Lil Uzi Vert has made it clear that Young Thug is one of their greatest musical influences with his ongoing cosplay of the Atlanta rapper ahead of his new project Barter 16.
Uzi took to social media this past weekend to share a picture of themselves in the studio, surrounded by a red hue while resembling a younger version of Thugga.
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The Philadelphia native threw up a gang sign while wearing a red bandana wrapped around their dreadlocks, and even rocked a Rich Gang chain — a nod to Thug’s former group with Rich Homie Quan and Birdman.
“B16,” Uzi captioned the photo.
Lil Uzi Vert continues Young Thug cosplay while teasing "Barter 16" https://t.co/52WCdDsvQrpic.twitter.com/HLUWGh0QOa
— HipHopDX (@HipHopDX) July 23, 2023
Despite releasing their long-awaited Pink Tape album just last month, Lil Uzi Vert is already hard at work on two follow-up projects, with the other being the third installment in their Luv Is Rage series.
Uzi first debuted a Young Thug-inspired look earlier this month, wearing a white suit that the YSL boss previously wore, along with a red bandana similar to the one that he donned on the cover of Barter 6.
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Barter 16 takes its title from Thug’s aforementioned 2015 mixtape, which itself was a somewhat controversial nod to Lil Wayne’s flagship Tha Carter series.
Uzi revealed plans for Barter 16 shortly after Pink Tape went to No. 1 on the Billboard 200 chart earlier this month, earning roughly 167,000 album-equivalent units in its first week.
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“Sitting here thinking /bout how I went #1 on a experimental tape,” they wrote on their Instagram Stories. “My apologies Barter 16 mixtape on the way.”
Along with the announcement, Lil Uzi Vert saluted Young Thug — who remains behind bars awaiting trial in the YSL RICO case — by writing: “Free Slime.”
The “Just Wanna Rock” hitmaker has also been incorporating lean into the rollout for Barter 16, seemingly as an ode to their “Hellcat Kenny” collaborator.
The rapper’s recent social media posts have included a plastic bottle containing purple liquid and an IV drip containing a similar fluid.
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The apparent lean photos were met with mixed reactions from fans, though, considering Uzi recently revealed they spent over half a year in rehab.
“I’m lucky to have people in my life who truly care about me and my well-being,” they told 032c Magazine in May. “Specifically, Desiree Perez, who helped me get into this program. I didn’t want to do it, but I had to — and I can say now that it was a great thing to do.”
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They continued: “I spent seven months in rehab. The first month and a half were hard, but after that, it was easy, because the people there became my family. They showed me so many different outlets and ways to cope with life. We did a lot of group talks, a lot of writing on whiteboards.”
Lil Uzi Vert also has a song called “Rehab” on Pink Tape.
