R&B musician Lyfe Jennings says he was robbed in Oakland before show
Written by admin on February 11, 2023
R&B artist Lyfe Jennings got philosophical in an Instagram video Sunday sharing that his car was broken into in Oakland on Feb. 5 before a sold-out performance at Yoshi’s.
Jennings said thieves “busted the windows” in his car and “snatched” his book bag containing his computer, ID, passport, credit cards and $120,000 worth of jewelry during a stop in Oakland before the show. While he’d like his computer back, Jennings said he “kind of got kind of happy” thinking about the excitement the alleged thieves likely felt when they opened up his “little jewelry case.”
“I know that’s weird, man, but I did,” he said about the way he felt.
Jennings, whom the New York Times described in 2008 as “an unusually plain-spoken songwriter,” said that he took the video 5 minutes after leaving the stage. He said he chose to talk about the experience publicly because he recognized the life lessons in it.
“I wasn’t even really going to speak on this because most cats in my position wouldn’t even speak on it — but I’m going to speak on it because I’m in the mind frame right now that a lot of things that happen in your life is meant to be spoke on so somebody else could get something from it,” he started off the video.
Jennings, who was in prison for an arson charge before releasing his first album nearly 20 years ago, goes on to further reflect on the experience, examining both sides of the situation.
“I just thought I’d share this because there’s somebody that’s straddling the fence right now, man,” he said. “You ain’t got to feel no kind of way about growth, man. I’m definitely just trying to grow, man. I’m in a great position in my life and you got to respect the position that you in, man, and you got to respect the position that other cats is in because in reality, a lot of those cats that want to be you could never even be you. They can’t fit your shoes, man. But yet you still trying wear their shoes and wear your shoes, too.”
Yoshi’s confirmed in an email Wednesday that Jennings had some of his personal belongings stolen from a vehicle. The Oakland Police Department also said that it received a call from the Yoshi’s manager that night, saying a car had been broken into and calling for officers to be in the area after the show ended. The department said it did not have details on the theft and could not confirm the value of the items stolen as an official police report was not filed.
Jennings didn’t let the theft stop him from taking to the stage that night.
“We are very sorry that an artist had this experience in our beautiful city,” Marc Zuazua, Yoshi’s director of marketing, said via email. “We appreciate the performers’ dedication and steadfast spirit to his craft and his fans to be able to continue and excite during his four-show sold-out run.”
Jennings played two shows on Feb. 4 and two on Feb. 5 at Yoshi’s. His debut album, “Lyfe 268‒192,” was released in 2004, has sold more than a million copies since its release, and features the identification number assigned to him while he was incarcerated.
