Instagram/@joclive
Rapper and entertainer Yung Joc together with the Atlanta creators’ team discussed the production of a humorous rental scam video that in the meantime jokingly calls Atlanta ‘Scamlanta’. This issue became a matter of great concern and the team was called for more creative content with the same concept. Even though the problem is serious in the housing market, it still gets the attention of people in a playful way.
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The sketch starts with Yung Joc and his friends including Kailynn PrettyPisces and Polo2G arriving at a huge beautiful house. They are related to their cousin who ‘just got out of jail for scamming’ from whom they got the house online – thus right at the beginning the parody tone is set. And what is next showing is less than a master’s lesson of awkwardness, distrustfulness, and bad behaviors all wrapped up in property viewing.
The fake ‘agents’ are taking the guests through the house and showing off the features at the same time, one is a ‘beat live room’ and the other a ‘main kitchen,’ but the descriptions are rather confusing and quite vague. Every twist and turn in the conversation is a warning sign, requests for a ‘case deposit’ and mention of ‘service’ fees for windows so they ‘won’t pull a bad flat’ are just some of the signs of the standard scams. On such visits, the guests are not sure whether to be curious or skeptical and their mixed feelings lead to a situation of confrontation when one of them claims he wants to see the rest of the house before he is willing to make any commitment.
It is a clever, comical and very accurate portray of the classic listings that are too good to be true and the high-pressure tactics that are unfortunately part of many rental scams. Yung Joc has a post where he tells it is better not to be a victim in #Scamlanta and questions his followers if they would like to see more such skits.
The reply was an incredible ‘yes’ along with several praises for both the fun and the significance. One follower pointed to the ridiculousness of the scam and commented, ‘Scared of prices Luis low!!!’ – a comment that perfectly summarizes the funny, often misspelled, and hard-to-understand language that is used in fake ads.
Another viewer could not help but laugh about a certain detail and tagged Polo2G as if to say, ‘not you took the people’s appliances 😂😂😂😂’. This scenario of the scammer taking the appliances out of the house is a great source of humor that is often very relatable for those who have had encounters with poorly furnished rentals.
The sketch has led to some musings about the career evolution of Yung Joc. One of the veteran fans commented: ‘@joclive should’ve been doing skits like this. I mean it was ages ago when you did that lookin boy song. I thought for a long time you would switch over to comedy.’ This opinion reflects that the artist’s comedic talent is very much a natural fit, if not pointing, perhaps, to a new direction for his content.
A very succinct review of Atlanta’s character was given by a user who wrote ‘Scamlanta top scammers buddy nem 😂😂😂’. The hashtag #Scamlanta indeed went viral, it was a single word that summed up a well-known albeit unfortunate local stereotype.
Yung Joc and his team not only made people aware of the very common rental fraud problem by using humor, they also created something that was fun and at the same time educational, maybe even subtly so. The sketch is successful because it exaggerates reality to such an extent that it becomes funny, while still being slightly similar to the real-life experiences that many people have gone through or at least heard of. There is a call for more episodes, which indicates that there is an audience that craves this blend of social commentary and humor.
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However, it is still uncertain whether this will become a regular series or not, but the first response has already indicated the existence of the audience who wants smart comedies based in Atlanta that are not afraid to address the city’s legends, including dubious ones. For now, the tip is unequivocal: always check the whole place before making that ‘case deposit’ payment.
You can view the original article HERE.
