Lil Uzi Vert surprises longtime fans – in interesting ways

By Josiah Thomas

Lil Uzi Vert, who uses they/them pronouns and is commonly referred to as “Uzi,” surprised fans with their eighth album and long-awaited sequel, “Eternal Atake 2,” on Nov. 1. 

The album’s announcement excited fans, as Uzi had not dropped any new music since June 2023. Fans on social media watched them do everything but rap, and now the time has finally come to embrace Uzi’s elegant flow.

On Mar. 6, 2020, Uzi dropped “Eternal Atake,” the predecessor to their new album, which became a classic with popular songs like “Prices,” “LoMein” and “Bean.” Because the release occurred just before the COVID-19 pandemic, it allowed fans to digest and appreciate “Eternal Atake” thoroughly. 

Being a longtime Uzi fan, I was ecstatic for this album, as I truly did not enjoy the most recent one in their catalog, “Pink Tape.” As versatile as it may have been, it did not sit well with me. With full excitement in the early morning of the “Eternal Atake 2” release, I put my headphones on, hoping the album would live up to its expectations. Unfortunately, the hype was not real, and I sat disappointed after turning it off five songs in on my first listen.

Uzi brought back their nostalgic sound on the album by talking about their personal battles and controversies in the opening song, “We Good”: “They said I was lost/They thought I was a dead guy.” They continue, “Alright, alright, alright, I swear everything’s alright/Everybody thought I was leanin’, I was really triple beanin’,” reassuring the listeners that the controversies surrounding their wellbeing are false while clarifying what they were actually up to. As much as the nostalgia factor was there in this song, it felt repetitive, like something I already heard from them. 

Uzi tried to surprise their fans with a feature on the song “The Rush” from the boyband, Big Time Rush, where the group went back and forth talking to Uzi, saying, “Dude, you’re not Big Time Rush. We’re Big Time Rush.” This would be the only dialogue found from the band, with Uzi taking over and executing metaphors, comparing themself to the fictional character Ben 10 and talking about their money. It was shocking to see Big Time Rush as a feature, but I thought the group would have more than a ten-second conversation. It would have been nice to hear the group sing their hearts out, like Usher on a trap beat, but Uzi had different plans.

Another song that stood out on the album was “Not An Option,” which brought back the classic 2016 Uzi sound that fans fell in love with. The production was upbeat, with powerful 808s and a catchy synth melody. This is one of the stronger songs on the album, where Uzi flowed on the chorus, saying, “Who ain’t got guap? Stop it/Anything I want, yeah, I cop it.” They also remind listeners of how long they have been in the rap scene saying, “Been countin’dog s— since 2016, can’t you tell? I can count it with ease.” Uzi has made their name known in the rap game, and this song was just a reminder for those who couldn’t hear them in the back.

While many will praise Uzi for dropping their newest album after almost a year, it failed to meet the level of its predecessor due to various changes. I had hoped the follow-up album to “Eternal Atake” would be out of this world. I wanted to feel like I was going through outer space, as I did with the original, but the spaceship ran out of gas. It begs the question of whether Uzi may be falling off, or if some fans are outgrowing an artist they grew up listening to. With disappointment after disappointment, I, a longtime Lil Uzi Vert fan, ponder the question: who will be the next Uzi in the rap game?

“Eternal Atake 2?” More like “The Exit’s This Way Dude.”

Josiah Thomas is a senior graphic design major