Lil Pump Tattoos ‘Solana’ on Forehead in Token Promotion Efforts
American rapper Gazzy Garcia, aka Lil Pump, has sparked controversy after sharing a new tattoo of the blockchain platform Solana to promote the meme coin LILPUMP.
On June 13th, Lil Pump took to Twitter to reveal a new forehead tattoo, branding himself with the cryptocurrency “Solana” and its logo. He claimed to have sold all his Solana, adding to the absurdity of the move.
I sold my Sol. when Binance?
ca: 9vrGUHwsC8LyLjQoh3zJb9S53x7A88u49La63qPB6F5t pic.twitter.com/fdCJHXLhsP
— Lil pump (@lilpump) June 13, 2024
Within the tweet, Lil Pump referenced a token address linked to the recently minted token Lil Pump ($LILPUMP), which surged over 700% following the announcement, according to Dex Screener data.
He also called on the cryptocurrency exchange Binance, asking “When Binance?” This move has been interpreted as an attempt to secure a listing for the coin on major exchanges.
Lil Pump Tattoo Sparks Controversy
On Instagram, fans expressed discontent with Lil Pump’s new tattoo. One user lamented the change, longing for the “old Pump,” while another criticized the idea of replacing existing tattoos with what they deemed “dumber ones.”
Amidst the reactions, some questioned the authenticity of the tattoo, while others speculated on its potential to boost the price of Solana. One enthusiastic commenter exclaimed, “To the moon! Gucci gain, Gucci gain, Gucci gain!”
Most notably, community members are interpreting Lil Pump’s actions as an attempt to capitalize on the current trend of celebrity-backed cryptocurrencies. This trend has faced significant issues, including allegations of rug pulls and insider trading.
Your crypto grifts are as shitty as the music you make.
The good news is you are so bad at both you can’t make money doing either.
— Mayne (@Tradermayne) June 13, 2024
Lil Pump’s promotion efforts come as most celebrity-backed crypto projects have experienced a downturn.
On June 6, many tokens released by celebrities were down by at least 66%. Tokens linked to celebrities such as Caitlyn Jenner, American rapper Rich the Kid, and Nigerian singer David Adedeji Adeleke Oon all saw decreases following initial gains.
Additionally, cryptocurrencies tied to boxing legend Floyd Mayweather, and American rappers Moneybagg Yo and Trippie Redd, among others, plummeted by approximately 90%.
Meanwhile, Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin has voiced strong criticism against the celebrity-backed memecoin trend, emphasizing the need for more meaningful and impactful projects in the cryptocurrency space.
Despite these numerous failed attempts to establish memecoins with real staying power, celebrities continued to release more tokens.
Celebrity-Backed Memecoins Get Insider Allegations
On June 11, controversial social media figure Andrew Tate promoted a Solana-based memecoin called Daddy Tate (DADDY). The token surpassed Iggy Azalea’s project despite insider trading accusations.
Crypto analytics firm Bubblemaps called out Tate’s promoted token, claiming to have “found huge insider activity” during a June 12th X thread.
The firm states that 11 wallets bought 20% of the DADDY token supply on June 9th, before Tate’s first X post, which would now be worth around $61.4 million.
All these wallets were funded through Binance with “nearly identical amounts at the same time.” Bubblemaps added that it couldn’t confirm whether the wallets belong to the same group, but “the timing and amounts strongly suggest they do.”
In May, the analytics firm made similar insider trading allegations to MOTHER, claiming insiders bought 20% of its supply at launch before Azalea first posted about the token.
