Rapper 21 Savage's life is a wild ride of talent, debauchery, and hidden kindness. Back in 2019, he was on all major headlines as the Atlanta based-rapper was detained by immigration and revealed to actually be a British citizen. Will he be allowed to stay in the US?
21 Savage's Roots
Well-known rapper 21 Savage surprised the world in February 2019 when he was taken by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement a.k.a. ICE. Subsequently, ICE revealed that he was in fact a United Kingdom National who came to the US when he was young on a one-year visa and instead stayed.
ICE spokesperson Brian Cox in an attempt to dirty the image of 21 told CNN, "His whole public persona is false. He actually came to the U.S. from the U.K. as a teen and overstayed his visa." Apparently, he "failed to depart under the terms of his non-immigrant visa and he became unlawfully present in the U.S. when his visa expired in July 2006."
In reality, he was not a "teen", he was 7 years old when his parents separated and he moved to the U.S. with his mother. 21's representatives claimed that the Department of Homeland Security had in fact known of 21's attempts to apply for a new visa in 2017. He was then raised in Atlanta Georgia where he was exposed to criminal activity and gang life.
He subsequently joined a gang and sold cannabis until he and his best friend were shot on his 21st birthday. 21 was shot 6 times and his best friend tragically did not survive. On separate occasions, he also lost his brother and many other friends to shootings. He has had several arrests and turned himself in to authorities for felony "theft by deception" when a gig booking dispute raised. Allegedly 21 accepted 17,000 to appear at a concert but did not show nor return the money.
Now he focuses his efforts on producing music and committing to charity in the neighborhoods he was once a scared young kid. He has his own yearly event called the "Issa Back to School Drive" where he funds free haircuts, school supplies, and uniforms to his neighborhood in Atlanta and even frequently donates to the anti-bullying campaign in Atlanta.
21 Savages Immigration Arrest
He has since been freed by ICE and is permitted to travel within the United States but is not permitted to leave while his case is pending. He continues to make music and perform, but mentioned to Good Morning America that he was "definitely targeted" because ICE did not tell him he was under arrest instead, "They just said 'We got Savage'". Coincidentally, his arrest came out days after he released a song with lyrics that were critical of Donald Trump's immigration policies surrounding families separated at the border.
21 claims ICE was confused about the dates of which he came to the U.S. "I was seven when I first came here. And we had left in 2005 because my uncle died. So we went back [to the U.K.] to go to his funeral, and then we came back."
When he was asked by GMA if he knew his visa was expired in 2006 he said, "I didn't even know what a visa was. I knew I wasn't born here but I didn't know what that meant as far as when I transitioned into an adult, how it was going to affect my life. I wasn't hiding it, but I didn't want to get deported."
He said he has "accepted" the possibility of being deported and will continue doing the work he has been doing from the U.K. if needs be. According to TMZ his case is being held up in a large backlog and cannot leave the United States until it is processed.
Now he focuses his efforts on producing music and committing to charity in the neighborhoods he was once a scared young kid. He has his own yearly event called the "Issa Back to School Drive" where he funds free haircuts, school supplies, and uniforms to his neighborhood in Atlanta and even frequently donates to the anti-bullying campaign in Atlanta.
Savage has also announced he is launching a free online financial literacy education program for youth in quarantine during the pandemic because "it's more important than ever to give our next generation the tools to succeed in life."
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