Fetty Wap’s issues with glaucoma required him to have an operation on his eyes at a very early age. Unfortunately only one was able to be salvaged, and he went on to wear a prosthesis in the other eye for years following. As he got into his late teens, however, Fetty decided the fake eye was no longer needed – as it not only gave him headaches when using it, but he also wasn’t ashamed to be different from his peers. Thus, “One Eyed Willy” was born, and he became the guy we know and love today.
Now he’s not only breaking records with his hit songs, but Fetty is inspiring people as well, and one such person is a young man by the name of Jayden. Jayden’s mom, Brenda Vaden (wait hold up – not to sidetrack here, but does that mean this kid’s name is Jayden Vaden? Like, it rhymes? Do you pronounce Vaden with a short A perhaps? Maybe they have different last names?!), took to Instagram recently to reveal that Fetty inspired her son to remove his prosthetic eye, and no longer be ashamed of his retinoblastoma.
Marisa Mendez: Twitter || Instagram
“Today I am forever thankful to a young man named Willie Maxwell aka Fetty Wap,” Brenda wrote one week ago. “While his music is catchy (not always agree with his lyrics but hey who am I to judge…), I’m not necessarily his fan (although Trap Queen is my jam), BUT today I’m his biggest fan. Many close friends, and of course our family know that Jayden was diagnosed with Retinoblastoma at the age of 1. In result of that he had his right eye removed 2 weeks after his 1st bday. He’s worn a prosthetic eye since then. He has always been terrified of taking it out and would not be caught without it…and then comes along Fetty Wap… Similar to Jayden he lost an eye at a young age and along the way he decided that he didn’t want to wear his prosthetic eye anymore, so he stopped. Jayden, let it be known, is a Fetty Wap fan, a real fan, not like me ha! Well, today, after weeks of asking, Jayden is venturing the world without his prosthetic. I of course am a wreck because this world can be cruel, but so proud of our Boogies. This young rapper unknowingly gave Jayden something we weren’t able to give him-the confidence to be different- and I am grateful to him. Thanks to Fetty Wap for saying F the world this is me, and for helping make our baby boy just a little more remarkable than he already is. And we’ll be purchasing his album, a small thank you to him for changing Jayden’s life forever. #oneeyeandawesome #jaydenismyhero #thankyoufettywap @fettywap1738”
The post then went somewhat viral, enough to catch the attention of Fetty himself. He happily responded with a very sweet message, making Brenda and Jayden’s appreciation of him grow even bigger. I love this story! Check out his response in the gallery.
Source: DX
