As the doldrums of summer wind down with no sign of Lil Uzi Vert’s debut album Eternal Atake in sight, the Philadelphia-bred rapper has taken to finding new ways of endearing himself to fans. While individual songs and features continue to trickle out, Uzi himself has become the primary product he has to sell and his latest actions seem geared toward making that package look as good as possible. Of course, it’s hard not to please your fans when you’re offering them cold, hard cash.
That’s exactly what Uzi did Thursday night, channeling a little Nicki Minaj energy when fan spotted him shopping in a department store — apparently, his favorite hobby when he’s not recording new music for the inevitable moment his label finally clears him to release his album. The fan, Raheel Ahmad, made a relatively straightforward request of his idol: “Can you pay for my college tuition?” When Uzi asked him how much he owed, Mr. Ahmad continued to be straight up: “Ninety grand. I go to Temple, bro.”
Uzi magnanimously admitted that “I could pay for that,” but he did have one condition. “This is the thing, though: If I pay for your college, are you gonna finish college?” Uzi is clearly about his business, telling Ahmad: “Make sure you show me all of your transcripts—everything. Show me all your papers and everything, and you’ll get 90 thousand from me. I’m serious. If you don’t show me, you won’t get 90 grand from me … you gotta show me the proof.”
Thankfully for Mr. Ahmad, Uzi’s got enough music floating around to supply all the performing he’s doing lately to keep the coffers full. He’s set to perform at Rolling Loud in New York and the Bay and at Day N Vegas later this year. Now, if only he could find a way to get that album out before then.
Lil Uzi Vert is a Warner Music artist. .
