NYC NOW - Evening Roundup: NYPD Blames Drill Rap for Series of Bronx Shootings, and NYC’s Talent is Timeless Showcase

Episode Date: October 7, 2025

Bronx prosecutors have indicted ten people in a series of retaliatory shootings over Labor Day weekend that left four people dead. The NYPD blames drill rap for the retaliatory shootings. Meanwhile, older New Yorkers take their skills to the stage for New York City’s third annual “Talent is Timeless” showcase.

The NYPD blames drill wrap for a spate of shootings in the Bronx, and older New Yorkers hit the stage for the talent-is-timeless showcase. From WNYC, this is NYC now. I'm Jene Pierre. Ten people are being charged in a series of shootings in the Bronx that left four people dead and seven wounded over the Labor Day weekend. The youngest suspects are just 16 years old. The NYPD says,

the violence stems from long-standing neighborhood rivalries. Here's NYPD chief of detectives, Joseph Kinney. They basically disrespect each other based on where they live, what development they live on, and what block they live on, or in this case, what park they hang out in. Among other things, Detective Kinney says drill rap is fueling the spate of violence. For more on this, I'm joined by WMYC's Charles Lane. For those who don't know, drill rap is a subgenre where artists make direct

and often confrontational accusations in their lyrics and music videos. So, Charles, which shooting during that Labor Day weekend can be tied to drill rap? So according to police, there were three shootings around Labor Day weekend. The first one was the weekend before on August 23rd, where allegedly three people opened fire at a basketball tournament in Haven Park in Baychester. A police said that a 32-year-old was killed at the scene, and a 17-year-old was shot in the head, and she later died. in the hospital. Investigators recovered 57 casings from 11 different guns at the scene. So it was a very

large shooting. And then on the Monday of Labor Day, five people allegedly drove down Allerton Avenue and open fire, killing a 24-year-old man who was the target, who had been president at the Haven Park shooting, and in the process, wounding for other people who were just standing on the street. They recovered a number of guns from this shooting. One of them, was a 45 caliber pistol modified with what the investigators call a Glock switch, which essentially made this pistol into a fully automatic weapon. And then a third shooting the next day killed a 21-year-old man who was shot and dumped on the street outside Barnabas Hospital. This is also tragic. I'm just wondering, though, Charles, if rap songs and music videos are playing a big part in this

violence, certainly social media is too, right? I mean, how is the difference? I mean, how is the department handling that. There was a really interesting moment in the news conference the other day where chief of detectives Kenny blamed the musicians themselves. But Bronx District Attorney Darcel Clark responded very quickly and said, no, it's not the music, it's social media. From the NYPD's perspective, they see drill rap as the problem and they have investigators listening to it and deciphering it and trying to predict any possible violence that comes from it. And this is something that Mayor Eric Adams also attacked several years ago, saying that Drill was leading to a culture of violence in the streets. But if you listen to what the rappers themselves have to say about their music,

it's more about the trials and pains of living in their neighborhood. And what they say is that they're talking about the violence that existed long before, you know, they started rapping about it. And that's the, that was the interesting moment. What D.A. Clark said was, no, it's not the music. It's people attacking one another through social media. And she called social media, addiction. You know, gang violence like this seems like something that happens far too often, but how are today's rivalries different from those of the past? According to Tgeny, they're less traditional. The gang alliances that we sort of know where you're with one gang and not another gang, that doesn't appear to exist anymore, according to what he said at the news conference.

It's more about geography and shifting loyalties where, you know, someone could be hanging out in one gang one day and then hanging out in another gang another day, which, to be honest, I have a little bit of a struggle trying to reconcile how much of a quote-unquote gang it actually is if you just jump from one to the other. But at the end of the day, you can't really argue with the impact. Four people died and seven people were injured because of this. Yeah. And since those shootings in early September, Mayor Eric Adams has deployed more cops to patrol the neighborhoods there. How helpful has that been? Well, I mean, police say that it has helped, but part of several other moving pieces, so it's unclear exactly what was working and what wasn't working.

Before the summer, police commissioner Jessica Tisch pulled 2,300 officers off of desk duty and put them on the street and in the subways in what she called summer violence zones. And these are very hyper-specific blocks where police commanders in the area are worried about potential violence, and so they put footposts there. According to police, and there's 72 of these designated summer violence zones around the city, shootings fell 47% in these areas compared to the same time period last year because of the extra 2,300 officers. Still, if you look at overall crime today compared to before the pandemic, it is higher, but at the same time shootings and murders are at historic lows. That's WMYC's Charles Lane. A citywide talent competition showcases the spirit, resilience, and limitless potential of older adults.

We'll have more on that after the break. Later this month, older New Yorkers will take their skills to the stage in a citywide talent competition. WMYC's Hannah Frischberg has more on New York City's third annual Talent is Timeless Showcase. Barbara Gray has been a songbird as long as she can remember. She's been in talent competitions before, but never as a senior, competing against her fellow seniors. Not professionally my whole life, but I've been singing my whole life. Barbara got the gold at the Bronx's Talented Timeless Regional Competition.

There's a contest in each of the five boroughs, and the winners compete with each other at the citywide finale next month. I won in Riverdale Y. I won in my senior center, and now I won here. So that's the next step. Barbara's competition at the Bronx Regional was fierce. Other talented 60-plusers sang, danced, and played piano. Mary Shea, from the Riverdale Older Adult Center, even did stand-up.

Everybody remembers their first kiss. I remember my first girl. Mary's performance was the only comedy set of the day, and a huge hit. My father was yelling, to hell with Ed Sullivan, to hell with Ed Sullivan. And my mother was saying, be quiet. The mouse is coming on. But there could only be four winners. The audiences vote and the judges' top three. Barbara's rendition of Patsy Klein's Crazy ended up stealing the show. When she heard the audience singing along, she had a good feeling she might take home a prize.

It's so nice when you feel the enthusiasm from the audience. could hear people yelling out. And I said, wow. And then I came back to sit down, and the woman next to me, who I didn't know from anyone, said that was perfect. You're getting number one with that. The three-year-old competition is intended to combat ageism. That's according to NYC Department of Aging Commissioner Lorraine Cortez Vasquez.

It is our way of saying ability is ageless. They can dance, they can sink, they can still work. They're still contributing. But above all else, the point is to have a good time. And they have more fun than anything. That's all that is. And have a good time they did. It's exciting. It's fun.

Barbara and the other qualifying Bronx winners will square off against the other borough finalists at the United Palace Theater in Washington Heights on October 16th. You can learn more about how to get tickets at our news site, gothamis.com. That's WNYC's Hannah Frischberg. Before we go, some good news for Long Island drivers. Smoother rides are ahead on the Long Island Expressway. Governor Kathy Hochel announced the completion of a nearly $18 million restoration project between exits 67 and 69 in Brookhaven.

Cruise replaced deteriorated concrete dating back more than 50 years with new high-strength pavement, improving safety, durability, and comfort for thousands of daily commuters. funded by state and federal infrastructure dollars, the project is part of New York's ongoing investment to strengthen roads, bridges, and communities across the state. Thanks for listening to NYC now from WMYC. I'm Junae Pierre. We'll be back tomorrow.