A$AP Rocky hints at shooting trial on new song with Doja Cat - after rapper SKIPPED latest hearing: 'Tell the judge I'm innocent'

A$AP Rocky has hinted at the impending trial over the November 2021 shooting of his former friend Terell Ephron (formally known as A$AP Relli) — after failing to show up to a pre-trial hearing last month.

The rapper, 35, is featured on Doja Cat's song 'URRRGE!!!!!!!!!!' from her new LP Scarlet 2: Claude, which was released last Friday.

During his verse, A$AP Rocky — who has pled not guilty to all charges — declares his innocence after comparing himself to Thugnificent, a character from the animated show The Boondocks.

The New York native raps: 'Yeah, I look like Thugnificent / Will someone tell the judge I'm innocent?' 

If convicted of two felony counts of assault with a semi-automatic firearm, A$AP Rocky could faced up to eight years in jail.

A$AP Rocky has hinted at the impending trial over the November 2021 shooting of his former friend Terell Ephron (formally known as A$AP Relli) — after failing to show up to a pre-trial hearing last month; A$AP Rocky seen in November 2023

He had a pre-trial hearing scheduled for March 8, which he skipped. No trial date was set but a hearing has been scheduled by the court for May 26.

In January, A$AP Rocky (born Rakim Athelaston Mayers) pled not guilty to felony gun charges that he shot Ephron Hollywood back in November 2021.

In November, Superior Court Judge M.L. Villar ruled that there was enough evidence for a trial at a preliminary hearing, after hearing roughly a day and a half of testimony.

Rocky has previously pled not guilty to two felony counts of assault with a semiautomatic firearm. His attorney attempted to cast doubt on the case while questioning a police detective.

Villar said 'the totality of the video and testimony' shows there is sufficient evidence for the defendant to go to trial. She emphasized that preliminary hearings have a much lower evidence standard than a trial, and she was only finding probable cause.

Rocky, sitting in the courtroom, showed no visible reaction.

Prosecutors allege that on November 6, 2021, Mayers pointed a gun at Terell Ephron, once known as A$AP Relli, then, during a confrontation, shot at and left Ephron with minor injuries.

The rapper, 35, is featured on Doja Cat 's new song 'URRRGE!!!!!!!!!!'

The song is included on Doja's new LP Scarlet 2: Claude, which came out last Friday; Doja seen in February

Los Angeles Police Department Detective Frank Flores took the witness stand on Monday and verified videos of the attack presented by the prosecution, reported Rolling Stone.

Flores testified that surveillance footage showed a gun in the rappers hand, but when pressed by the defense he conceded a weapon was never recovered.

At an earlier hearing, Ephron testified Mayers held the gun to his stomach and said 'I'll kill you right now,' before firing off rounds and leaving the room.

Ephron said he and the 'F*****g Problems' rapper were teenage friends and members of the A$AP collective, a group of New York high school students who sought to make music and pursue other art forms.

He said their friendship continued as Mayers fame grew but began to falter when he started backing out of business ventures.

Prosecutors played surveillance video that appears to show Mayers brandishing a gun and possibly firing it, which his lawyers denied that he did.

The father of Rihanna's two children was first detained in April last year as he returned to Los Angeles airport from Barbados where he had been on vacation with his then-pregnant girlfriend.

In his verse, the New York native raps: 'Yeah, I look like Thugnificent / Will someone tell the judge I'm innocent?'; A$AP Rocky seen in February 2024

He had a pre-trial hearing scheduled for March 8, which he skipped. No trial date was set but a hearing has been scheduled by the court for May 26

He was later released on $550,000 bail. Officers were seen outside of his LA home, smashing into the gate with a battering ram, before apparently raiding the property. Detectives seized multiple boxes of evidence from the house.

Four months after his arrest, the charges were brought up to felony status, rather than misdemeanor that would have meant only one year of jail time for each count.

In this preliminary hearing, a judge will determine if there is enough evidence to move forward with a trial.

The rapper is being represented by the same lawyer who is representing former president Donald Trump in his New York criminal case, Joe Tacopina.