Introduce yourself player.
YO SETH WHATS UP MY GUY YOU KNOW WHO I AM BUT FOR THOSE OF YOU WHO DONT KNOW ALLOW ME TO INTRODUCE MYSELF. I’M TERRELL “WALLSTREET” WILKINS A WEST SIDE DETROIT BORN AND RAISED AND THE CEO AND FOUNDER OF GREAT LAKES STATE PUBLISHING AND THE AUTHOR OF THE DIRTY GLOVE DIARIES AND MY FED VACATION. I’M CUREENTLY IN THE FED SERVING A 216 MONTH SENTENCE FOR DRUG CONSPIRACY CHARGES.
I met Terrell Wilkins at FCC Forrest City in Arkansas the last couple of years of my bid. He was a very intelligent, considerate, and talented brother who still had a lot of time to do. He was into hip-hop, the entertainment scene, and the streets. The Detroit, Michigan native had a lot to say and we shared a bunch of conversations and even though he had almost decades to serve he had a super positive and uplifting attitude and for real I appreciated that and I appreciated Rell, as he was known on the compound. Its been almost seven years out for me but Rell is still in doing his time and despite the ups and downs, trips to the hole, and transfers, he is still a very gregarious and happy go lucky guy. He reached out to me to tell me about his new book. If you want to know about prison life then definitely check this out. Here is the official Gorilla Convict interview to promote his book. Straight from the penitentiary to the street. Keep striving for more comrade, despite your circumstances, and show everybody how the real ones do it.
TELL US A LITTLE BIT ABOUT YOUR NEW BOOK MY FED VACATION?
MY FED VACATION IS ACTUALLY THE TRUE STORY ABOUT HOW I ENDED UP GETTING INDICTED AND WHAT IVE BEEN THROUGH SINCE BEING IN THE FEDERAL BUREAU OF PRISONS.
HOW LONG HAVE YOU BEEN IN THE BOP?I’VE BEEN IN THE BOP?
SINCE 2008. 13 LONG YEARS.
HOW MANY DIFFERENT PRISONS HAVE YOU BEEN AT IN YOUR 13 YRS?
IVE BEEN TO 6 DIFFERENT PRISONS AND EVEN BEEN AT THE SAME PRISON TWICE
SO TELL US WALLSTREET WHEN DID YOU FIRST REALIZE THAT YOU WANTED TO BE A WRITER?
IVE ALWAYS SOMEWHAT BEEN A WRITER BECAUSE BEFORE I CAME TO PRISON I RAPPED AND WRITING BOOKS ISNT TOO MUCH DIFFERENT FROM WRITING MUSIC. BUT I PROBABLY REALLY GOT SERIOUS ABOUT WANTING TO WRITE BOOKS AFTER READING YOUR BOOK “STREET LEGENDS VOLUME 1”
WHAT WAS IT ABOUT “STREET LEGENDS” THAT MADE YOU WANT TO BECOME A WRITER?
BASICALLY THE STORIES THAT YOU WERE TELLING WAS RELATABLE. THEY WE LIKE READING ABOUT MYSELF. IVE ALWAYS LIKED READING TRUE CRIME NOVELS BUT TO ME YOU OPENED UP A GENRE OF URBAN TRUE CRIME SO THAT SPARKED A FLAME IN ME TO FOLLOW ON YOUR PATH
HOW LONG DOES IT TAKE YOU TO WRITE A BOOK?
THE FIRST BOOK I WROTE WAS THE YET TO BE RELEASED “THE WALLSTREET STORY” WHICH WAS MY LIFE SO IT DIDNT TAKE ME LONG AT ALL MAYBE 40 DAYS OF JUST BUCKLING DOWN AND GETTING TO IT. “THE DIRTY GLOVE DIARIES” TOOK A LITTLE BIT LONGER BECAUSE I HAD TO ACTUALLY RESEARCH SOME OF THE STORIES TO MAKE SURE IT WAS AS AUTHENTIC AS POSSIBLE SO THAT TOOK A LITTLE WHILE LONGER. AND IT TOOK ME ABOUT 6 MONTHS TO ACTUALLY SIT DOWN AND FOCUS AND WRITE “MY FED VACATION” BECAUSE I ACTUALLY STARTED WRITING IT IN THE SHU AND WHEN I GOT OUT I LET WHAT I HAD SIT FOR ABOUT 3 MONTHS BEFORE I GOT BACK INTO IT AND FINALLY FINISHED IT.
SO ALL OF YOUR BOOKS ARE RELEASED THROUGH YOUR OWN COMPANY GREAT LAKES STATE PUBLISHING CORRECT?
YEAH ALL MY BOOKS ARE THROUGH MY OWN COMPANY GLSP. YOU REMEMBERS YEARS AGO YOU GAVE ME SOME GAME ON THE SELF PUBLISHING TIP IN ONE OF OUR FIRST CONVERSATIONS AND I TOOK THAT TO HEART AND MADE IT HAPPEN. BUT I HAVE TO SHOUT OUT CRYSTELL PUBLICATION BECAUSE SHE HELPED FACILITATE ALL OF MY PROJECTS.
HOW MANY BOOKS HAVE YOU WRITTEN SO FAR?
SO FAR IVE WRITTEN 4 TWO OF WHICH IVE PUBLISHED AND 2 I GOT IN THE CUT WAITING TO PUT OUT.
WHAT ELSE ARE YOU INTO ASIDE FROM WRITING?
WELL I GOT A CLOTHING LINE PAPER CHASERS CARTEL THATS DROPPING IN A FEW WEEKS. AND I PLAN ON GETTING BACK INTO MUSIC IN SOME CAPACITY ONCE IM HOME JUST NOT AS A RAPPER. AND I GOT A PODCAST IM DOING TO.
HOW DOES YOUR FAMILY FEEL ABOUT YOUR BOOK?
MY FAMILY IS ACTUALLY VERY PROUD OF ME BECAUSE THEY SEEN ME MAKE ALL OF THIS HAPPEN FROM BEHIND THESE WALLS AND FENCES AND THATS AN ACCOMPLISHMENT IN ITSELF.
DO YOU HEAR FROM YOUR READERS MUCH AND WHAT KINDS OF THINGS DO THEY SAY?
I GET A LOT OF LOVE FROM MY READERS ON MY SOCIAL MEDIA PLATFORMS. I HAVE A LOT OF PEOPLE ROUTING FOR ME TO WIN AND THAT FEELS GOOD TO HAVE THAT LOVE AND SUPPORT FROM MY READERS.
DO YOU HAVE ANY SUGGESTIONS TO HELP UP AND COMING WRITERS?
I WOULD JUST SAY BE TRUE TO YOUR CRAFT AND DO YOU. A FEW PUBLISHING HOUSES TURNED ME DOWN WHEN I FIRST STARTED WRITING AND TRYING TO FIND MY WAY BUT I DIDNT LET THAT STOP ME I JUST BUILT MY OWN COMPANY AND GRINDED IT OUT SO JUST STAY TRUE TO YOUR ART AND EVENTUALLY YOU’LL FIND YOUR WAY. AND ALSO WHEN I STARTED GLSP I WANTED TO HELP INCARCERATED AUTHORS GET THEIR BOOKS PUBLISHED SO ANY INCARCERATED AUTHORS OUT THERE IN NEED OF SOME HELP TRYING TO GET THEIR BOOK OUT THERE HOLLA AT ME
WHAT DO YOU THINK MAKES “MY FED VACATION” A GOOD STORY?
I THINK WHAT MAKES MY FED VACATION A GOOD STORY IS BECAUSE ITS REAL. I’LL ALWAYS PREFER TO READ SOMEONES REAL STORY AS OPPOSE TO THE FAKE SOMETIMES FAR-FETCHED HOOD NOVELS. AND BECAUSE ITS AN ENTERTAINING STORY. ITS GIVES YOU AN UP CLOSE AND PERSONAL RIDE OF MY JOURNEY THROUGHOUT THE FEDERAL BUREAU OF PRISONS. ITS FUNNY, IT SHOWS ME IN SOME OF MY LOWEST MOMENTS, AND IT SHOWS MY RESILIENCE. I GAURNTEE MY READERS WONT BE DISAPPOINTED.
IN CLOSING WHAT WOULD YOU LIKE YOUR READERS TO KNOW AND IS IT ANY SHOUTS THAT YOU WANNA GIVE?
I WANT MY READERS TO KNOW TO BE ON THE LOOK OUT FOR SOME MORE GREAT PROJECTS FROM ME AND GLSP. AND I DONT WANNA OVER DO IT WITH THE SHOUT OUTS BUT I DO WANNA SHOUT OUT MY CITY DETROIT WHAT UP DOE. MY FAMILY, MY MAN BMF KING CHILL, RICO FONZARELLI, YBG LUCK, QASO, J-JOKA, J-BO, CHUCK WAYNE, SHAWN HARTWELL AND OF COURSE MY DOG SETH FERRANTI. FREE MY BROTHER B-LOVE AND FREE ALL OF THE GOOD MEN LOCKED DOWN. ITS UP JACK WALLSTREET 2023 WATCH THE TICKER.!!!!!!!!!!!
CONTACT WALLSTREET ON IG @my_fed_vacation ON TWITTER @MYFEDVACATION FB TERRELL WALLSTREET WILKINSWilkinsmartell15@gmail.com