Fans noticed Lil Uzi Vert had an update for his 16.1 million Instagram followers on Sunday (July 17) — they now want to be referred to by the gender pronouns they/them.
Gender pronouns are the terms people choose to reflect their gender identity. Instagram began adding the optional pronoun labels in May 2021 so users can gender identify themselves in their profiles. People can add up to four gender identities in their bios, including he/him, she/her or gender-neutral pronouns such as they/them.
Lil Uzi Vert didn’t offer an explanation as to why they decided to change their pronouns from he/him to they/them, but some fans are speculating it’s simply to show support for the trans community. The timing is interesting considering Dave Chappelle is currently under scrutiny by the trans community once again after his Netflix special Closer was nominated for an Emmy Award.
“Gender is a fact,” he said in the special. “Every human being in this room, every human being on earth, had to pass through the legs of a woman to be on earth. That is a fact.” He then went to make explicit jokes about the bodies of trans women, which the trans community didn’t appreciate.
Weeks after the backlash — which included a walk-out at Netflix — Chappelle made an Instagram video in which he agreed to meet with members of “the transgender community” but was adamant he wouldn’t be “bending to anybody’s demands.”
He added, “It’s been said in the press that I was invited to speak with transgender employees at Netflix and I refused. That is not true. If they had invited me I would’ve accepted, although I am confused about what we’re speaking about.”
As for Lil Uzi Vert, they’ve been dating City Girls rapper JT since 2019. They were filmed cheering her on during her performance at the Wireless Festival earlier this month. More recently, Uzi surprised fans with a new single called “Space Cadet,” which they announced on Twitter with, “I am a Space cadet the geek that real,” alongside several emoji.
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