A$AP Rocky is ready to stand up and lead.
During a video interview with Variety, where Rocky played “New York or Not New York,” the actor and rapper was asked about embattled New York City mayor Eric Adams. Among Adams’ numerous controversies was skepticism that he even lived in NYC at the time of his election.
Rocky replied to the “New York or Not New York?” question with a simple, “You tell me.”
The Harlem rapper, born Rakim Mayers, went on to say that, given his last name, Mayor of New York City was his destined place in government.
“I should be the mayor,” Rocky said. “Rakim Mayers, you see my last name is Mayers, plural like ‘Mayor Mayers’ … just rolls off the tongue. Right now, ‘Mr. Mayers,’ in a second I’m going to be ‘Mayor Mayers.’ All the decisions and all of these policies that benefit New York City, I can’t wait to assemble. When I’m in office, that’s just gonna be my prerogative and initiative. I’m dead fucking serious.”
Elsewhere in the video, he confirms, “If I was mayor of New York … When I’m mayor of New York City, not ‘if.’”
Later in the segment, he was asked to weigh in on a controversial issue that has sparked opinion in New York City this year: the introduction of congestion pricing tolls in Manhattan during prime commuting hours.
“Damn, that’s fucked up,” he said. “What would I do about it? Let me think about this before I answer it, because I don’t want to just talk out my ass or regurgitate. It probably has its kinks, probably works, has its pros and cons, right? It’s just so expensive to live in New York City, let alone own a vehicle, as is — there are so many traffic tickets, so much congestion. I don’t got the answer to that yet, but at least I can acknowledge that I don’t have the answer to it yet. I would be a very noble, honest and straightforward, blunt mayor. Mayor Mayers, truly yours.”
Watch the full segment below.