Hakeem Seriki (born November 28, 1979 in Houston, Texas) is a Grammy Award … Read Full Bio ↴Hakeem Seriki (born November 28, 1979 in Houston, Texas) is a Grammy Award nominated rapper, member of The Color Changin' Click and founder of Chamillitary Entertainment. Better known as Chamillionaire, he also uses nicknames such as The Mixtape Messiah, King Koopa, Color Changin' Lizard, Chamillinator, Chamillitary Mayne, Major Payne and The Truth From Texas. He began rapping in 1998, releasing mixtapes and a collab album with fellow Houston rapper Paul Wall. He released his debut album, The Sound of Revenge, in 2005, and his sophmore release, Ultimate Victory, in 2007. He plans to release his yet untitled third album at the end of 2009 or early 2010.

After his parents, a Muslim father from Oyo State, Nigeria and a Christian mother from the United States, separated in his early teenage years, Chamillionaire settled into a notoriously dangerous inner-city neighborhood in North Houston called Acres Homes, which he elaborated upon during an interview with Houston's 104.9 KPTY on October 3. Rap and other forms of secular music, which his parents had highly opposed in their household, became very appealing to the young Hakeem Seriki. Inspired by local rap acts such as The Geto Boys, 8 Ball & MJG, and UGK, as well as other national acts such as N.W.A. and Public Enemy, Chamillionaire began to compose his own ponies.

At a young age, Chamillionaire along with fellow rap music artist and childhood friend Paul Wall, had decided to make music their careers. One day while promoting themselves at a Texas event, Paul Wall and Chamillionaire ran into Michael 5000 Watts, a popular mixtape DJ from the Northside. After proposing to do promotions for Watts' company, the Swishahouse, Chamillionaire and Paul Wall came to Watts' studio and convinced Watts to allow them freestyle on an intro to Watts' radio show on Houston’s 97.9 The Box. Watts, who himself was convinced to rap on the record, enjoyed the freestyle so much that he put the verses on one of his mixtapes. The freestyle became so popular in the streets that Chamillionaire and Paul Wall became regular staples on Houston's mixtape circuit, appeared on several of Watts' mixtapes, and became permanent members of Swishahouse.

Although Paul Wall and Chamillionaire were making much noise in the streets by rapping on Watts' mixtapes, they, along with several other members of the Swishahouse, became frustrated with the lack of money they were receiving from the mixtapes. After fellow member Slim Thug left the label, Chamillionaire and Paul Wall followed and started their own mixtape group known as The Color Changin' Click. Each successive mixtape released by The Color Changin' Click led to more business opportunities; the most notable of which being a contract to do a full album for Paid in Full Records. A one album contract was then negotiated between the Color Changin' Click and Paid in Full's label head, DJ Madd Hatta from 97.9 The Box, and the CCC's first album, Get Ya Mind Correct, would go on to sell over 100,000 copies.

The sale of all these albums without the backing of a major deal caught the attention of several major labels wanting to sign Chamillionaire and Paul. Chamillionaire and his labelmates decided to remain independent, however, until the right deal came along. While working on his second album with the Color Changin' Click, Chamillionaire began to have creative differences with Paul Wall, so much so that it was decided that the two emcees should each release solo albums that would be packaged together. When Chamillionaire became dissatisfied with how things were being resolved, he left Paid in Full and his almost complete album after fulfilling his contractual obligations to focus on promoting his mixtape label Chamillitary instead. As a kid, Chamillionaire was a big fan of MANKind, also known as Big June.

Chamillionaire's Myspace

This kid from Houston, Texas has some nerve. That's what came to mind as you watched an MTV special in early 2005 showcasing H-Town's commercial and artistic re-emergence on the rap scene. Following his brazen freestyle, the focused and much-heralded MC known as Chamillionaire faced a national audience and launched a swagger-filled proclamation on camera: "I'm the truth from Texas..." While such boasting may seem par-for-the-course in the prideful 25-year-plus history of hip-hop, the latter ambitious statement aptly describes Chamillionaire. It's the reason why he earned the lofty alias "The Mixtape Messiah," a title Cham was crowned after independently selling over 100,000 copies of the Get Ya Mind Correct album, and by selling thousands of his numerous mix tapes. It's why the former member of Houston's legendary mix-tape power Swisha House garnered coverage in such major hip-hop publications as Source and XXL without the backing of a major deal. When the Houston lyricist set off a major label bidding war to distribute his Chamillitary Records, it became abundantly clear throughout the 'hood and the music industry Chamillionaire is indeed the truth.

With his major-label debut The Sound Of Revenge set for release on Universal Records, Chamillionaire is poised to take his place among Houston's current hip-hop elite, including the new generation of rhyme-spitters such as Lil' Flip, Slim Thug, Mike Jones and Paul Wall, as well respected vets UGK and Scarface. "You call out a lot of rappers and ask them why they are the best and they are going to tell you everything but the music," Cham laughs. "They will tell you that they are the best because they have some nice rims, a chain, and a mansion." He then adds in a straight-no-chaser tone, "You've heard all the hype about Chamillionaire; that he's sick with the lyrics, sings hooks, and represents the streets and the clubs. But I just want to come as close as possible to living up to my reputation."

Chamillionaire recruits an impressive list of talent on his debut effort, including Lil' Flip, Bun B, Scarface, and Krayzie Bone, as well as in-demand producers Scott Storch (50 Cent), Mannie Fresh (Lil' Wayne, Baby, Juvenile) and Cool & Dre (The Game). But, it's his work with Atlanta studio kings The Beat Bullies (1Big Boi/OutKast) that sets the tone for much of The Sound Of Revenge's diverse platform. "They understand me," Cham says of the in-house producers. "There are a lot of producers that have dope beats, but they don't know me as an artist. [The Beat Bullies] being from Atlanta, can take it to the strip clubs, the streets and to the radio."

The name Chamillionaire represents the unique style that defines the talented urban artist, and his ability to change and adapt on the fly, forcing people to respect the true breadth of his talent. And just as this MC moniker exemplifies, Chamillionaire is anything but predictable and most certainly versatile. "Picture Perfect" featuring Bun B comes off as a lyrical nod to the classic 'hood swagger of UGK, while the Beat Bullies'-anchored "Radio Interruption" showcases Cham's prowess for walking the blurred line between street praise and mass appeal. The storytelling brilliance of "No Snitching" (Cool & Dre), finds Cham detailing the unwritten laws of 'hood politics. On the Scott Storch produced "Turn It Up," Cham tag-teams with freestyle king Lil' Flip as they spit over an infectious track that is Houston's answer to a summer club banger. And the soulful "Here Comes The Rain" finds Chamillionaire exploring the daily struggles of life with heartfelt lyricism and ghetto angst.

"It's a very personal song and the title says it all," Cham says of the revealing track. "In a person's life the rain symbolizes the struggles we all go through. Whether you are dealing with losing a loved one or your rent is due on the 1st, but it's the 3rd and you don't have it. I'm just talking about surviving the tough times."

Chamillionaire has definitely seen his share of struggles on his road to redemption. Born to a Muslim father and Christian mother, secular music was banned in his household. Chamillionaire was barely a teenager when he moved to a low-income neighborhood in the notorious North Side of Houston, following the separation of his parents. By the early '90s, however, rap rebels such as NWA, Public Enemy, as well as hometown heroes The Geto Boys, 8-Ball & MJG and UGK would inspire a young Hakeem to write his own rhymes.

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Chamillionaire's Myspace

Go Hard
Chamillionaire Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

"Chamillitary Mayne"

(Chamillionaire)
You in the presence of the finest
My rims twenty-somethin, age twenty-somethin
Try to count the millions I done made... twenty-somethin?
No homo

I go hard! Its goin down, get ready for the show
I go hard! Mixtape God stepping through the do'
I go hard! Ain't another rapper f-in' with the flow
I go hard! Y'all need to stop actin like you slow
I go... Y'all need to stop actin like you slow
I go hard! Y'all need to stop actin like you slow
I go hard! Y'all need to stop actin like you slow
I go hard! "Y'all need to stop actin like you slow"
I go hard!

Ay, I'll go at anyone of you dudes that used to hang with the click
Who runnin round makin the threats about how gangster you get
You put your neck on the line, the YOU takin a slip
Do like a chick that won't let me hit and try to stay off my dick
Or I'ma prove that you don't want it with Mufasa, you got the
Warnin it's about to get ugly as Chewbacca
Bout to make me hot as stew pasta, too salsa
Holla in Espanol, cucaracha, tu caca
You see me sittin in it, you can bet that it ain't rented
See the fo'-five infinite Caucasian white tinted
Eyes lookin squinted, they can't tell me that it didn't
Pop eyes, like the ball, white got it like spinach
Chamillitary Mayne, we in the house like tenants
Oh dog, I'm a menace, oh Lord, I'm a dentist
Y'all sound like gimmicks, y'all sound quite finished
And all y'all hang around a bunch of clowns like Grimace
Meanwhile on the other side of town
Plate full of bullets and another side of rounds
I'm too deep, make a pot of a lotta nouns
Spit a verse and every person that you love about to drown
I'm a shark in a bloody game of Marco Polo
Dart flyin through the air to mark your polo
Haters try to tell me they don't heart my logo
Others love it so they hug it with their heart, no homo
You a bozo and I am no clown, I am the town
When I step into public, you know it's goin down
When I step back in the city you already know, it's goin down
That I be overseas gettin them G's fall out please, you know it's goin down
Lil Wayne's song describe my smallest bank account silly
A millie millie, a millie, a millie millie millie
I'm movin in it like Diddy, your city's my city
They try to throw me the kitty, the kitty's like "gimme"
Didn't drop for a minute, bootleggers told me they need me
Looks like the whole region is ready to BCD me
Clowns in the H tryna act like they wanna see me
I'm poppin up like a genie, they disappear like Houdini
You busters must have snorted that Whitney, I am sick G
Peeew, hot, heat seeking missiles be tryna sick me
Wish he, would try to throw it my way and piss me
Off, here's a thought, I make your history a mystery
(Sound of Twilight Zone theme) ...Twilight zone
I'm worth two thousand more than me with my ice on
I'm a butcher with a weapon baby, I knife songs
Mo' murder murder, mo' murder, like I like Bone
The only way that you could ever be hotter than me
Is if I don't put out no music and that spot'll be free
Always grindin, any time I ever spotted a G
I was on point like a decimal, a dot or a P-
E-R-I-O-D, no paper out of my reach
Shakin Uncle Sam, I keep a lotta receipts
And nah Cham ain't never the one to bring no sand to the beach
I put the moula in my hand and bring grands to the street, yah
Pullin up in the newest ish, you ain't never knew exist
Baby get inside, darling you can smell the newishness
You can see the platinum, see the clearness and the bluishness
Lookin at my jewellery tryna figure out who my jeweller is
Underground money never disappears
When your mixtape, flow and skill is sick as his
Know its big business, I be on them businesses
You all be actin immature so now I roll with bigger kids
Ridin on 28's, my rims clear a lotta cones
Ridin through the city mayne I hear a lotta clones
Kill a microphone like I'm Killa Kyleon
Bout to change my rap name, (to what?) Killa Clinaclone
I promised that the mic gon' need a mic toe tag
Its still clear, I'm still here and that's despite you're a fag
I left the underground alone and nobody came and took it
Well guess who's back to take it like good lookin
Uh, look in the garage, your cars ain't sick as ours
I done had the doors ajared on plenty cars
I was gettin large while y'all was chillin hard
So the rappers praise the God, (my lord) like synagogue
Just when they thought it was haters win, I'ma hurt 'em all
Just when they thought it was traitors win, I'ma curve the ball
I'm always right but I act like I never heard of wrong
And I know it all like I'm able to give a nerd a call
Clark Kent but I'm sure I can make the shirt come off
Mixtape Messiah 4, its like I'm (click) cocking a burner y'all

"Get ya burners, get ya burners, here we come again"
You know who the streets waiting to see... me
"Get ya burners, get ya burners, here we come again"
Mixtape Messiah part fo', let's go

I try to chase the green face like The Wizard of Oz
Took the yellow brick road, two acquisitive cars
Don't wanna hear nothing real? You should be skipping my parts
My swagger get any higher, I'll be sitting on Mars
I don't post on blogs or chat about what singers gay
I don't switch green names and change up everything I say
I don't let SoundScan allow a lame the right of way
You could sell ten-million and still be not who I'ma play
Car pearly, white as teeth, I guess that you could say I'm flossin
See me and think of green, like Saint Patrick's Day or Boston

I lead and they follow, these rappers guilty of stalkin
The underground was dead but I'm about to leave the coffin

Overall Meaning

In this song, Chamillionaire asserts his position as one of the best rappers in the game, stating that he is in the presence of the finest and boasts about his lavish lifestyle. He speaks about his journey to success, emphasizing his hard work and grind that got him to where he is. Chamillionaire disses other rappers that he deems as threats to his artistry by making threats and boasts about his ability to lyrically outdo them, making them sound finished in comparison. He references popular culture like "The Wizard of Oz" and "Star Wars," showing his love for movies. Chamillionaire also asserts his influence in the rap world, stating that underground rap was dead before he came along and promising to revive it.

This song has an aggressive and confident tone, signaling Chamillionaire's place in the rap game. He is confident in his abilities and is willing to put anyone in their place who tries to challenge him. His flow, delivery, and lyrics all contribute to the message that he is trying to portray: he is one of the greatest rappers out there.

Line by Line Meaning

You in the presence of the finest
You are in the presence of the most excellent

My rims twenty-somethin, age twenty-somethin
The size of my rims is in the twenties, just like my age

Try to count the millions I done made... twenty-somethin?
Try to calculate the millions of dollars I have made... in my twenties?

No homo
No sexual implications or connotations here

I go hard! Its goin down, get ready for the show
I'm going all out! It's about to happen, prepare for the performance

I go hard! Mixtape God stepping through the do'
I'm going all out! As the god of mixtapes, I enter the scene

I go hard! Ain't another rapper f-in' with the flow
I'm going all out! No other rapper can compete with my flow

I go hard! Y'all need to stop actin like you slow
I'm going all out! All of you need to stop pretending to be slow or foolish

Ay, I'll go at anyone of you dudes that used to hang with the click
Hey, I'll confront any of you guys who used to be part of our group

Who runnin round makin the threats about how gangster you get
Who is going around making empty threats about being tough or gangster

You put your neck on the line, the YOU takin a slip
You are risking everything, and if you make a mistake, it's on you

Do like a chick that won't let me hit and try to stay off my dick
Act like a woman who rejects me and tries to avoid me

Or I'ma prove that you don't want it with Mufasa, you got the
Or I'm going to show you that you don't want to mess with me, just like Mufasa

Warnin it's about to get ugly as Chewbacca
Warning, things are about to get ugly, like Chewbacca from Star Wars

Bout to make me hot as stew pasta, too salsa
About to make me angry and fierce, like hot pasta and spicy salsa

Holla in Espanol, cucaracha, tu caca
Shout in Spanish, like saying 'cockroach, your shit'

You see me sittin in it, you can bet that it ain't rented
If you see me sitting in a car, you can be sure that it's not a rental

See the fo'-five infinite Caucasian white tinted
See the forty-five caliber gun with a Caucasian person sitting inside, windows tinted white

Eyes lookin squinted, they can't tell me that it didn't
Eyes appearing narrow, they cannot deny what they see

Pop eyes, like the ball, white got it like spinach
Eyes popping out, like a basketball bouncing, the color white is prominent, like spinach

Chamillitary Mayne, we in the house like tenants
Chamillitary Mayne and I are in this place like long-term tenants

Oh dog, I'm a menace, oh Lord, I'm a dentist
Oh man, I'm a troublemaker, oh Lord, I'm skilled at causing pain

Y'all sound like gimmicks, y'all sound quite finished
You all sound like imposters, like your careers are already over

And all y'all hang around a bunch of clowns like Grimace
And all of you surround yourselves with foolish people, like the character Grimace

Meanwhile on the other side of town
Meanwhile, in a different part of town

Plate full of bullets and another side of rounds
A plate filled with bullets and another round of ammunition

I'm too deep, make a pot of a lotta nouns
I'm too deep, creating a pot full of various words

Spit a verse and every person that you love about to drown
When I rap a verse, it overwhelms and drowns everyone you hold dear

I'm a shark in a bloody game of Marco Polo
I'm a shark in a fierce competition, always on the hunt

Dart flyin through the air to mark your polo
A dart flying through the air, leaving a mark on your polo shirt

Haters try to tell me they don't heart my logo
Haters try to pretend they don't appreciate my logo

Others love it so they hug it with their heart, no homo
Others love it so much, they embrace it with passion

You a bozo and I am no clown, I am the town
You are a fool, but I am not, I am the center of attention

When I step into public, you know it's goin down
When I enter public spaces, you know something exciting is happening

When I step back in the city you already know, it's goin down
When I return to the city, you already know that something significant is happening

That I be overseas gettin them G's fall out please, you know it's goin down
That I am making money overseas, causing people to be amazed and want to please me, you know something big is happening

Lil Wayne's song describe my smallest bank account silly
Even Lil Wayne's song describing his smallest bank account is laughable compared to mine

A millie millie, a millie, a millie millie millie
I have millions, millions, millions, just like the song 'A Milli' by Lil Wayne

I'm movin in it like Diddy, your city's my city
I'm making moves like Diddy, and every city I visit becomes my city

They try to throw me the kitty, the kitty's like 'gimme'
People try to seduce me, but I don't easily fall for it

Didn't drop for a minute, bootleggers told me they need me
I haven't released music for a while, but bootleggers tell me they need more of it

Looks like the whole region is ready to BCD me
It seems like the entire region is excited and ready to support me

Clowns in the H tryna act like they wanna see me
Clowns in the city of Houston are pretending like they want to challenge me

I'm poppin up like a genie, they disappear like Houdini
I appear suddenly, like a genie, and they vanish like the magician Houdini

You busters must have snorted that Whitney, I am sick G
You guys must be deluded, I'm the real deal

Peeew, hot, heat seeking missiles be tryna sick me
Peeew, hot! People are constantly trying to bring me down

Wish he, would try to throw it my way and piss me
I wish someone would try to provoke me and make me angry

Off, here's a thought, I make your history a mystery
Turn your past achievements into something unknown

(Sound of Twilight Zone theme) ...Twilight zone
Enter the eerie world of the Twilight Zone

I'm worth two thousand more than me with my ice on
I am worth more than two thousand times my own value when I'm wearing expensive jewelry

I'm a butcher with a weapon baby, I knife songs
I'm incredibly skilled at dissecting and destroying songs

Mo' murder murder, mo' murder, like I like Bone
More murder, like the rap group Bone Thugs-n-Harmony, I enjoy it

The only way that you could ever be hotter than me
The only way you could be more successful than me

Is if I don't put out no music and that spot'll be free
Is if I stop releasing music, and that spot will become available

Always grindin, any time I ever spotted a G
I'm always working hard, anytime I notice someone influential

I was on point like a decimal, a dot or a P-
I was sharp and focused, like a decimal point or the letter P

E-R-I-O-D, no paper out of my reach
Period, I have access to plenty of money

Shakin Uncle Sam, I keep a lotta receipts
I'm shaking up the government, I keep many receipts to prove my income

And nah Cham ain't never the one to bring no sand to the beach
And no, Cham is never the one to bring unnecessary things

I put the moula in my hand and bring grands to the street, yah
I make a lot of money and bring it to the streets

Pullin up in the newest ish, you ain't never knew exist
I arrive in the latest and most exclusive things that you didn't even know existed

Baby get inside, darling you can smell the newishness
Come inside, my dear, you can sense the freshness and newness

You can see the platinum, see the clearness and the bluishness
You can see the platinum material, the clarity, and bluish hue

Lookin at my jewellery tryna figure out who my jeweller is
People are looking at my jewelry, trying to guess who made it

Underground money never disappears
The money I make in the underground music scene never goes away

When your mixtape, flow and skill is sick as his
When your mixtape, flow, and skill are as amazing as mine

Know its big business, I be on them businesses
Know that it's a significant opportunity, I engage in various business ventures

You all be actin immature so now I roll with bigger kids
You all behave in a childish manner, so now I associate with more mature individuals

Ridin on 28's, my rims clear a lotta cones
Driving on rims sized 28 inches, my car clears a lot of traffic cones

Ridin through the city mayne I hear a lotta clones
As I drive through the city, I hear many imitators

Kill a microphone like I'm Killa Kyleon
I destroy microphones with the same skill as Killa Kyleon

Bout to change my rap name, (to what?) Killa Clinaclone
I'm about to change my rap name to Killa Clinaclone

I promised that the mic gon' need a mic toe tag
I'm so talented on the mic that it will need a toe tag, like a dead body

Its still clear, I'm still here and that's despite you're a fag
I'm still here and my talent is still evident, regardless of your derogatory term

I left the underground alone and nobody came and took it
I left the underground music scene and no one stepped up to claim it

Well guess who's back to take it like good lookin
Well, guess who's back to claim it, just like expected

I try to chase the green face like The Wizard of Oz
I try to pursue money obsessively, like in The Wizard of Oz

Took the yellow brick road, two acquisitive cars
I followed a profitable and successful path, owning two luxurious cars

Don't wanna hear nothing real? You should be skipping my parts
If you don't want to hear anything genuine, you should skip my parts

My swagger get any higher, I'll be sitting on Mars
My confidence and style are so elevated that I might as well be on Mars

I don't post on blogs or chat about what singers gay
I don't engage in online gossip or discussion about someone's sexual orientation

I don't switch green names and change up everything I say
I don't change my stage name or alter my message to fit different trends

I don't let SoundScan allow a lame the right of way
I don't let music charts determine the success or relevance of an artist

You could sell ten-million and still be not who I'ma play
Even if you sold ten-million records, I still wouldn't listen to you

Car pearly, white as teeth, I guess that you could say I'm flossin
My car is shiny and white, resembling teeth, so you could say I'm showing off

See me and think of green, like Saint Patrick's Day or Boston
When you see me, you associate me with money, like on Saint Patrick's Day or in Boston

I lead and they follow, these rappers guilty of stalkin
I set the trends and they imitate, these rappers are guilty of being followers

The underground was dead but I'm about to leave the coffin
The underground music scene was dying, but I'm reviving it

"Get ya burners, get ya burners, here we come again"
"Get your guns ready, here we come again"

You know who the streets waiting to see... me
You know who the streets are eagerly waiting to see... me

Mixtape Messiah part fo', let's go
This is the fourth installment of the Mixtape Messiah series, let's go