Representatives for Casanova, Don Q, Sheff G and Pop Smoke confirmed they had been removed from the bill. 22Gz could not immediately be reached for comment.

Each of the artists cited by the Police Department has had encounters with law enforcement.

Casanova, who served prison time in New York on a robbery charge, was recently named in federal testimony by the rapper 6ix9ine, who described a shooting between the artists’ rival crews and named both groups as members of the Bloods gang. 22Gz was charged with murder in Florida in 2017, but the charges were dropped after police identified another man as the gunman. Sheff G, Don Q and Pop Smoke have each faced weapons charges.

In a statement on Instagram, Don Q blamed “misinformation” from the Police Department. “I love my city and I never been in any gang activities or had issues at any of my previous shows,” he wrote. “I hope the city will wake up and see that canceling me and my fellow NY artists isn’t the solution, we just love what we do and want to perform for our fans.” Casanova added in the comments that the decision “really hurts.”

Tariq Cherif, a founder and owner of Rolling Loud, suggested in a message on Twitter that the festival, which requires city permits, would not be allowed to return to New York City if it did not go along with the police request.