Miles “Lil Yachty” McCollum is nothing if not conspicuous.
The 27-year-old rapper, an Atlanta native who rose to fame 10 years ago with his viral hit “One Night” and signature beaded-and-braided red hair, has lived his young adult life in front of the world.
He’s made chart-topping songs in genres ranging from hip-hop to psychedelic rock, starred in movies like “How High 2,” and sold out arenas with friends like Drake and Tyler the Creator, stirring crowds into a frenzy along the way.
You’d think such a party-promoting performer would be no stranger to adult beverages, which tend to come with the territory. Yet Lil Yachty has never been a fan of alcohol.
“I just didn’t like the taste,” Yachty told UATL in a phone interview. “It’s not like I had negative connotations. I just didn’t drink it.”
That changed last year when he tasted Yacht Water, a ready-to-drink cocktail made by Atlanta-based Sneaky Spirits, inspired by the Texas-born “ranch water” cocktail.
Yachty was encouraged to sample the canned tequila seltzer by Kevin “Coach K” Lee, chief operating officer of Quality Control Music, the rapper’s record label home since his breakthrough 2016 mixtape, “Lil Boat.”
“Yachty never drinks, but he’s growing up now. When I met him he was 18. All he ate was pizza, hot dogs with ketchup … no fruits, no vegetables. But he’s trying different things now. Your palate, as you grow, you’re going to experience things.”
Coach K was introduced to Yacht Water in 2024 by Peter Kiley, brewmaster and partner at Monday Night Brewing, and cofounder of Sneaky Spirits, which made the original version of Yacht Water and released it at Monday Night’s 2023 anniversary party.
During a meeting where the two creative leaders were discussing business unrelated to beverages, Kiley invited Coach K to try his new concoction. The drink, made with additive-free reposado tequila, sparkling water, fresh key lime juice and sea salt, was a natural match for the music industry executive’s personal preference for dry, low-sugar beverages.
“I’m a tequila drinker; that’s my drink of choice. The way I drink my tequila, most times I do a skinny margarita with sparkling water and lime. When I tasted it I was like oh my god, then I looked at the ingredients and saw key limes. I put key limes every morning in my water because that’s the best lime, with all the minerals and alkaline,” Coach K said.
Credit: Pedro Marashi | Southern Exposure Media Group
Credit: Pedro Marashi | Southern Exposure Media Group
Excited about the possibility of investing and seeing the obvious brand connection to his label’s star artist, Coach K said Yachty instantly liked the product but was skeptical because he never drank.
“I said, ‘You have to taste this.’ When he tasted it, he was like, ‘Oh man, this is, this is crazy. I don’t taste any liquor — this is good.’ And from there on he was like, ‘Let’s go.’”
While Yacht Water has been available in Atlanta since 2023, local sippers likely had no idea that the “One Night” rapper and Quality Control executive were quiet investors. In a video posted to YouTube today, Yachty made the big reveal.
“We are so excited to be working with Lil Yachty and Coach K to bring this new-to-world product to the people,” said Rachel Kiley, CEO and cofounder of Sneaky Spirits.
“The city of Atlanta has a remarkable way of bringing like-minded people together. The four of us met through mutual connections but we really bonded over our shared passion for clean, quality products that are made well and taste great.”
Credit: Pedro Marashi | Southern Exposure Media Group
Credit: Pedro Marashi | Southern Exposure Media Group
Yachty’s participation goes beyond pitchman. He‘s actively involved in everything from the design to the drink itself, having helped create Sunrise Yacht Water, the third and latest iteration of the cocktail, which adds fresh orange juice to the original recipe.
“From the creative to the upcoming merchandising, it’s all internal conversations that go through all ears,” Yachty told UATL. “From the production standpoint of visually what you see to the promotional concepts, I had quite a hand in all of it.”
Another version of Yacht Water includes jalapeño. All versions of the drink are 5.8% alcohol by volume (ABV).
Credit: Pedro Marashi | Southern Exposure Media Group
Credit: Pedro Marashi | Southern Exposure Media Group
Yacht Water is far from the first or only alcoholic beverage to be endorsed by a popular Black musician. Examples include the classic St. Ides malt liquor commercials of the 1990s, Jay-Z’s D’ussé cognac and Ace of Spades Champagne, Nicki Minaj’s Myx moscato, and Beyoncé‘s Sirdavis whisky, launched in 2024.
Since the COVID pandemic, canned and ready-to-drink (RTD) cocktail sales have boomed and are expected to see continued growth, according to consumer research complied in 2024 by the International Wine and Spirits Record. Despite slowing growth in the past year, the U.S. is expected to see more than 3% volume gains in the category between 2023 and 2028.
While canned and RTD cocktails’ popularity has risen, Peter Kiley said he noticed a disturbing decline in the quality and flavor of canned cocktails. This, he said, inspired him to create a higher-quality and better-tasting alternative.
“For many of the bigger brands in this category, it seems any innovation being done is motivated by the bottom line instead of the consumer. Yacht Water is proof that quality and affordability can coexist if you care enough about the people you’re selling to,” Peter said.
“The architecture of this liquid puts the consumer first — both through quality and composition. Profitability and margins are not on our list of ingredients — and never will be.”
Starting today, Yacht Water will be available for online purchase beyond Georgia and Tennessee, where it has been exclusively available until now. Yachty said the most interesting thing he’s learned as a partner in Yacht Water has been getting the alcoholic drink approved and stocked in different states.
“It’s not just you wake up and throw it in somewhere. It’s very much a process — a serious process. It’s not easy to get into the business.”
Credit: Pedro Marashi | Southern Exposure Media Group
Credit: Pedro Marashi | Southern Exposure Media Group
With data showing that Millennials and Gen Z are drinking less alcohol than previous generations, someone like Yachty — who appears to represent the sort of discerning consumer the industry wants to target — could be a bellwether for smoother sails, if not sales, ahead. At least that’s what Yachty, who says his famous friends who’ve tried Yacht Water are fans of his new liquid venture, believes.
“The honesty of the ingredients will speak volumes in the long run. It is what we say it is, and I think that goes a long way.”
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