Rapper 21 Savage was detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Sunday just days after criticizing the Trump administration for its immigration policies.
During a performance of his hit song “A Lot,” on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, 21 Savage changed the lyrics to the song to take a shot at U.S. border policies under President Trump.
“Been through some things so I can’t imagine my kids stuck at the border, Flint still need water, People was innocent, couldn’t get lawyers,” he rapped.
The 26-year-old rapper, real name Sha Taa Bin Abraham-Joseph, was arrested by ICE in Atlanta Sunday over alleged immigration violations.
21 Savage rapped about the immigration issue at the boarder and the Flint Michigan water crisis on The Tonight Show
5 days later, he got arrested by the ICE because his visa expired 14 years ago. He is expected to be deported back to the UK.
pic.twitter.com/vCWa9ioqyb— Bada (@BADAOLUWAFEMI) February 3, 2019
According to ICE, the rapper was brought to the United States from the United Kingdom when he was a child in 2005 and did not leave after his visa expired a year later.
BREAKING- @ICEgov spokesman tells me @21savage was taken into custody by ICE. “His whole public persona is false. He actually came to the U.S. from the U.K. as a teen and overstayed his visa.” MORE COMING
— Nick Valencia (@CNNValencia) February 3, 2019
A statement from ICE reads:
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) arrested unlawfully present United Kingdom national Sha Yaa Bin Abraham-Joseph AKA “21 Savage” during a targeted operation with federal and local law enforcement partners early Sunday in metro Atlanta. Mr. Abraham-Joseph was taken into ICE custody as he is unlawfully present in the U.S. and also a convicted felon.
Mr. Abraham-Joseph initially entered the U.S. legally in July 2005, but subsequently failed to depart under the terms of his nonimmigrant visa and he became unlawfully present in the U.S. when his visa expired in July 2006. In addition to being in violation of federal immigration law, Mr. Abraham-Joseph was convicted on felony drug charges in October 2014 in Fulton County, Georgia.
Mr. Abraham-Joseph is presently in ICE custody in Georgia and has been placed into removal proceedings before the federal immigration courts. ICE will now await the outcome of his case before a federal immigration judge to determine future actions.
The “No Heart” rapper’s lawyer responded to the arrest in a statement, “We are working diligently to get Mr. Abraham-Joseph out of detention while we work with authorities to clear up any misunderstanding.”
“Mr. Abraham-Joseph is a role model to the young people in the country — especially in Atlanta, Georgia and is actively working in the community leading programs to help underprivileged youths in financial literacy.”
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