- GOV’T NAME: Elijah Policard
- AGE: 20
- REPPIN': Boston
- X: @richamirii
- INSTAGRAM: @richamiri
- TIKTOK: @richamirii
- NOTABLE RELEASES: Songs: “Poppin” featuring Lil Tecca, “One Call,” “Aint Nothing,” “Outta There”; Album: Ghetto Fabulous; Projects: For The Better, Evolution
- LABEL: Internet Money Records/10K Projects
- CURRENTLY WORKING ON: War Ready album dropping this fall.
- WHO ELSE SHOULD BE PART OF THIS YEAR’S CLASS: “Rappers-wise, I feel like you all hit the nail on the head, to be honest. I can’t really think of anybody that deserves it more than anybody that’s over here. I have my personal friends, but I don’t think that they would be better fits than the people y’all chose.”
- INFLUENCED BY: “A lot of people; Kanye West, Future. I listen to Brent Fiyaz. I listen to a lot of Gideon. I listen to a lot of Frank Ocean. But as far as rap, I would say Kanye, Future, Lil Keed. I would say those are the big three on them. They have a different approach than any other artists. Whether it be vocal inflations, how they’re stretching their songs, their lyrics, their content. They’re not rapping about the same thing as everybody else. And even if they are, they’re saying it in a different way.”
- AS A FRESHMAN IN HIGH SCHOOL: “I was lost, just trying to find myself. Find my little niche in the world where I belong, but I think I found that. I didn’t really care about school. I was trying to make people laugh. I didn’t have the best grades.”
TRUTH ON BEING AN XXL FRESHMAN: “I grew up watching every XXL [Freshman Class] that’s ever dropped since I found out about it. It’s a blessing to be in that same position so that the kids—the next generation that’s going to grow up watching me and watching the rest of these amazing artists perform—they get that same inspiration.
[The first class I watched], I would probably say the Lil Yachty, Lil Uzi Vert one. It was just everybody I was listening to. That’s rare to have your entire playlist in one room, chop- ping it up or doing a freestyle. That really sparked my interest in becoming a rapper. You see music videos and the lifestyle, but you don’t see the fun behind it. I feel like that really gave me a new perspective on the rap life.
I have the momentum right now in my career. I’m at that spot where XXL can take me to the next level. I’m a Freshman in hip-hop. I don’t think anybody in my lane or around my age is going to be coming how I’m coming.
[Once the cover drops], I’m probably going to go out to dinner with my mom. I’m going to be like, ‘You see your son?’ We might have to go to Nobu. I might have to go big for XXL. I don’t know if [the fans are] going to be surprised, but I think it’ll make them happy, for sure.”
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