An upcoming Temple University graduate hopes to see his favorite artist at his graduation in January.
Raheel Ahmad, also known as Instagram user @bigassheel, expects to graduate from the notable Philadelphia university on Jan. 26 with a degree in Political Science and hopes rapper Lil Uzi Vert will attend the ceremony.
Ahmad and Uzi met for the first time at the King of Prussia mall in Philadelphia, the rapper's hometown, in Aug. 2019. Ahmad then took a chance and asked the rapper to contribute to his tuition. Lil Uzi Vert, whose real name is Symere Woods, quickly agreed to the 90k tuition payment but had some conditions attached to it.
"Make sure you show me all of your transcripts, everything. Show me all your papers and everything, and you can get $90,000 from me."
Revolt TV reports that a little over a year after the encounter, in Jan. 2021, Lil Uzi Vert and his label Roc Nation paid $20K of Ahmad's tuition, with a promise to cover the remainder upon graduation.
During a conversation with RapTV, Ahmad said the "Demon High" rapper confirmed the payment following a second meeting with Uzi.
Uzi Scholarship ????‼️????@LILUZIVERT ????. @raptvcom
pic.twitter.com/qQ6nNVpgm1— Raheel Ahmad (@BigHeeI) January 15, 2021
On Monday, Ahmad revealed his upcoming graduation plans.
"The time has finally come. I've made it through the four years of Temple, graduating with a 3.5 GPA," the fan wrote on his Instagram account of 63K followers. "I'm sure you all remember this video of me asking Lil Uzi Vert at the mall if he could help pay for my college tuition."
It's not known whether Uzi Vert will actually attend the ceremony, but we can only presume Ahmad's tuition will be paid in full.
Ahmad shared the ups and downs he experienced before this moment, calling his mother a "hero" for providing for him and his siblings after his father passed.
"I come from a big family and was raised by a single, widowed mother. Finances were always a struggle. After my dad passed away, we had to live paycheck to paycheck," he said.
Ahmad refers to meeting the Philly artist as a source of inspiration for graduating, giving him a "sense of hope and optimism."
