Rapper accused of punching student at performance

High school didn’t approve Lil Tripp for Homecoming.

A rapper’s surprise appearance at a DeKalb County high school’s Homecoming event is turning out to be to no one’s delight.

The DeKalb County School District is investigating an incident where local rapper Lil Tripp gave an impromptu performance and allegedly punched a student in the face.

The rapper could face charges after his unannounced performance at Ronald E. McNair High School Friday evening. He apparently took to a stage and proceeded to make it rain in front of the stage — showering an area with dollar bills of different amounts — which caused students to trample each other. At some point during the chaotic scene caused by the falling money, he allegedly punched a student in the face.

District officials said the rapper’s appearance had not been cleared with school officials and that a teacher who invited the rapper could face disciplinary actions for not following procedures.

”School administrators were not aware that a McNair High School teacher invited the rapper,” district officials said Monday. “He was not hired by the school and did not receive compensation. The school’s normal security plan was in place, and includes all staff assigned to locations in the gym and at entry and exit points.

“Any disciplinary action would be handled as a personnel matter.”

Little bio information is available about the rapper online. On Facebook, more than a dozen pages exist with the name, including one local artist whose last post was in August and the top result, a 16-year-old from Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. Some results indicate he could now go by the moniker OG Tripp, a nod to aging out of the “Lil” in his name. That person’s SoundCloud page lists Augusta as a hometown.

DeKalb County School District police would not comment on the incident, saying it was an “active investigation.”

District officials have been working to curtail different illegal activities since the school year began about two months ago. In that time, a half-dozen guns have been confiscated from students at different high school campuses. Officials also have been holding meetings with students and parents to eliminate vaping among students, which has gained dramatically in popularity among students. According to a 2018 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention study, one in five high school students said they had used vape pens within a month of being interviewed.