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Lil Za: 5 Things to Know About Justin Bieber’s Bestie

Lil Za
Here are five things you might not know about Justin Bieber's friend Lil Za

Okay, so, we're not sure that Lil Za (real name: Xavier Smith) is technically Justin Bieber's BFF — the Canadian superstar has a large entourage — but he has definitely worked his way into the pop star's tight-knit inner circle. It seems, however, that he might not be the best influence on the "Boyfriend" singer, whose behavior has grown increasingly … umm … erratic over the last year.

Bieber's latest headache came on Tuesday morning when police raided his Calabasas, California, manse looking for evidence related to the egging of a neighbor's home (because the alleged incident reportedly caused a whopping $20,000 of damage). Whether officers found what they were searching for remains somewhat ambiguous, but we know they did find one thing of note: a "suspicious substance" on Lil Za, which is currently believed to be a mix of ecstasy and Xanax.

[Related: Cops Raid Justin Bieber's Home Over Egg-Throwing Charges, Lil Za Arrested (Twice!)]

All this got us wondering: Just who is Bieber's new confidante? Here's what we know about the 19-year-old bad boy (yes, we know enough to call him that) so far.

1. He has a temper. After being arrested at Bieber's home, Lil Za was taken to the station where his situation went from bad to worse during a call he was having in a booking cell. Apparently, the conversation wasn't going well, and he smashed the receiver against the wall, causing $400 worth of damage and earning himself a felony vandalism charge on top of his other troubles.

2. He and Justin have been friends for at least one year. Lil Za was caught on camera cruising around (seemingly, on a date) in Justin's white Ferrari in February 2013. We can only assume that the Biebs wouldn't loan out his pricey wheels to just anyone, so we're going to cite this as hard evidence that these two boys have been hanging out for a while. Also, this is proof that Za likes babysitting luxury sports cars.

3. He was with Bieber and Lil Twist during Potgate and Sizzurp Scandal. When photos of the "Boyfriend" singer holding a suspicious-looking cigarette hit the web in Jan. 2013, he was reportedly in a Newport Beach, California, hotel room with Za and Twist. Just months later, Za played dumb when asked about the subsequent sizzurp incident (which, ICYMI, involved Bieber, Twist, and Za posing with what looked like joints and two sets of double cups — a popular way to drink codeine, aka "sizzurp"). But, as you well know, a picture's worth a thousand words. And Lil Za was in those pics.

[Related: Justin Bieber Addresses Pot Scandal on 'Saturday Night Live']

4. He considers himself to be a rapper. In his defense, he did post one rap song, called "Gangster S–t" on YouTube back in 2012. If you missed it, we can fill you in. It sounds exactly like you expect a song entitled "Ganger S–t" to sound. It's unclear whether he's still working on his music. We use the term "music" loosely.

5. If the rap star thing doesn't work out, he would be open to doing reality TV. Again, as full disclosure, we're not certain whether Lil Za prefers rap or television as his fame-vehicle of choice (besides being Bieber's buddy, of course), but in September 2013, he and his brother, Lil Twist, were openly shopping a reality show, which they said may or may not involve the Biebs, depending on his tour schedule. According to Za, the show was aimed at MTV and was going to "focus on Twist and his music," though he was quick to add, "I'll be in it, of course." Well, of course.

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