FACT CHECK: Did Playboi Carti Predict The COVID-19 Pandemic In His 2018 Song ‘Foreign’?
An image shared on Instagram claims rapper Playboi Carti predicted the COVID-19 pandemic in 2018 on his song “Foreign.”
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Verdict: False
The song “Foreign” does not mention the COVID-19 pandemic in any way. Check Your Fact didn’t find any evidence Carti predicted the COVID-19 pandemic in other songs.
Fact Check:
Carti released the 19-track album “Die Lit” in 2018, according to Pitchfork. Social media users have recently been sharing a screen grab of a tweet claiming to show lyrics from “Foreign,” a song on “Die Lit,” that supposedly predicted the COVID-19 pandemic. The tweet, which itself dates back to March 2020, has garnered over 55,700 likes and 12,100 retweets to date.
“In 2020 a flu-like disease that began in Wuhan, China (yuh) will cause a worldwide pandemic and shut down all major events for months (slatt) and cause major economic collapse (buh buh buh),” Carti purportedly rapped in “Foreign.” (RELATED: Did Kanye West Buy Spotify?)
Multiple websites dedicated to song lyrics have published the words Carti raps in the song “Foreign.” A review by Check Your Fact of the song’s lyrics turned up no mentions of Wuhan, the Chinese city where COVID-19 was first reported, or a “flu-like disease.” The song talks about foreign-made cars, diamonds, guns and other topics unrelated to the COVID-19 pandemic.
There are no references to COVID-19 in the lyrics of other “Die Lit” tracks such as “R.I.P.,” “Right Now,” “Love Hurts” and “Poke It Out.” Check Your Fact also didn’t find any evidence the rapper predicted the COVID-19 pandemic in any of his works prior to 2018, such as his 2017 song “Magnolia” and his 2015 song “Count It Up.”
Carti released his second studio album, “Whole Lotta Red,” in December 2020, NPR reported.
