Pretty Ricky’s Baby Blue Celebrates Last Day On House Arrest After Serving One Year In Prison For $24 Million PPP Fraud: First [Thing] I’m Doing Is Hittin’ The Studio

Pretty Ricky’s Baby Blue Celebrates Last Day On House Arrest After Serving One Year In Prison For $24 Million PPP Fraud: First [Thing] I’m Doing Is Hittin’ The Studio

Rapper Baby Blue is out of the “Big House” and ready to return to the booth!

On Monday (Mar. 20), Baby Blue took to his Instagram to celebrate his final day on house arrest after a one-year stint behind bars, and he shared his plans for the forthcoming mandated removal.

Baby Blue

According to Baby Blue, the time away actually inspired new material, and his first move as a free man will be straight to the music.

When speaking of how he used the lockup to work on his artistry, the Pretty Ricky phenomenon excitedly wrote,

“FINALLY! My Last day on House Arrest! [The] first [thing] I’m doing is hittin the studio & dropping my first Day Out record I wrote in prison. Popping my #BiggMoneyBlue sh*t!!! Whole 2023 Doing my BIG ONE! Believe dat!”

He continued, expressing the importance of keeping his head up–even through the down times.

“This ankle monitor [is] annoying as f***! Regardless [I] gotta count my blessings though and be appreciative every second I ain’t locked up! #Blessed #GodIsTheGreatest.”

As previously reported, in 2021, the 38-year-old pled guilty to his involvement in a $24 million PPP (Paycheck Protection Program) loan fraud scheme.

Allegedly, Blue was responsible for over $1.1 million of the illegal funds, and he persuaded 11 additional individuals to participate in the controversial scandal.

However, in a statement posted to his Twitter account, the Florida native claimed that he was supposedly a “victim” of the COVID-relief scam, along with a few other unnamed public figures.

Baby Blue

In February 2022, prior to his incarceration, Blue tweeted,

“Honestly, the informants in my case made me their SCAPEGOAT. [They] made it seem like we was part of the scam but in reality, THEY SCAMMED ME & OTHER CELEBS. They told lies on US for less time wrongly convicting victims. Unfortunately, being ‘NAIVE’ isn’t a defense in the court of law!”

Initially, the “On the Hotline” rhymer was scheduled to serve 20 months in a federal facility, which began on Feb. 7, 2022. Days before turning himself in (on Feb. 5), he issued an apology to the special ladies in his life amid his unfortunate circumstance.

In his heartfelt message, Blue captioned:

“I wanna send a huge apology out to the women I’m currently dating. Even though we’re all single and having fun, I apologize for being incarcerated during VALENTINE’S DAY. I understand if you want to spend that day with someone else this year. You have my blessing.”

But… this past February, exactly 12 months after he surrendered to authorities, Blue saw a break in his case and was granted an early release. Despite his conviction, the lyricist received emancipation through the First Step Act, a law by former president Donald Trump that allows eligible inmates to earn credits to put toward cutting down their jail time.

Donald Trump

Subsequent to his arrival back home, Blue, who’s changing his stage name to ‘Bigg Money Blue,’ told The Shade Room,

“I met a lot of REAL n*ggas in the feds. A lot of good street n*ggas doing time in this f*cked up system just for hustling and getting money to support [their] families. I appreciate all the love and support [from] my family, friends, and fans! I’m ’bout to get back to the MONEY! LET’S GO!!!”

Currently, although he now has his freedom, court documents show that Blue still owes over $1 million in restitution fees.

Pretty Ricky member, #BabyBlue, was freed from prison after serving a year for a $24 million PPP loan fraud. #Spectacular and #PleasureP, the singer's groupmates, documented the occasion on Instagram live. *Where's the first place you'd go after being released from the slammer?* pic.twitter.com/03ZEZ5vO2i

— theJasmineBRAND (@thejasminebrand) February 7, 2023

Welcome home, Mr. Bigg Money! Drop some kind words for him in the comments below!