Father of Grammy-Winning Producer Hit Boy Speaks On Incarceration

You might be familiar with Hit-Boy, the Grammy Award-winning producer and artist behind hits with Jay-Z, Kanye West, and Nas. But many don’t know that during Hit Boy’s rise to the top of the charts, the “Ni**as In Paris” hitmaker was stressing over the unlawful prison sentence of his father, Chauncey “Big Hit” Hollis Sr.

That’s when Hit-Boy, real name Chauncey Alexander Hollis Jr., partnered with Chloe Cheyenne, the founder of COMMUNITYx to help free his father from serving an unlawful prison sentence. In July 2014, Chauncey Hollis Sr. was found guilty and convicted of a hit and run resulting in great bodily injury and sentenced to 12 years and 4 months in prison, which includes a five-year GBI enhancement connected to Count 1.

However, Hollis was petitioning Judge Richard H Kirschner to remove the five-year enhancement from his sentence since 2021, correctly citing that it couldn’t be lawfully applied to his sentence based on the Vehicle Codes not aligning with the Attorney General’s application.

In February 2023, the Court of Appeals heard Mr. Hollis’ case and granted his petition for a writ of habeas corpus, directing the trial court to strike the great bodily injury enhancement on count 1, amend the abstract of judgment accordingly, and send a certified copy of the amended abstract of judgment to the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation. However, Judge Kirschner refused to acknowledge the Appellate Court’s decision, and Hollis remained illegally imprisoned up until his release early this month.

With the help of COMMUNITYx, the freebighit landing page was created to raise awareness and collect signatures to free Hollis from prison. They made a call for Judge Kirschner to acknowledge the Appellate Court’s orders and immediately release Hollis from prison.

Big Hit Free pic.twitter.com/SF6fwwkPU6

— Hit-Boy (@Hit_Boy) May 9, 2023

In the wake of his prison release, Chauncey sat down with BLACK ENTERPRISE to share his experience with a corrupt judicial system and reveal how his son’s fame might’ve influenced the questionable behavior taking place behind the scene. Joined by Chloe, she explained how COMMUNITYx aided in his release and the work her organization continues to do to help combat social injustice around the world.

Press play below for the full interview on “The Culture Shift: Be The Change” series aimed at raising awareness on those making impactful strides in the prison and criminal justice reform movement.