Nick Cannon Will Be The Real ‘Freeway’ Rick Ross In BET’s ‘American Gangster’ [Video]

Nick Cannon and former drug kingpin 'Freeway Rick Ross' appeared in a YouTube video announcing that Cannon would be playing Ross in BET's "American Gangster' series.

Ross said he's been wanting Cannon to portray him in a movie "since '96.   Ross said of Cannon: "We got hooked up, I met him … I loved his personality."

'Freeway Rick Ross' and rapper Rick Ross (William L. Roberts) have been beefing over use of the Rick Ross name for years.  Most people agree that rapping Ross used the name without permission to gain instant credibility.  The two have even spent time in court over the use of the name.

'Freeway' Ross gained notoriety as a cocaine trafficker in Los Angeles in the 1980s, and that will be the focus of the BET documentary.

The two men confirmed the upcoming project in a YouTube video that was shot from someones first generation iPhone or Razr.