Tyler Mitchell for The FADER
Earlier this month, Lil Uzi Vert took to his Instagram Stories to deliver a simple announcement: he would no longer be making music.
With a quick snapshot photo pointed down at the Philly rap star’s bright-red socks, Uzi uploaded a message saying that he was "done with music."
“I wanna be normal, I wanna wake up in 2013,” he continued, capping the post off with “Thank You I Love You” written in a plush purple font.
The post comes months after Uzi released the thumping loose single “New Patek,” and just weeks after he announced that his long-awaited Eternal Atake album was finally finished at a show in Philly.
To the casual fan, Uzi’s message might just be a half-hearted internet troll, a publicity stunt for the album, or maybe even a dead-ass factual statement. Oh well, we'll get over it, right?
But to Uzi’s die-hard stan-base — the hundreds of accounts on Instagram, Twitter, and Reddit that live and breathe Lil Uzi Vert — there’s more to unpack from the short Instagram Story post. Is it problems with his label that are causing the halt? Or maybe, after being in the spotlight for two-plus years (with dozens of features, maybe a hundred or more unreleased snippets), Uzi just wants us to leave him alone for a while so he can craft the best possible album for fans.
From @Uzi.fits, a Lil Uzi style-gram that claims the rap star is a bonafide style god; to @aaminebeats, a low-key producer who’s now closed-down Youtube page can be considered a legendary site to the Lil Uzi unreleased snippet community — FADER got in touch with five Uzi fan accounts to get their thoughts on his claims of quitting music, and how they’ve been coping with the grueling wait for Eternal Atake.
What are your thoughts on Uzi saying he’s done with music?
I don’t think he means it. I think he just said it [because] he is sick of fans nonstop asking about the album and he’s still working on it, so he just wants people to leave him alone until he’s done.
Do you think Eternal Atake will actually ever be released?
Yes, I do eventually, when Uzi finally perfects his album the way he wants it to be. it will [probably] drop around February - March...Hopefully.
How do you deal with the incredibly long wait times in between Uzi’s album releases?
It’s been hard, but I kinda just stopped thinking about it and let him take his time. Knowing your favorite artist is non-stop making music, and none of it is getting put out sucks, but I’ve kinda just learned to cope with it by finding other artists and people to listen to until Uzi is ready to drop. The Luv Is Rage 2 wait was not even close to as bad as this but I know Eternal Atake is gonna be Uzi's best work and it will be worth it.
What are your thoughts on Uzi saying he’s done with music?
He's been having issues with his label for some time now. After his mixtape with Gucci Mane in 2016, 1017 vs. The World he took some time just to tease his upcoming album Luv Is Rage 2 that released in August 2017.
After that, he was trying to tell us that he couldn’t release music because his label wasn’t letting him, and he was trying to say he couldn’t take it anymore. So because no one was trying to help, he had to come open and say publicly that he is done with music, hoping his label will see what is wrong.
Do you think Eternal Atake will actually ever be released?
Yes, it's just the matter of time that Uzi actually finds a way to get out of his deal with his label. Even Don Cannon is playing dumb to Uzi fans and fan pages that are asking for the album, so it isn’t Uzi’s fault, because he is trying to release it.
How do you deal with the incredibly long wait times in between Uzi’s album releases?
Well the good thing is, Uzi has a lot of features, and his music gets leaked so we have something to hold onto. And of course we do not have to listen to one artist only, there are a lot of other artists that keep us listening to quality sounds. Uzi himself has a lot of old songs that us fans can listen to that will never get old.
What are your thoughts on Uzi saying he’s done with music?
I personally do not think he’s done with music. He has a very huge fan base, and he just wouldn’t leave his fans like that. I think he just doesn’t really like being famous.
Do you think Eternal Atake will actually ever be released?
Yes, I think it will release whenever Uzi thinks it’s the right time to drop it. It could be 5 months from now or in a couple weeks.
How do you deal with the incredibly long wait times in between Uzi’s album releases?
I deal with it by listening to his old music and just knowing that Uzi is taking his time to make the album as good as possible so his fans will be happy.
What are your thoughts on Uzi saying he’s done with music?
It's difficult to take him seriously in saying he's quitting music, so I'm not too worried. On top of that, I view him as a fashion icon more than anything which he'll always have going for him.
Do you think Eternal Atake will actually ever be released?
I feel like Eternal Atake will be released. It seems Uzi has fixed his relations with DJ Drama and he says Uzi will drop it when he's ready.
How do you deal with the incredibly long wait times in between Uzi’s album releases?
I used to exclusively listen to Uzi which became very difficult with the long wait times between albums. So I filled the gap with artists close to Uzi such as Young Thug and Nav. It can be frustrating waiting for so long but Uzi always pulls through.
What are your thoughts on Uzi saying he’s done with music?
Uzi didn’t actually quit music. This is just a whole publicity stunt to buy some time until he finishes his album and decides to drop it.
Do you think Eternal Atake will actually ever be released?
I do believe Eternal Atake will be released and I think it’ll be released sometime before April.
How do you deal with the incredibly long wait times in between Uzi’s album releases?
Uzi is the only artist I listen to, therefore it makes it even harder for me waiting on him to drop something new. I guess that the constant snippets, and new features we get every few weeks keeps me going until the project finally drops.
