Rapper Lil Uzi Vert’s pink forehead diamond likely won’t be resurfacing anytime soon following a cringeworthy incident in Miami at the Rolling Loud music festival in July.
The “XO Tour Lif3” rapper performed at the crowd attracting event in July where he claims festival goers got ahold of the pricey diamond. Speaking to TMZ at the 18th anniversary celebration for Jay-Z’s 40/40 Club, Uzi Vert nonchalantly explained how it all happened.
“I had a show at Rolling Loud and I jumped into the crowd and they kind of ripped it out,” Uzi told the outlet. Despite enduring what was most likely a painful experience, he added, “I’m feeling good. I still have the diamond so I feel good.”
In place of the diamond Uzi Vert now has a silver piercing that resembles popular hooks used for navel piercings. Online, people have shown zero mercy for the rapper, with some even insinuating his story may have been fabricated.
“If a fan ripped it off he wouldn’t have gotten it back lmao next,” tweeted one critic.
Another commented, “Everybody with a brain knew that was gonna happen the second we saw it ..Duhh.”
“His vanity has been rewarded,” wrote another.
The 26 year-old caused a flurry of debates in February when he shared that he had implanted the stone, reportedly worth $24 million, in the center of his forehead. Fans found the body modification to be a unique flex, but critics perceived the adornment to be offensive and more an example of cultural appropriation.
The rapper opened the floodgates to criticism when he tweeted, and subsequently deleted, that he shared a likeness to characters from the 1988 Indian television series “Mahabharat.”
In an attempt to calm the already brewing storm, Uzi Vert tweeted, “Hey glad to see you sharing your thoughts and knowledge…but I’m not mimicking anything I know about a lot and love different forms of art…do you even know where the image is from ? Honestly…I love y’all ❤️”