The young class of artists on Gucci Mane’s The New 1017 label started an HBCU tour last week. The rappers, which include Bic Fizzle, Big Scarr, Bigwalk Dog, Enchanting, and Hotboy Wes, will visit Jackson State University, Morehouse College, Howard University, Florida A&M University, and Texas Southern University over the course of eight days. The performances at Jackson State University and Morehouse College went as planned, but the one at Howard University’s own did not. Instead, the artists chose to join the students in a sit-own protest against deplorable campus conditions.
The protest was captured on Big Scarr and his manager’s Instagram Stories. In one post, Scarr’s manager wrote, “We’re still here! Students you are the revolution. We are the revolution. This is not okay.” Another showed the artists standing beside students. Bigwalk Dog also shared posts about the protest to his story.
Students at Howard have spent nearly a week protesting at the university in hopes of attaining a list of improvements to campus life. According to Teen Vogue, one major issue is a campus housing crisis that has left many dealing with water damage and mold in their dorms. Others struggle to find affordable housing close to campus. Other issues include tuition hikes, a lack of COVID-19 testing, and more. A sit-in was staged on October 12 at Howard’s Blackburn University Center, with somewhere between two dozen to over 50 students occupying the area at various times. The following day, hundreds of students joined in the sit-in after they were instructed to leave the building in a letter from affairs vice president Cynthia Evers.
Some artists covered here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.