An 18-year-old Atlanta rapper, Metro Marrs, was arrested after he threw $10,000 on stage during his high school graduation ceremony on Friday. According to Rap-Up, the incident occurred at the Langston Hughes High School and the rapper showered the stage with the money to celebrate their graduation.
In the video of the incident, the rapper, who is wearing a graduation gown, can be seen walking on the stage throwing the money while the other graduates cheer him on and scramble for the cash. The school authorities were, however, not too pleased with his actions. And in the aftermath of the incident, he was arrested by the police.
The Bye Felicia rapper later posted an Instagram video of him being whisked away from the premises by officers. He was charged with attempting to start a riot and disorderly conduct and slapped with a ticket.
Explaining the motive behind his actions in an interview with The Shade Room, the Quality Control signee said he was trying to be generous to some of his fellow grads who may have been tight on finances. He also added the COVID-19 pandemic had prevented him from meeting his classmates over a long period.
“I was creating a moment that would be memorable,” he said. “I had to do that for the last time. Everybody was lit! We graduating high school!”
The rapper’s action was met with mixed reactions, with people saying it was unnecessary while others commended him. “Mahhh man this is trash! At the Graduation?!,” a user replied to his Instagram post.
“I wish somebody did this at my graduation,” another user commented on the post on The Shade Room. A user also wrote: “That ain’t no reason to detain somebody like huh.”
Nevertheless, Metro Marrs said the school authorities weren’t too mad about what he did and they actually root for him. “They root for me, they’re on my side,” he said. “They’ve seen me develop (as an artist) while I was in school. I’ve been doing music since 9th grade.”