A Brooklyn man was sentenced Tuesday to 17 years in state prison for shooting a 26-year-old man in the head inside a recording studio on 8th Avenue, leaving the victim permanently paralyzed on the left side of his body. Zykil Adamson, 26, pleaded guilty in April to attempted murder in the second degree for the March 2024 attack, which took place inside The Music Building, a landmark 24-hour rehearsal facility in Midtown Manhattan.
Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg announced the sentence, which also includes five years of post-release supervision once Adamson completes his prison term. As reported by W42ST, the sentencing followed Adamson's guilty plea.
The shooting happened just after 12:30 a.m. on March 8, 2024, on the 11th floor of The Music Building at 584 Eighth Avenue near West 39th Street, according to CBS New York. NYPD officers responded to a 911 call reporting a man shot inside the 11th-floor studio space, and surveillance video captured at least four individuals running from the building immediately after the gunfire, the outlet reported.
Arrest Came Months After the Shooting
Adamson wasn't taken into custody until May 21, 2024, when officers from the Midtown South Precinct arrested him more than two months after the shooting, per FreedomNews. He later faced attempted murder charges before a judge in Manhattan Criminal Court, that account noted.
Under New York Penal Law, attempted murder in the second degree is classified as a Class B violent felony, which carries a mandatory state prison term of 5 to 25 years for violent Class B felonies, according to Tilem & Associates, PC. Adamson's 17-year sentence falls in the upper-middle portion of that statutory range.
A Storied Building With a Famous Past
Founded in 1979, The Music Building has long served as a launching pad for major music careers, according to Wikipedia's entry on the venue. Madonna lived and rehearsed there from 1980 to 1984 while developing her music career, and the building has also housed acts including Interpol, The Strokes, and Billy Idol over the decades.
The building was back in headlines just months before Adamson's sentencing for a very different reason. In May, Madonna partnered with financial membership firm Bilt to cover one month of rent for musicians leasing space in the building, a gesture tied to the pop star's Confessions II album announcement, according to MadonnaTribe.
Shooting Occurred Amid Falling Manhattan Gun Violence
The attack took place amid shootings across Manhattan. The Midtown South Precinct, which covers the commercial corridors around Times Square, Penn Station, and 8th Avenue, is included in precinct data covering shootings in 2025, according to bkcb6.app.
Separately, NYPD response to critical 911 calls reporting outside gunshots is part of the broader public-safety context.
Part of a Wider Pattern at Recording Studios
The Manhattan case is one example of late-night violence at a recording studio. A separate 2024 Nashville recording-studio shooting is another example of violence at such a venue.
