LOS ANGELES — Amid troves of 999 artwork and exclusive merch scattering the walls, unreleased footage and, of course, music booming throughout, the energy at Grade A and 999 Club’s “Goodbye & Good Riddance fifth anniversary pop-up” felt as if Juice WRLD was looking down smiling.
Swarming with fans, journalists and former collaborators of the late Chicago rapper, Juice’s iconic 999 Rolls Royce was the centerpiece to the bustling anniversary event held in Los Angeles over the weekend (May 19-21). Boasting a massive replica of his GB&GR tour rider — a document listing items that an artist requires on each tour stop — refreshments were served with stickers verifying them as an “Exclusive Rider Item from Juice WRLD’s Goodbye & Good Riddance Tour.” The atmosphere was jovial, as 999 Club and Grade A commemorated the five-year anniversary of his debut album, Goodbye & Good Riddance, with a pair of new tracks: “No Good” and “Glo’d Up.”
Juice’s manager, Peter Jideonwo, and Bibby took to Instagram Live periodically during the event, divulging to fans that the rapper’s highly-anticipated album, The Party Never Ends, is “95% done.” Also teasing the release of the long-teased “Biscotti In The Air” on live, the Grade A founder elaborated on Juice WRLD’s next project and the label’s approach to curating the tracklist. “I want the next album to feel like a party.” Bibby said. “I’m gonna be honest with you, I’m an introvert. I’m not a party person… I want to get a party person to help me with it.”
When asked about choosing his ideal “party person,” Bibby would like seek input from Future, alluding to a potential executive producer role (of sorts) for the I NEVER LIKED YOU rapper. Juice and Future not only collaborated on their joint album, WRLD On Drugs (which was certified RIAA platinum in 2018), but fueled Juice’s aspirations to pursue music early-on, referring to him as “the true GOAT” on multiple accounts. Bibby also gave his thoughts on Goodbye & Good Riddance, saying that he “doesn’t skip one song on it.”
While TPNE is slated to be the “final album” from Juice WRLD, legacy has been a hot topic of discussion in the 999 community since his passing in 2019. Juice’s name still trends on social media quite often, especially in regards to new music announcements. Fans are vocally inquisitive, and sometimes angry, about the selection process of Juice WRLD’s afterlife drops — with much of their comments being directed toward Lil Bibby. “I don’t pay attention to that,” he flatly said before debuting the AI-edited lyric videos for “No Good” and “Glo’d Up.”
Nevertheless, The Party Never Ends is coming for real this time, as Bibby and company are diligently working to finalize the album this year.
Check out photos from the event below, courtesy of Devon Raleigh!
