JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Nearly one month after it was announced that Jacksonville rapper ‘Lil Poppa’ had died, Eastside residents gathered at City Hall on Tuesday to ask officials if March 18 could be designated as “Lil Poppa Day.”
March 18 is Lil Poppa’s birthday. His full name is Janarious Mykel Wheeler.
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“Lil Poppa stood for a lot of things,” explained one resident named Felicia Jackson, who spoke at the meeting. “But the main thing he stood for is mental health.”
Jackson went on to explain that many kids in the neighborhood looked up to Lil Poppa because he was someone who “physically made it out” but still struggled with mental health behind the scenes.
“It’s very important for the kids to see that we can make it out, regardless of the things we go through in our neighborhood,” Jackson said.
Another resident named Gavin Boykin spoke in favor of the day, calling Wheeler someone who didn’t spread hate on the Internet, and that his death should be used as an opportunity to send a message to “troubled youth” that they should attempt to be more compassionate, thoughtful, and understanding.
Latavia Harris, another Eastside resident, said that creating a day to remember Wheeler is extremely important for the community to keep the culture, heritage, and knowledge of people like Wheeler and what he stood for alive in the area.
Councilman Rahman Johnson also took time during the City Council meeting to honor Wheeler’s family and send his condolences to them.
“[Wheeler] is known throughout the music industry for the great work he’s done...he’s brought so much notoriety back to Jacksonville,” Johnson said. “We can use this as an opportunity to talk about somebody who always recognized our city.”
News4JAX has learned that the city is currently working on creating a proclamation for the fallen rapper and hopes to have it completed by the end of the week.
Wheeler was signed to Collective Music Group, which was founded by rapper Yo Gotti.
He is known for his debut studio album “Blessed, I Guess,” which was released in 2021.
He also recently released a song called “Out of Town Bae.”
Wheeler was scheduled to perform in New Orleans this month.