Now we all know that Soulja Boy, aka, Big Gucci Drako, aka, Yung Soulja Hot Fire, had the biggest comeback of 2018 without a question. Presently, he is on a mission to let the music world know that he is one of the most influential artists of this generation, and due to that, he demands his respect.
Unless you’ve been living under a rock for the past decade, the Crank Dat rapper was responsible for putting out major hit records such as; Kiss Me Through The Phone, Donk, Pretty Boy Swag, and holds responsibility for the start of the digitization of music: Crank Dat Soulja Boy. The young legend has blown up for a second time in his career to let everybody know that the current utilization of streaming and social media in music is all due to him and he’s honestly not lying.
Although his argument is being delivered in a braggadocios manner, he’s got the receipts to back it up which makes it even more undeniable. Past, present, and future rap stars have all tipped their caps to Big Draco as they realize that, though they might be “bigger” than him; they never would’ve been able to make it in the first place if he didn’t pave the way first.
While his legacy as a musician has been cemented, Soulja currently has his eyes set on a different goal: product manufacturing. He’s been on a tear trying to prove to the worlds of both entertainment and business that he is a true entrepreneur as he’s been reported selling and manufacturing a slew of products such as “SouljaHeadphones”, “Souljaphones”, “SouljaGames”, and “SouljaWatch.”
Although the models are re-emulated versions of products we already have seen, the success that he’s had off of them speaks for itself as of January 11th he was able to buy himself a 4.9 million dollar mansion off his products alone.
The 28-year-old, however, has been fighting an uphill battle as of recently, within showcasing the struggle of being a young, black entrepreneur, as he received a cease & desist from Nintendo of all place to stop the production of his game console. Furthermore, Soulja has exemplified that it’s harder to demand respect when you’re trying to give other young black men and women, like yourself a chance to have a stable source of residual income as he has also been selling “SouljaStocks” which as you could guess allowed people a stake in his winnings.
The last way that Soulja Boy has shown his pull as of recently has been in the most random of incidents that happened last week when Gucci displayed a piece that showed a white model in a black sort of turtleneck/gatorish sweater that blatantly depicted blackface, as seen below. Of course, this created an uproar within the black community as many of our celebrities also took to Instagram and Twitter to express their anger with the brand.
The reason why Soulja Boy has so much to do with this is that the Gucci headband he sported during his two-month tirade became a staple of his new persona as he wore it almost everywhere he went. It officially became a part of his new image when he became a meme due to commenting on Drake copying his style and his lyrics.
Over the two month period, he wore the specific headband that has caused a 127% sales spike after the meme had been created. He along with T.I. and Spike Lee are a few of the leading parties in the boycott against the iconic brand as he stated that Gucci was “done”, “canceled” and he pledged only to wear Fendi.
It’s crazy how much power and publicity he holds considering the meteoric rise he had back into the mainstream media. In such a short amount of time, he’s managed to legitimize his rap legacy again, claim his due as a businessman, and put his power on display first hand as he has done nothing but stuck to every word that has come out of his mouth. So with that being said, King Soulja, I salute you. Keep proving all of your doubters wrong and finding new lanes to succeed in all while being dripped in Fendi from head to toe.