Torrey Hatch, known professionally as Boosie Badazz, was performing in Detroit on his national tour when he got the chance to do something he had been hoping for far longer than any concert run. He pulled up to the house of his childhood best friend, Derrick Jackson, a man he had not seen in roughly three decades. The two gave each other a big hug.
The reunion, which Boosie documented on social media, started with a post last month, according to a report by Billboard. Boosie filmed himself on Instagram asking followers to weigh in on an email he was considering sending to Derrick, who had moved from Baton Rouge, Louisiana to Michigan when they were both kids. He read the message on camera, talking about the good times the two shared growing up at Wildwood Elementary and calling Derrick his "bestie" before leaving his phone number.
When he finished reading, someone off-camera responded to the moment. "That was so sweet and sentimental," the voice said.
The comments section had a different energy. Followers joked about how formal the email sounded. So did Derrick, who found the post and left a comment of his own. "You wrote that s—t like I'm on my death bed," he wrote. "I'm crying laughing….who you emailing!?? I'm waiting on the contact. Wow this is crazy…Derrick Jackson Jr on Facebook."
The two got back in touch. Boosie posted videos of the meetup, including one of the two of them at Slick City Action Park racing down slides together, with a caption reading, "Back like we ain't never separated! We compete at everything."
Detroit outlet DetroitRapDaily tracked down Derrick for his side of the story. He shared what his reply to the email would have looked like, had he actually received it. "Bro, it's been 30 years since I left Baton Rouge to move back to Michigan," Derrick said. "I always truly believed we would cross paths again in the same exact way. Your videos explaining your flashback to our childhood friendship brought many memories that I share with my friends and my family here in my hometown. Now many never truly believed I really knew the real Boosie Badazz, now I'm looking forward to renewing our friendship like it never stopped, bro. Sincerely, Derrick Jackson."
The reunion came while Boosie is navigating several ongoing legal matters, including a lawsuit over an alleged assault involving a hookah at a nightclub and a separate legal action he filed following a failed presidential pardon effort. His tour, "Boosie Badazz & Friends: Blues on the River V," brought him to the Aretha Franklin Amphitheatre in Detroit, which is where the visit with Derrick took place.