HARLEM — Trevell Coleman, known as rapper G. Dep, was released from a New York state prison in 2024 after serving 13 years and four months for a 1993 homicide. In 2010, he walked into a Harlem police precinct and confessed to shooting 32-year-old John Henkel during a robbery when he was a teenager, leading to his conviction for second-degree murder.
G. Dep’s release followed a parole board decision that cited his good behavior and personal growth during incarceration. While imprisoned, he worked in a foundry making manhole covers and held other well-paying prison jobs. In 2019, New York prisons installed kiosks that allowed incarcerated individuals to buy and download music onto tablets—a shift from the earlier reliance on mailed cassette tapes. G. Dep spent close to $7,000 on music purchases over the years while incarcerated.
While at Fishkill Correctional Facility, G. Dep connected with outside producer Keaton Silver and recorded songs that became his 2024 album 'Influential.' He paid the producer by the hour and used an earbud to hear beats while rapping over the phone. His wife initially found the producer, but his mother coordinated much of the album’s production, contacting beat makers, securing music rights, and helping him form an LLC to release the music.
The album includes tracks about attending a funeral, sobriety, and spirituality, including one titled 'Jesus Peace.' G. Dep said prison unburdened him by relieving his guilt, which made it easier to write lyrics and explore his craft. He added that in his earlier career, rappers focused on money, jewelry, and women, but in prison he felt freer to rap about other aspects of his life. “Who cares!” he said, describing how incarceration gave him the space to be more authentic in his music.
G. Dep also observed that hip-hop had become more melodic with artists like Easy Lantana and Drake singing more. Before his incarceration, he was a rising rapper on Sean Combs’ Bad Boy Entertainment label and helped popularize the Harlem Shake dance through his album 'Child of the Ghetto.'