Flavor Flav pays U.S. Olympian’s rent after her concerned post

Believe the hype: Flavor Flav is continuing to go above and beyond for the athletes at the 2024 Paris Olympics. 

A representative for the rapper confirmed to Entertainment Weekly that he has paid Olympian Veronica Fraley’s rent in full this month after the discus thrower wrote on X (formerly Twitter) that she was unable to afford the payment. They added that Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian has also come forward and covered Fraley’s rent for the remainder of the year. 

Fraley, who is a graduate student at Vanderbilt University, shared her financial struggle on social media Thursday. “I compete in the Olympic Games TOMORROW and can’t even pay my rent,” she wrote. “My school only sent about 75% of my rent while they pay football players (who haven’t won anything 😂) enough to buy new cars and houses 👎🏾👎🏾👎🏾.”

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After spotting her post, Flavor Flav quickly stepped in to rectify the situation. “I gotchu,,, DM me and I’ll send payment TODAY so you don’t have to worry bout it TOMORROW,” he replied. “And imma be rooting for ya tomorrow LETZ GO,!!!”

He was soon joined on the quest by Ohanian, who responded, “C’mon now! I’ll split it with @flavorfav.” 

The Flavor of Love star later posted a screenshot of what appears to be a transaction sent to Fraley at 6:18 p.m. “Man of word,” he captioned the image. “And Imma try and come by and support you in person tomorrow ,,, LMK what time.” 

Ohanian similarly shared a screenshot of a $7,760 payment — a nod to his technology company, Seven Seven Six — to Fraley with its description simply listed as “‘MURICA.” He added, “Update! It is done.” 

In a follow-up post, Fraley clarified that her frustration over the situation has nothing to do with her school, but the “rules that bar me from making the amount I’m WORTH as a collegiate athlete such as NIL which favors popularity over performance.” She continued, “That’s all I’m sayin. Wish me luck tm!” 

The 2024 NCAA discus champion is set to compete in Discus Throw qualifications on Friday, with the finals for the event being held on Aug. 5.

As it turns out, Fraley isn’t the only Team USA athlete that Flavor Flav has supported during these Olympics, either. Last month, a press release from USA Water Polo announced that he had inked a five-year sponsorship with the Women’s and Men’s national water polo teams and will serve as their official hype man.

As part of the deal, Flavor Flav has made an undisclosed financial contribution to the 2024 USA Women’s Water Polo Olympic Team, per the release. He will also make appearances throughout the year at Water Polo events and collaborate with the teams on social media. 

“Supporting USA Water Polo teams is an honor,” Flavor Flav said in the release. “As a girl dad and a champion of all sports, I’m excited to bring my energy and voice to this incredible sport. Niche sports often don’t get the spotlight they deserve, but they are packed with incredible talent and heart. Together, we’re going to make some serious waves!”