SLICK MOVE

Bx. rapper sworn as citizen after long fight

RAPPER SLICK RICK became a U.S. citizen Friday, marking an end to his decades-long battle against deportation for a 1991 conviction in a shooting.

The “La Di Da Di” performer — who was born in London, but moved to the Bronx at age 11 and later collaborated with Doug E. Fresh and the Get Fresh Crew — fought hard for the milestone.

“I am so proud of this moment — and so honored to finally become an American citizen,” Rick, whose real name is Ricky Walters, said Friday in a statement.

“This has been a long time coming for me, and I am relieved to finally put this long chapter behind me . ... I am truly blessed.”

He later posted a picture to Instagram of an American flag version of his signature eye patch with the caption, “#SlickRickVictory.”

Walters’ troubles began in 1990 when he shot his cousin, a former bodyguard, and also hit an innocent bystander. Walters maintained he shot at the rogue relative in self-defense because the cousin had threatened his mom’s life as well as his own.

But he pleaded guilty to two counts of attempted murder in 1991 and spent five years in prison — and immigration officials later sought to deport him several times. The plea deal did not change his status as a foreign national convicted of a violent crime — and officials wanted him gone. Authorities nearly got their way in 2001 when Walters was arrested in Florida while trying to return from a Caribbean concert cruise with singer Erykah Badu. The Immigration and Naturalization Service moved to deport him, but actors Will Smith and Chris Rock and Def Jam founder Russell Simmons rushed to Walters’ defense, leading a successful push for his release.

But in 2006, the Department of Homeland Security again tried to boot the rapper.

Walters’ was finally let off the hook in 2008 when then-Gov. David Paterson pardoned him — a controversial decision that some criticized as special treatment for a celebrity.

Paterson cited Walters’ model behavior behind bars, his clean record after his release and his philanthropic work counseling against violence.

The citizenship ceremony amounts to federal recognition of Walters’ pardon — ending any lingering threat of deportation.