography
[edit] Albums
1998
- Unsolved Mysteries
1996
- Black 'N Dangerous
