View source for Freeway Ricky Ross

{{short description|American former drug trafficker}}
{{About|the American former drug trafficker|the book about him|Freeway Rick Ross (book)}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=October 2019}}

{{Infobox criminal
| name              = Freeway Ricky Ross
| image_name        = Freeway_Ricky_2025.jpg
| image_caption     = Ross in 2025
| birth_name        = Ricky Donnell Ross
| birth_date        = {{birth date and age|1960|1|26}}
| birth_place       = [[Terrell, Texas]], U.S.
| alias             = Freeway, Freeway Ricky Ross, Freeway Ricky
| conviction_penalty = [[Life imprisonment]]; lowered on appeal to 20 years
| conviction_status = Released
| occupation        = Author, former drug trafficker
| website           = http://www.freewayrickyross.com/
| spouse            =
| parents           = Annie Mae Ross, Sonny Ross
| conviction        = [[Controlled Substances Act|Conspiracy to possess 100 kilograms or more of cocaine with intent to distribute (21 U.S.C. §§ 841 and 846)]]
}}

'''Ricky Donnell''' "'''Freeway Ricky'''" '''Ross''' (born January 26, 1960)<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.biography.com/people/ricky-ross-481828 |title=Ricky Ross Biography |publisher=[[Biography.com]] |access-date=July 2, 2013 |pages={page} |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140505210538/http://www.biography.com/people/ricky-ross-481828 |archive-date=May 5, 2014 |url-status=dead }}</ref> is an American author and former [[drug lord]] best known for the drug empire he established in [[Los Angeles|Los Angeles, California]], in the early to mid 1980s.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.usdoj.gov/oig/special/9712/ch06p3.htm |title=Law Enforcement Investigations of Ross |website=United States Department of Justice Archive |access-date=July 2, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090531202918/http://www.usdoj.gov/oig/special/9712/ch06p3.htm |archive-date=May 31, 2009 |url-status=live}}</ref> He was sentenced to life in prison, though the sentence was shortened on appeal and Ross was released in 2009.<ref name="Rocha-2015"/>

== Biography ==

Ross attended school at [[Susan Miller Dorsey High School]] in [[Los Angeles]]. He played for the tennis team but was unable to get the [[college scholarship|college tennis scholarship]] he aspired to because he was illiterate.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www2.sjmercury.com/drugs/library.htm |title=Dark Alliance: Library |newspaper=[[San Jose Mercury News]] |access-date=December 14, 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/19970409180631/http://www2.sjmercury.com/drugs/library.htm |archive-date=April 9, 1997 |quote=A few years before, Ross became involved in cocaine sales, he was a player on his high school tennis team. A college scholarship was reneged once it was learned he couldn't read. The same day, he dropped out of high school his senior year weeks away from graduation.}}</ref>

Ross has said that when he first saw crack cocaine as a teenager in 1979, he did not immediately believe it was a drug because it looked different from other drugs he had seen.{{sfnp|Webb|1999|p=125}}

The nickname Freeway came from Ross owning properties along Los Angeles' Interstate 110, also known as the [[Harbor Freeway]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www2.sjmercury.com/drugs/day2main.htm |last=Webb |first=Gary |date=August 19, 1996 |title=Shadowy origins of 'crack' epidemic |work=[[San Jose Mercury News]] |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/19970409185002/http://www2.sjmercury.com/drugs/day2main.htm |archive-date=April 9, 1997}}</ref> According to an October 2013 ''[[Esquire (magazine)|Esquire]]'' magazine article, "Between 1982 and 1989, federal prosecutors estimated, Ross bought and resold several metric tons of cocaine," with Ross' gross revenue claimed to be more than $900 million (equivalent to $2.7 billion in {{Inflation-year|US}}) and profits of almost $300 million (${{Inflation|US|0.3|1980|r=3}}&nbsp;billion in {{Inflation-year|US}}).<ref name="SayHello">{{cite web |url=http://www.esquire.com/news-politics/a25818/rick-ross-drug-dealer-interview-1013/ |title=Say Hello to Rick Ross |first=Mike |last=Sager |date=September 25, 2013 |work=[[Esquire (magazine)|Esquire]] |access-date=November 11, 2018 |archive-date=March 10, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120310081041/http://www.bop.gov/iloc2/InmateFinderServlet?Transaction=NameSearch&needingMoreList=false&LastName=ross&Middle=&FirstName=ricky&Race=U&Sex=U&Age=&x=13& |url-status=live }}</ref> During the height of his drug dealing, Ross was said to have sold "$3 million in one day."<ref name="whiteout">{{cite book |title=Whiteout: The CIA, Drugs and the Press |last1=Cockburn |first1=Alexander |last2=St. Clair |first2=Jeffrey |date=1999 |publisher=Verso Publishing |isbn=978-1-85984-258-4 |pages=6–7}}</ref> According to the ''[[Oakland Tribune]]'', "In the course of his rise, prosecutors estimate that Ross exported several tons of cocaine to New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania and elsewhere, and made more than $500 million between 1983 and 1984."<ref name="eastbaytimes">{{cite news |first=Scott |last=Johnson |url=https://www.eastbaytimes.com/2011/01/16/the-return-of-freeway-ricky-ross-the-man-behind-a-crack-empire/ |title=The return of "Freeway" Ricky Ross, the man behind a crack empire |work=East Bay Times |date=January 16, 2011 |access-date=July 20, 2021 |archive-date=January 19, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110119043606/http://www.insidebayarea.com/ci_17113312 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

In 1996, Ross was sentenced to [[life imprisonment]] under the [[three-strikes law]] after being convicted for purchasing more than 100&nbsp;[[kilogram]]s of cocaine from a federal agent in a sting operation. Later that year, a series of articles by journalist [[Gary Webb]] in the ''[[San Jose Mercury News]]'' revealed a connection between one of Ross's cocaine sources, [[Danilo Blandón]], and the [[Central Intelligence Agency|CIA]] as part of the [[Iran–Contra affair]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.esquire.com/blogs/politics/gary-webb-cia-drug-running-story-061813 |title=Gary Webb And The Limits Of Vindication |first=Charles P. |last=Pierce |date=June 18, 2013 |work=Esquire |access-date=November 11, 2018 |archive-date=December 23, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141223023349/http://www.esquire.com/blogs/politics/gary-webb-cia-drug-running-story-061813 |url-status=live }}</ref> Having learned to read at the age of 28, during his first stint in prison, Ross spent much of his time behind bars studying the law. He eventually discovered a legal loophole that would lead to his release.<ref name="SayHello"/> Ross's case was brought to a [[federal government of the United States|federal]] [[court of appeals]] which found that the three-strikes law had been erroneously applied and ordered that he be resentenced.<ref>{{cite news |last=Tobar |first=Hector |date=1998-09-11 |title=Drug Lord’s Life Sentence Overturned |url= https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1998-sep-11-me-21557-story.html  |work=[[Los Angeles Times]] |access-date=2024-06-12}}</ref> His sentence was reduced to 20 years; he was released from [[Federal Correctional Institution, Texarkana]] on September 29, 2009.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.bop.gov/iloc2/InmateFinderServlet?Transaction=NameSearch&needingMoreList=false&LastName=ross&Middle=&FirstName=ricky&Race=U&Sex=U&Age=&x=13& |title=Inmate Locator |website=Federal Bureau of Prisons |access-date=July 2, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120310081041/http://www.bop.gov/iloc2/InmateFinderServlet?Transaction=NameSearch&needingMoreList=false&LastName=ross&Middle=&FirstName=ricky&Race=U&Sex=U&Age=&x=13& |archive-date=March 10, 2012 |url-status=live}}</ref>

Ross was arrested in October 2015 on suspicion of possessing cash related to the sales of illegal drugs when police discovered $100,000 in his possession during a traffic stop.<ref name="Rocha-2015">{{cite news |url=http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-freeway-ricky-ross-arrested-20151023-story.html |title=Former L.A. cocaine kingpin 'Freeway' Ricky Ross arrested in Sonoma County |last1=Rocha |first1=Veronica |last2=Mozino |first2=Joe |date=October 23, 2015 |newspaper=Los Angeles Times |access-date=January 31, 2017 |archive-date=January 26, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170126010101/http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-freeway-ricky-ross-arrested-20151023-story.html |url-status=live }}</ref> Ross later alleged that he had been [[racial profiling|racially profiled]] and stated that he was carrying a large amount of cash for the purchase of a home.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Williams |first=Kale |date=2015-10-27 |title='Freeway' Rick Ross blasts Highway 101 arrest as racial profiling |url=https://www.sfgate.com/crime/article/Freeway-Rick-Ross-blasts-Highway-101-arrest-6591341.php |access-date=2022-11-02 |website=SFGATE |language=en-US}}</ref> Charges were ultimately dropped, and Ross explained he had earned the cash from book sales and speaking fees.<ref>Jack Morse (2015). [http://sfist.com/2015/10/26/charges_dropped_against_freeway_ric.php Charges Dropped Against Former Crack Kingpin Pulled Over With $100K In Cash] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171105231751/http://sfist.com/2015/10/26/charges_dropped_against_freeway_ric.php |date=November 5, 2017}}, SFist.com, October 26, 2015.</ref>

== Cocaine business ==

=== Cocaine introduction ===

Ross began his cocaine empire after his illiteracy prevented him from earning a tennis scholarship for college. He began spending time with an upholstery teacher at a Los Angeles community college who revealed he dealt cocaine and offered Ross a small amount to sell.{{sfnp|Webb|1999|p=129}} Ross used his profit to purchase more cocaine to sell, expanding his small operation.{{sfnp|Webb|1999|p=130}} Ross eventually began to ask for quantities to sell that exceeded what the teacher was willing to procure, so he turned to find a  dealer.{{sfnp|Webb|1999|p=133}}

The teacher referred Ross to his supplier, Ivan Arguellas, who offered to keep Ross supplied. Arguellas was able to provide larger quantities at a better price, and Ross quickly went from dealing in grams of cocaine to dealing in ounces.{{sfnp|Webb|1999|p=134}} About eight months after becoming Ross's supplier, Arguellas was shot in the spine, resulting in months of hospitalization that forced him out of the cocaine business. His brother-in-law Henry Corrales took over the business, but was not enthusiastic about the trade and had failed to make any connections of his own to suppliers.{{sfnp|Webb|1999|pp=137-138}}

A [[Nicaragua]]n exile and cocaine distributor named [[Oscar Danilo Blandón|Danilo Blandón]] was acquainted with Arguellas and Corrales, and although he did not know him personally, was impressed with the amount of cocaine that Ross was moving. Blandón offered to supply cocaine to Corrales to sell to Ross, for a fifty-fifty split of the profit.{{sfnp|Webb|1999|p=138}} Eventually, Corrales lost his appetite for the cocaine business and retired, at which point Ross became a direct customer of Blandón.{{sfnp|Webb|1999|pp=146-147}}

Through his connection to Blandón, and Blandón's supplier Norwin Meneses Cantarero, Ross was able to purchase Nicaraguan cocaine at significantly reduced rates.{{sfnp|Webb|1999|p=147}} Ross began selling cocaine at $10,000 per kilo, a price well below average, while also distributing it to the [[Bloods]] and [[Crips]] street gangs. By 1982, Ross had received his moniker of "Freeway Ricky" and claimed to have sold up to US$3 million worth of cocaine per day, purchasing 1,000 pounds (454 kilos) of cocaine a week.<ref name="whiteout"/>

Ross initially invested most of his profits in houses and businesses, because he feared his mother would catch on to what he was doing if he started spending lavishly on himself. In a jailhouse interview with reporter Gary Webb, Ross said, "We were hiding our money from our mothers."{{sfnp|Webb|1999|p=137}} He invested a portion of the proceeds from his drug dealing activities in [[Anita Baker]]'s first album.

=== Drug empire ===

With thousands of employees, Ross has said he operated drug sales not only in Los Angeles but in places across the country including [[St. Louis, Missouri|St. Louis]], [[New Orleans, Louisiana|New Orleans]], [[Texas]], [[Kansas City, Missouri|Kansas City]], [[Oklahoma]], [[Indiana]], [[Cincinnati, Ohio|Cincinnati]], [[North Carolina]], [[South Carolina]], [[Baltimore, Maryland|Baltimore]], [[Cleveland, Ohio|Cleveland]], and [[Seattle, Washington|Seattle]]. He has said that his most lucrative sales came from the [[Ohio]] area. He made similar claims in a 1996 PBS interview.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/race_relations/july-dec96/cia_11-18.html |title=Covert Connections? |date=November 18, 1996 |website=[[PBS NewsHour]] |access-date=August 29, 2008 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140103035622/http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/race_relations/july-dec96/cia_11-18.html |archive-date=January 3, 2014}}</ref>

Federal prosecutors estimated that between 1982 and 1989 Ross bought and resold several metric tons of cocaine. In 1980 dollars, his gross earnings were said to be in excess of $900 million – with a profit of nearly $300 million. As his distribution empire grew to include forty-two cities, the price he paid per kilo of powder cocaine dropped from as much as $60,000 to as low as $10,000."<ref name="SayHello"/>

Much of Ross's success at evading law enforcement was due to his ring's possession of police scanners and voice scramblers. Furthermore, journalist Gary Webb alleged that the CIA was sponsoring the operation as part of its effort to finance [[Contras]], giving Ross another level of protection, although this claim has since been disputed.<ref>{{cite news |last=Leen |first=Jeff |date=17 October 2014 |title=Gary Webb was no journalism hero, despite what ‘Kill the Messenger’ says |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/gary-webb-was-no-journalism-hero-despite-what-kill-the-messenger-says/2014/10/17/026b7560-53c9-11e4-809b-8cc0a295c773_story.html |work=The Washington Post |access-date=19 March 2024}}</ref> Following one drug bust, a Los Angeles County sheriff remarked that Ross's men had "better equipment than we have."{{sfnp|Webb|1999|p=193}}

== Lawsuit against rapper Rick Ross ==

On June 18, 2010, Ross sued rapper [[Rick Ross]] (real name William Leonard Roberts II) for using his name,<ref name="Freeway Rick Ross sues Rick Ross">{{cite web |url=http://www.hiphopdx.com/index/news/id.11543/title.freeway-ricky-ross-files-lawsuit-against-rapper-rick-ross |title=Freeway Rick Ross files lawsuit |last=Harling |first=Danielle |access-date=June 25, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140103035148/http://www.hiphopdx.com/index/news/id.11543/title.freeway-ricky-ross-files-lawsuit-against-rapper-rick-ross |archive-date=January 3, 2014 |url-status=dead}}</ref> filing a [[copyright infringement]] lawsuit against Ross in [[Los Angeles County Superior Court]].<ref name="Freeway Rick Ross sues Rick Ross" /><ref>{{cite magazine | title = Judge Drops Rick Ross Name Lawsuit | magazine = Rolling Stone | url = https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/judge-drops-rick-ross-name-lawsuit-68967/ | date = 30 March 2012 | access-date = February 6, 2021 | archive-date = March 8, 2021 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20210308192251/https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/judge-drops-rick-ross-name-lawsuit-68967/ | url-status = live }}</ref> [[Jay-Z]] had been called to testify in the lawsuit, as he was President of [[Def Jam]] when Ross was signed to the label.<ref name="Freeway Rick Ross sues Rick Ross" /> Ross sought $10 million in compensation in the lawsuit.<ref name="Freeway Rick Ross sues Rick Ross" />

After the lawsuit was dismissed on July 3, 2010,<ref>{{cite magazine |url=http://nymag.com/daily/entertainment/2010/11/the_drug_dealer_rick_ross_has.html |magazine=[[New York (magazine)|New York]] |title=The Drug Dealer Rick Ross Has Lost His Lawsuit Against the Rapper Rick Ross |first=Amos |last=Barshad |date=November 5, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111229053922/http://nymag.com/daily/entertainment/2010/11/the_drug_dealer_rick_ross_has.html |archive-date=December 29, 2011 |url-status=live}}</ref> the album ''[[Teflon Don (album)|Teflon Don]]'' was released as scheduled on July 20, 2010. A federal judge dismissed his case, ruling that it should be refiled in California state court because it fell under [[California state law]].<ref name="Freeway Ricky Ross' Lawsuit Against Rick Ross Thrown Out">{{cite web |url=http://theurbandaily.com/gossip-news/billjohnson/freeway-ricky-ross-lawsuit-against-rick-ross-thrown-out/ |title=Freeway Ricky Ross' Lawsuit Against Rick Ross Thrown Out |last=Johnson |first=Bill |date=July 6, 2010 |website=The Urban Daily |access-date=September 12, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120312171244/http://theurbandaily.com/gossip-news/billjohnson/freeway-ricky-ross-lawsuit-against-rick-ross-thrown-out/ |archive-date=March 12, 2012 |url-status=live}}</ref> Ross refiled the case with the State of California, while appealing his federal case. A federal appeals upheld the dismissal in 2012.<ref>{{cite court |litigants=Ross v. Roberts II |vol= |reporter= |opinion=No. 10-56874 |court= [[United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit|9th Cir.]] |date=2012-06-26 |url=https://law.justia.com/cases/federal/appellate-courts/ca9/10-56874/10-56874-2012-07-11.html}}</ref>

The state case was filed in 2011 in California.

Ross refiled in Los Angeles Superior Court with publicity rights claims. Trial was set for early May 2012. The case was dismissed by a judge in the Los Angeles Superior Court.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://rapfix.mtv.com/2012/02/29/freeway-rick-ross-court-date-with-rick-ross/ |title='Freeway' Rick Ross Will Take On Rick Ross In Court Early May |date=February 29, 2012 |work=MTV Rapfix |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140103030721/http://rapfix.mtv.com/2012/02/29/freeway-rick-ross-court-date-with-rick-ross/ |archive-date=January 3, 2014 |url-status=dead}}</ref>

The California State case was updated with a motion in Freeway Rick Ross's favor as to [[Warner Bros. Records]] and their use of the name and image Rick Ross in July 2012.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/thr-esq/rick-ross-freeway-ricky-warner-bros-sue-maybach-music-351204 |title=Rick Ross Vs. Ricky "Freeway" Ross: Judge Rejects Warner Bros. Records' Motion to Dismiss |work=The Hollywood Reporter |first=Eriq |last=Gardner |date=July 18, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130127180836/http://www.billboard.biz/bbbiz/industry/legal-and-management/rick-ross-vs-ricky-freeway-ross-judge-rejects-1007617352.story |archive-date=January 27, 2013 |url-status=live}}</ref>

A trial was set for August 27, 2013 in Freeway Rick Ross versus Rick Ross and [[Warner Music Group]]. The California trial court ruled in favor of the rapper Rick Ross, allowing him to keep the name. In December 2013, a state appeals court upheld the ruling on [[First Amendment to the United States Constitution|First Amendment]] grounds.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/thr-esq/freeway-ricky-ross-rick-ross-667879 |work=The Hollywood Reporter |first=Eriq |last=Gardner |title='Freeway' Ricky Ross vs. Rick Ross: First Amendment Protects Hip-Hop Persona |date=December 30, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140309134858/http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/thr-esq/freeway-ricky-ross-rick-ross-667879 |archive-date=March 9, 2014 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite court |litigants=Ross v. Roberts II|vol=222 |reporter= Cal.App.4th  |opinion=677 |court=[[California Courts of Appeal|Cal. Ct. App.]]  |date=2013-12-23 |url=https://scholar.google.com/scholar_case?case=16334310428679522269}}</ref>

== Other ventures ==

In January 2022, it was reported that Ross had established a boxing management company, ''Team Freeway Boxing'', with four [[professional boxer]]s under contract. Ross will also be acting in an advisory role for [[light welterweight]] contender [[Anthony Peterson]].<ref>{{Cite web|last=|date=January 6, 2022|title=Freeway Rick Ross Becomes Boxing Advisor, Signs Five Fighters|url=https://www.boxingscene.com/freeway-rick-ross-becomes-boxing-advisor-signs-five-fighters--163276 |url-status=live |access-date=January 6, 2022 |website=Boxing Scene |archive-url=https://archive.today/S7u1W?https://www.boxingscene.com/freeway-rick-ross-becomes-boxing-advisor-signs-five-fighters--163276  |archive-date=9 September 2022 }}</ref>

In a June 2024, interview on ''[[The Joe Rogan Experience]]'' Ross stated he owns a marijuana dispensary.

== Book ==

Journalist and author [[Cathy Scott]] co-wrote Ross's autobiography with him. The memoir, ''[[Freeway Rick Ross (book)|Freeway Rick Ross: The Untold Autobiography]]'', was released at a book launch with author Scott at the [[Eso Won Books]]tore in Los Angeles on June 17, 2014 to a standing-room only crowd.<ref name="LA Sentinel">{{cite news |url=http://www.lasentinel.net/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=13160:rick-ross-book-signing-event-recap&catid=77:exclusive&Itemid=167 |title=Rick Ross Book signing Event Recap |first=Zon |last=D'Amour |date=June 27, 2014 |newspaper=[[Los Angeles Sentinel]] |access-date=November 11, 2018 |archive-date=October 24, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141024011734/http://www.lasentinel.net/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=13160:rick-ross-book-signing-event-recap&catid=77:exclusive&Itemid=167 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite book |first1=Rick |last1=Ross |first2=Cathy |last2=Scott |author-link2=Cathy Scott |year=2014 |title=Freeway Rick Ross: The Untold Autobiography |title-link=Freeway Rick Ross (book) |publisher=Freeway Studios |isbn=978-1-49965-153-9 }}</ref>

[[KCET]] TV in its review wrote, "(The book) is fascinating for its unsentimental, inside look at his career on the streets of South Central, which started for Ross with car theft and quickly shifted to drugs and the big time."<ref name="Moving on">{{cite web |url=http://www.kcet.org/updaily/socal_focus/commentary/cakewalk/freeway-rick-ross-moves-on.html |title=L.A.'s Notorious Drug Dealer, 'Freeway' Rick Ross, is Moving On |first=Erin Aubry |last=Kaplan |date=June 6, 2014 |work=[[KCET]] |access-date=November 11, 2018 |archive-date=May 29, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130529010350/http://www.billboard.com/articles/columns/the-juice/467768/first-look-at-vh1s-rock-docs-planet-rock-the-story-of-hip-hop-and |url-status=live }}</ref>

The memoir was nominated for ''ForeWord Review''{{'}}s IndiFab Best Book of the Year Award 2014 in the [[true crime]] category.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://indiefab.forewordreviews.com/books/freeway-rick-ross/ |title=Indie Fab Book of Year Freeway Rick Ross Nomination |work=IndieFab |date=April 14, 2014 |access-date=April 4, 2015 |archive-date=April 4, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150404150151/https://indiefab.forewordreviews.com/books/freeway-rick-ross/ |url-status=live }}</ref> In June 2015, winners were announced, with the book named as a Foreword Reviews' 2014 INDIEFAB Book of the Year Award Finalist, True Crime.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://indiefab.forewordreviews.com/books/freeway-rick-ross/ |title=Freeway Rick Ross is a 2014 Foreword INDIES Book of the Year Award finalist |work=IndieFab |access-date=April 4, 2015 |archive-date=April 4, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150404150151/https://indiefab.forewordreviews.com/books/freeway-rick-ross/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

== In popular culture ==

Ross was a key figure in filmmaker [[Kevin Booth]]'s documentary ''[[American Drug War: The Last White Hope]]''. The second episode of the first season of [[Black Entertainment Television|BET]]'s ''[[American Gangster (TV series)|American Gangster]]'' documentary series was focused on the story of Ricky Ross and his connection to the [[Iran–Contra affair|Iran–Contra]] scandal.<ref name="BET">{{cite web |url=http://www.bet.com/BETShows/americangangster_rickyross.htm |title=American Gangster: 'Freeway' Ricky Ross |work=BET |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070709153746/http://www.bet.com/BETShows/americangangster_rickyross.htm |archive-date=July 9, 2007 |url-status=dead |df=mdy-all |access-date=June 12, 2007}}</ref>

Ross was a guest interview on [[VH1]]'s Planet Rock History of Crack and Hip Hop Documentary.<ref>{{cite magazine |url=http://www.billboard.com/articles/columns/the-juice/467768/first-look-at-vh1s-rock-docs-planet-rock-the-story-of-hip-hop-and |title=VH1 Planet Rock History of Crack and Hip Hop |first=Erika |last=Ramirez |date=August 24, 2011 |magazine=Billboard |access-date=July 2, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130529010350/http://www.billboard.com/articles/columns/the-juice/467768/first-look-at-vh1s-rock-docs-planet-rock-the-story-of-hip-hop-and |archive-date=May 29, 2013 |url-status=live}}</ref>

Ross is featured in the 2015 two-part documentary ''Freeway: Crack in the System'', which details various levels of the drug trade, the Iran–Contra affair, and mass incarceration.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2015/03/01/a-drug-kingpin-the-cia-and-prisoners-freeway-rick-ross-and-america-s-mass-incarceration-problem.html |title=A Drug Kingpin, the CIA, and Prisoners |first=Marc |last=Levin |date=March 1, 2015 |website=The Daily Beast |access-date=April 4, 2015 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150302010835/http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2015/03/01/a-drug-kingpin-the-cia-and-prisoners-freeway-rick-ross-and-america-s-mass-incarceration-problem.html |archive-date=March 2, 2015}}</ref> In 2016, the documentary was nominated for an [[Emmy]] for Outstanding Investigative Journalism: Long Form.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://lasentinel.net/film-documenting-l-a-s-drug-era-nominated-for-emmy.html |title=Film Documenting L.A.'s Drug Era Nominated for Emmy |first=Jennifer |last=Bihm |date=August 8, 2016 |newspaper=Los Angeles Sentinel |access-date=November 11, 2018 |archive-date=October 15, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181015231623/https://lasentinel.net/film-documenting-l-a-s-drug-era-nominated-for-emmy.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

In the 2014 film ''[[Kill the Messenger (2014 film)|Kill the Messenger]]'', Ross is portrayed by [[Michael K. Williams]].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.bet.com/article/56d7cw/exclusive-look-at-michael-k-williams-as-rick-freeway-ross |title=Exclusive Look at Michael K. Williams as Rick 'Freeway' Ross |last=Diaz |first=Evelyn |date=October 9, 2014 |website=[[BET]] |publisher=Black Entertainment Television |access-date=March 16, 2023}}</ref>

Ross claims his lifestyle and cocaine business, as well as his suspected involvement in the [[Iran–Contra affair|Iran-Contra Affair]], heavily influenced the fictional character Franklin Saint, the protagonist of the [[FX Networks|FX]] crime drama television series ''[[Snowfall (TV series)|Snowfall]].'' Ross says he and the show's creator, [[John Singleton]], "partnered up to make a movie", but that Singleton "disappeared" before going on to make ''Snowfall''. Singleton died in 2019 and never confirmed Ross' claims.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Jackson |first=Kourtnee |date=2021-03-15 |title='Snowfall': The Real-Life Inspiration Behind Franklin's Character |url=https://www.cheatsheet.com/entertainment/snowfall-real-life-inspiration-behind-franklin-character.html/ |access-date=2022-09-15 |website=Showbiz Cheat Sheet |language=en-US}}</ref>

[[The Coup]], in their single ''My Favorite Mutiny'' talk about [[CIA]] involvement in the rise of Ricky Ross.<ref>[https://genius.com/The-coup-my-favorite-mutiny-lyrics Lyrics of the song] {{En}}, accessed on 1 July 2025</ref>

== References ==
{{reflist}}

=== Bibliography ===

* {{cite book |last=Webb |first=Gary |year=1999 |title=[[Dark Alliance (book)|Dark Alliance]] |publisher=[[Seven Stories Press]]|isbn=978-1-888363-93-7 }}

== External links ==
{{Portal|Greater Los Angeles|Biography}}

* [http://www.FreewayRickyross.com Rick Ross's website]
* {{IMDb name|5446735}}
* [https://www.republik.ch/2018/10/08/wir-haben-jede-nacht-zweihundert-kilo-crack-gekocht Interview 2018] (German)

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ross, Freeway Ricky}}

[[Category:1960 births]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:20th-century American criminals]]
[[Category:21st-century African-American people]]
[[Category:American drug traffickers]]
[[Category:American crime bosses]]
[[Category:20th-century American businesspeople]]
[[Category:African-American gangsters]]
[[Category:Gangsters from Los Angeles]]
[[Category:People from Compton, California]]
[[Category:People from Troup, Texas]]
[[Category:Prisoners sentenced to life imprisonment by the United States federal government]]
[[Category:Susan Miller Dorsey High School alumni]]
[[Category:20th-century African-American businesspeople]]