One of the most recognizable faces from the new school of rap, Lil Pump, whose real name is Gazzy Garcia, has owned the news cycle ever since he burst onto the scene two years ago. A laid-back, monotonous, lean-and-Xanax-fueled South Florida rapper, Pump has a penchant for entertaining online masses and infuriating the rest. He’s a poster child of SoundCloud rap, and one of detractors’ main targets. He’s everywhere on the internet, from news releases to Twitter feeds to Instagram Live.
Pump has earned the respect of some rappers and the scorn of others, churning out a top five single (“Gucci Gang”) and a top three album (Lil Pump) along the way. With over 16 million followers on Instagram and 1.1 million on Twitter, the newly-18-years-old rapper commands a large army of followers to balance out the legion of haters he’s accumulated, which is lowkey necessary, as he’s oft-referred to as the epitome of all that is wrong with rap today. Associated with Xanax and drug usage (to the point that he featured Charlie Sheen in the aptly-titled “Drug Addicts” music video), he’s received criticism for both his glorification of drugs and his disdain for any form of advanced lyricism.
Hater or enabler, if you haven’t been following Pump from the start, you might’ve missed a few details of his beginnings. Have no fear, though, because we’re here to get you all caught up. From how he got started, to his face tattoos, to the J. Cole beef, to his status as a Harvard dropout, here’s everything you need to know about Lil Pump. The next time your 14-year-old cousin yells “ESSKEETIT,” you’ll be completely on board.
Lil Pump Hails from South Florida
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Born to Colombian immigrant parents and raised in Miami, Pump grew up listening to Ludacris, 50 Cent, and Chief Keef. Mischievous from an early age, Pump revealed in an interview with J. Cole (more on that later) that he started to smoke weed as early as sixth grade and did not get along with his stepfather.
He Grew Up With Smokepurpp
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In fact, the two have known each other since elementary school, adding an extra layer of significance to Pump’s “Elementary,” which was produced by Purpp. They still work together often— “Nephew” is their most recent collab. They also reportedly have a joint mixtape in the works.
Due to their age difference, the two have somewhat of a big brother-little brother relationship; Smokepurpp has helped produce the bulk of Pump’s tracks, and was a huge reason why the 18-year-old got into rapping in the first place:
"In like 2016...I'd just be freestyling next to Smokepurpp," Lil Pump told J. Cole. "Me and him would be freestyling and sh*t in the car, smoking a blunt. He's like, 'You should start rapping.' I just started doing it.”
But They Eventually Settled It
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He Did Not Attend—or Drop Out of—Harvard
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“I REALLY DID DROP OUT OF HARVARD TO SAVE THE RAP GAME.”
Those famous words, tweeted by Pump in Aug. 2017, sparked a rumor equivalent to the 2012 lore that 2 Chainz graduated with a 4.0 from Alabama State. But just as the legend of Tity Boi’s perfect grades turned out to be false, so did Pump’s Ivy League claims.
Pump’s upcoming release is titled Harverd Dropout, likely a result of the rumor.
He Also Didn’t Graduate High School
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Another interesting tidbit that came from J. Cole and Lil Pump’s sit-down was the revelation that Pump didn’t get the chance to finish high school. He was kicked out once in 7th grade for, according to him, smoking weed in the bathroom, and then in 10th grade, permanently, for fighting.
His Lollapalooza Set Was Shut Down
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One of the most anticipated sets of Lollapalooza 2018, Lil Pump gathered a way-too-packed crowd at one of the festival’s smaller stages. The result was a near-riot-level environment; Pump would get no more than 30 seconds into a song before cutting it short to plead with the crowd to take a few steps back from him and each other, to no avail, with several members of the audience passing out.
"Lollapalooza, listen up," he said in Instagram Live session. "That's was some f*ck sh*t. Y'all stopped my whole set because everybody was f*ckin' mosh pitting too hard. People were fainting. I stopped the show and got everybody that was fainting and they still cut my set off, 'cause everybody mosh pitting too hard. It was 'bout to cause a riot."
Pump Has an $8 million, One-Album Deal with Warner Bros.
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The 18-year-old was originally signed to Warner Bros. in 2016, releasing his debut Lil Pump on the label, but the contract he signed with them was later voided due to his status as a minor at the time of its signing.
He took to Instagram Live in the aftermath to let fans know what was next for him, business-wise. "Lil Pump got something to say," Pump said. "I ain't signing to none of these f*ckin' labels for nothing less than $12 to $15 mill. So y'all think y'all 'bout to f*ckin' get me for the low? Y'all can go suck my f*cking dick. f*ck all y'all labels, man."
In the end, the rapper signed to Warner Bros. for $8 million—$4 million less than his alleged asking price. However, the payment remains substantial, as it’s for a singular body of work—presumably Harverd Dropout.
He Was Arrested for Firing a Gun in His House
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On Feb. 14, 2018, police arrived at Pump’s house in Los Angeles after the rapper fired a gun in his home. He claimed “three black men” were trying to break in, but when police returned with a search warrant, they found an unloaded handgun, ammunition, and marijuana, and quickly cast doubt on Pump’s story.
Pump was arrested and charged with firing a gun in an inhabited place, was sentenced to probation as a result of the incident, and was as carefree as one would expect following his arraignment.
“Listen, hold up. See my ankle?” he told a TMZ cameraman as he left the courthouse. “House arrest, house arrest, house arrest, house arrest. Pop two Xans and I passed test! ‘Gucci Gang’ tat on the f*cking chest!”
