Some very suspicious things have been happening around CU lately. As someone who likes to think he has a handle on the local music scene, I was somewhat surprised that I had not heard too much about a purported Juicy J (formerly of Three 6 Mafia) concert happening at Foellinger Auditorium on Friday, Feb. 15. I follow Juicy J on Twitter, which he uses frequently. There was not a lot of mention of a Champaign show.

Then I was told on Saturday that Juicy J never showed up in Champaign, the show was cancelled, and nobody is getting refunds. One of my friends (who asked to go unnamed) bought 15 tickets for himself and co-workers, only to be completely stiffed out of the money with no way to get it back. A member of the buzz music staff told me a similar story.

When I got home Saturday I checked Juicy J’s Twitter account. Here are some tweets.

On Feb. 15, Juicy J tweeted about T-shirts, key chains and rolling papers. He tweeted about having to buy a new microphone. He Instagrammed a picture of a gold and diamond rolex. No mention of a show.

So it seemed at this point that Juicy J never intended to go to a show in Champaign.

I went to the website of the promoter. The website (http://livemusic7.com/) looked extremely fishy, as if it was made in haste by someone with limited website and design knowledge.

I called my anonymous source, who bought a large number of tickets for himself and friends, and he said Juicy J tweeted on Thursday that the Champaign show had been cancelled. I checked Twitter to find that on Thursday, Feb. 14, Juicy J tweeted:

“Promoters cancelled my show tomm in CHAMPAIG IL due to lack of funds #whatsnext?”

At 11:13 in the morning on Monday, Feb. 18, I went to livemusic7.com and checked for a contact number. The website said, “For online refunds call 312-450-9806.” The call (surprise, surprise) was cut off after half a ring. As of now, to the best of our knowledge, no students’ tickets have been refunded.

So what happened here? It seems clear that Juicy J is not at fault. He even went on camera saying that he would be at the show. Was it a scam by the promoter to get money from naive college kids who just love the Juice Man? Based on the makeshift website, it seems that might be the case. And now the promoter has vanished.

As much as I understand someone trying to make money, I don’t think taking money from college kids like this is the way to go about it. But then again, “Bandz A Make Her Dance,” right?

I am particularly interested in this story because Juicy J and Three 6 Mafia are some of my idols. I still listen to Most Known Unknown frequently. I remember the ridiculous sunglasses Juicy J wore in the “Ridin’ Spinners” video. I could tell you every lyric to “Sippin on Some Syrup.” I danced along when Three 6 Mafia played “Hard Out Here for a Pimp” in front of a bewildered crowd of older white people at the Oscars. I simply need to know what happened.

Here are screenshots of the website as of 12:58 in the afternoon, Tuesday, February 18, in case someone decides to take it down.

I have attempted to contact one of the artists on the bill and will update with his side of the story as soon as he responds.

Updated as of 3:34 p.m., February 18, 2013: Brandon Saunders, also known as Bee Kay, asked me to call him at 2 p.m. Saunders is a local rap artist who was set to open for Juicy J at the show. He said that the promoter, Eric McGee of Livemusic7.com, asked him to be on the bill if he agreed to play for free and sell tickets to his friends.

“I wasn’t getting paid to perform, I just wanted to do it to get my name out there,” Saunders said.

Saunders said he sold about 80 tickets to friends in the area, the most of anyone asked to promote the show, and handed the money to Eric McGee in cash. Saunders said that the sum of the money he gave to McGee was nearly $1500, given on two separate occasions. Saunders also added that McGee claims to have been in Champaign this past weekend, but Saunders never saw him. McGee called him several times in the past few weeks but refused to text him. He cannot reach McGee at any of the phone numbers he has been contacting him with, as they have been disconnected. The full transcript of the Bee Kay interview will be posted later tonight.

If you have more information on this, please e-mail music@readbuzz.com as soon as you can.