It’s said that art mirrors life. In hip-hop’s case, there’s always been a deliberate entanglement of perception and reality. Fans demand their MCs be real…but never too real. Successful hip-hop is about the hint of the danger, the tease of it, the mystique. Hip-hop is about balance.
Gucci Mane is an artist striving for that balance, volatility versus musicality. Controversy, including a feud with former collaborator Young Jeezy, has grabbed the headlines, with insufficient regard paid to his considerable mic skills, raw talent, and business acumen. Gucci is looking to wrest his name from public speculation and let his own words do the talking.
“I wish everybody well who’s making money in this rap game,” the Atlanta-raised rapper says, dismissing the controversy that followed him in the past. “My own rap game is going so good, I’ve got so many things on my plate at my label, that I don’t got time for other people’s business.” With a deal with Asylum Records as the boss of his own label, So Icey Entertainment, Gucci does indeed have a full schedule with no time to dwell on the past.
“I live my life with no regrets. I just wish that a lot of things never happened, but anybody can wish,” says Gucci. Sounds like a man with his eyes on the prize. And you’d expect nothing less from an artist who ground his way to the top via the hustle of independent records. Signing to Big Cat Records in the wake of his local single “Black Tee,” he dropped his debut record, Trap House, in May 2005. The independent album moved an impressive 140,000 units, largely on the strength of the “Icy” single, featuring Jeezy. Clamor over song rights sparked dispute, and the resulting rift grew.
Controversy notwithstanding, Mane’s independence was cemented: “I was on the independent scene for about two years,” he recalls. “It’s crazy! You gotta go into your own pocket to support your craft. You need other avenues to have money coming in, to support your stuff. You might win, you might lose, and it’s a gamble out there with the independent circuit. One thing you’d better have is good music because without that, you go downhill fast in the independent game.”
Good music firmly in hand, Gucci was fast approaching stardom when more tragedy befell him. But let’s backtrack; how did the man born Radric Davis in Bessemer, Alabama, become Gucci Mane, mouthpiece for Atlanta stuntin’? Mane remembers little from his time in Alabama, just that it was rural, and that it’s changed dramatically since he left at the age of nine. “I gotta shout out Alabama though, because they holdin’ it down,” he affirms. “Every time I go there to do a show, I’m impressed with how hip-hop culture has taken root.”
Mane’s identity coalesced when he moved with his mother to Atlanta. “I lived all of my adolescent and adult life in Atlanta,” he explains. “I’m from East Atlanta Zone Six; it was hard, man, it was real rough. I grew up in the Starter jacket era: they’d take your Starter jacket, your 8Ball jacket, they’d take your hat, your shoes. It was just no holds barred on the streets, dog eat dog. If you missed the bus, you had to be crewed up or you’d get jumped. It was wild when I came up.”
It’s a bleak portrait. When asked to describe his home life more vividly, Mane offers a look into his contemplative side, a side honed as a schoolyard poet. “I was just a young dude in a single parent house most of my life. I can’t complain that much. I would guess it’s like any black child growing up in a single parent household. There are a lot of people who know how that is. I didn’t have a lot coming up; but what I did have, I appreciated. I was blessed to have a caring mother to raise me right and to help me with my business ventures; she’s been there through the whole struggle. There’s a lot that goes along with that; it made me who I am today.”
A stepfather would enter the picture during Mane’s adolescence, introducing not only a male figure, but also inspiration for Mane’s unusual moniker. “My father came in, the original Gucci Mane; that’s what people in the neighborhood called him, and that’s where I get my name from. From then on, I grew up the son of a hustler and a schoolteacher; it was the best of both worlds because I was educated twice.” Drawing inspiration from a pantheon of rappers before him –Big Daddy Kane, LL Cool J, Ice Cube, the Beastie Boys, N.W.A—Mane went on to release Trap House, a lethal brew of his signature sound: “I call my music straight Gucci: going hard and whatever beats you make you for me, if I’m feeling it, if I’m rocking with it, I’m gonna crush it. When you hear me, you hear a lot of pain, a lot of hood; you hear what’s going on in the inner city in Atlanta.”
Unfortunately, Trap House was ill timed; the month of its release, Gucci was accused of murder and jailed for two days. Eventually deemed to be acting in self-defense, and without sufficient evidence to hold him, Mane was exonerated. But the ordeal left an indelible imprint on the man. “I learned to keep better company, watch where I go, and be mindful of my surroundings at all times,” he reveals. “Watch what I say, watch what I do and how I do it, just keep myself out of the wrong crowd.”
“I always stand up man,” he continues. “I’m one of the toughest guys I know. It’ll take a lot more than that to break me down.” Undeterred, Mane was back in the studio, preparing 2006’s eerily apropos Hard To Kill. The buzz from Hard To Kill vaulted Gucci Mane from regional commodity to national treasure, and major labels responded accordingly: “There was a bidding war going on, and I liked Atlantic’s approach. They made it known that they wanted me, they felt where I was going and that I could grow with them.”
Asylum/Atlantic Records welcomed Gucci Mane in early ’07, granting him his own imprint, So Icey Entertainment. With it comes an entire stable of artists, the So Icey Boyz. As the Boyz ready for their own exposure –“I got them in training; they be in the weight room, pumping iron, doing pushups, shopping at the mall, buying ice”—Gucci is focused on his magnum opus, Back to the Trap House. “I started working on the album, and by the third song, I was like ‘This is going back to the Trap House.’ I started feeling the same way I did when I made my first album. It had the same feel to it, the same freshness. And I had the same hunger and desire I had when I first started rapping.”
“Since I went major, I want everybody to know I’m still keeping it street, keeping it hood,” Gucci maintains. “I’m trying to take it back to all my fans that I had when I first started my career. And at the same time, I’m trying to open up my new album to a new fan base. So it’s a mix for everybody coming together, like my first album was.” Gucci has always prided himself on his innate ability, and his refusal to let guest appearances dictate the tone of his records. “I just want people to know I’m a great songwriter, man,” he asserts. “I’m passionate about what I do, and it’s choreographed strategically when I do it. I bring a lot of experience, creative wordplay, and a crazy style. And my albums, I record most of the songs without writing them down; it’s a God-given gift and I just get paid for it. It come from God, it’s like wondering what makes a bird fly. He made me a poet like the great poets of the past.”
But don’t mistake Gucci’s confidence for self-absorption. The vicissitudes of his career have dictated a longer view. Lyrics aside, he’s less preoccupied with visible means and more so with acting as an emissary from his under-repped block. “I’m not the one to glorify what goes on in the hood,” he insists. “We have everything there, the whole range from violence to people getting on the bus and going to work. There’s a lot more to the hood than just drugs. It’s a bigger story, there’s a big picture. I went to school in that neighborhood, I worked there, I trapped there, I hustled there, and I got my name there. I’m proud to be from East Atlanta Zone Six, and I claim there. I hold that on my back and carry that, to be the first one from there to really rock.”
And Gucci’s professional aims have matured as well. While other rappers stress platinum plaques, Gucci hasn’t forgotten the route he took to stardom. “I made a lot of CDs on my own. People fucked with me and supported me, and just made me the man I am today. That’s my blueprint right there, and I stay mindful of it. So now, my only concern is that people feel my music; at the end of the day, I do it for people to feel it. If one person feel it, two people feel it, I feel like my job’s been done.”
Fortunately for Gucci, he should be prepared to welcome an army of new fans with Back to the Trap House. But longstanding fans shouldn’t fear; they’ll recognize “Freaky Gurl,” reprised from its previous appearance from Hard To Kill. Luda, upon hearing the joint, asked for a guest spot on the remix. Said remix now appears as the lead single on Back to the Trap House, following in Gucci’s theme of mating old and new. Over a bouncing, meandering beat from Cyber Sapp, the two cook up the requisite concoction of whips, chips, and chicks. Also look out for “Bird Flu,” the album’s number two single, laced by New-York based Supa Sonics. Elsewhere, firm guest verses from Rich Boy and Pimp C of UGK round out Gucci’s regional flavor, while Bay-area producer Zaytoven (of “Icy” renown) locks down Gucci’s West Coast appeal.
Gucci Mane has something for everyone, and with the struggles of the past in his rearview, Gucci is settled in for his ride to the top. “I’m best known for controversy but I’m trying to gain respect as a songwriter and entertainer. I plan to hit them so hard with this album; who knows what the future will bring. I’ll be banging them out till I can’t bang no more.”
Follow Me
Gucci Mane Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I'm shittin on all these haters like I'm rappin on the toiiilet
My wordplay is unique, its so sweet that I keep a cavity
So money is petite, my money defies laws of gravity
So quarantine the studio cuz gucci got a sick flow
Sicker than tuberculosis, I keep spittin these cancer verses
So please give me a cancer stick cuz I just fucked all over ya
My lunch they cost me half a brick cuz we ate in cambodia
Guess yall just have to practice
See the world through gucci glasses
Yep, I said gucci glasses
And if I had no daddy then that mean I'd be a bastard child
My pistol'll whip you like ya daddy
I'll smoke you like a black n mild
[chorus)
My flow so super-sweet, every verse I get a cavity
Drop meat so deep off in yo girl yo girlfriend wanna marry me
Mind so fuckin sick that they quarantined the studio
The diamonds in my ear clearer than a shot of julio
Gucci mane la flare got beef like Hardees
If grandaddy was livin I would buy grandad a harley
I am not a role model, like Charles Barkley
Yes I am a role model, everybody follow me
Follow me,
Follow me,
Everybody follow me,
Obama called me yesterday and told me Gucci follow me (cool)
Follow me,
Follow me,
Everbody follow me
And if you wanna be a leader, I suggest you follow me
Nothing like a wise man,
I'm fixed on the prize man
And if I told you you was dope than I would be a lyin man
Fire than the fire man
Hotter than the frying pan
And you would never see me homie, its like you a blind man
I started my own label 'cause I am my own man
You niggas are not a label
Yall too fuckin old, man
Go pick up some ol cats
Then pick up my ol facts
Then pick up my ol albums, study me and learn man
Gucci got a old soul
But he got that new swag
Jumpin out his rolls royce
Flexin on yall broke ass
I just got some mo problems cuz i got some mo cash
I just been out four months,
Caught up with ya, blown past
[chorus)
My left wrist a hundred k, my right wrist two hundred though
My necklace cost 500 crack, earrings cost me 60 pack
20 on this pinkie baby where we at? 900 man
Hundred cash for pocket change so Ima rock a million
So icey's an army and you just a civilian
Seats are all reptilian, my girlfriend is sicilian
If I said I wasnt the best
I'd be lying to ya
If you asked me to be honest,
I would say that I'm the truth
I'm the truth
I'm the truth
Just like my neice she snaggle-toothed
But still she so stupid-cute
You ask her she say unc the truth
Hear the verse so fuckin sick they quarantine the vocal booth,
My auntie told me go home get rest, water and a lotta soup
Guuucciiii
[chorus)
In this song, Gucci Mane is bragging about his wealth, success, and talent. He starts off with acknowledging that his chain may look unappealing, but his swag is top-notch. He then boasts about how he is better than his haters, and that he can "shit on them" with his lyricism. Gucci Mane is confident in his unique wordplay, which he says is so sweet that it can give you a cavity.
Gucci Mane’s rhymes are so infectious that they need to be quarantined. He also claims that he is sick with flow, and he can spit powerful verses that are similar to cancer. According to him, his money defies gravity, and he spends it extravagantly, such as when he went to Cambodia and spent half of brick just on lunch. The rapper has made a lot of money after taxes, and he just wants to see everyone follow him and see the world through his Gucci glasses.
The chorus of the song is particularly catchy and reiterates Gucci Mane's self-confidence, with the repetition of "follow me". He claims that he is a role model, but he is not one in society's traditional sense because he believes in doing things his way, like a rebel, just like Charles Barkley. Gucci Mane's attitude throughout the song is arrogant but harsh, and he is not concerned about what society thinks of him or being politically correct. He talks about how his jewelry and accessories are costly, and he wants people to know that he is better than most civilians.
Line by Line Meaning
My chain is really stupid but my swag is real retaaarded
My jewelry is flashy and over the top, but I have a confident and distinctive persona.
I'm shittin on all these haters like I'm rappin on the toiiilet
I am effortlessly dominating my haters and critics just as if it were my routine.
My wordplay is unique, its so sweet that I keep a cavity
My rhyming skills are outstanding enough that it leaves an impact on my listeners as if they have a sweet tooth.
So money is petite, my money defies laws of gravity
I possess so much wealth and fame that It seems to be unbelievable and doesn't follow general trends of rich people.
So quarantine the studio cuz gucci got a sick flow
I have an admirable flow of rapping so contagious that the studio needs to be blocked off.
Sicker than tuberculosis, I keep spittin these cancer verses
I have a filthy and poisonous spirt of rap that's crazier than tuberculosis, and my verses on the beat are cancerous.
So please give me a cancer stick cuz I just fucked all over ya
I need a Cigarette to calm down and absorb the significance of how much better I am at my craft.
My lunch they cost me half a brick cuz we ate in cambodia
I can afford extravagant expenses since I am financially established. Cambodia was one of the places I went.
Made seven million after taxes
I made a good amount of money after deductions and tax
Guess yall just have to practice
To become as good as me, it is necessary to improve your skillset
See the world through gucci glasses
Follow me and experience the world through my eyes and my position as a celebrity.
Yep, I said gucci glasses
I am endorsing my own brand and products.
And if I had no daddy then that mean I'd be a bastard child
If I had an estranged relationship with my father, I would be an illegitimate child.
My pistol'll whip you like ya daddy
I will punish you by shooting you like your father when he became abusive.
I'll smoke you like a black n mild
I will bid farewell smoking you up like a cheap cigar.
[chorus]
This is the chorus of the song.
Nothing like a wise man,
I am not playing around, I mean what I say.
I'm fixed on the prize man
I have a goal that is keeping me focused.
And if I told you you was dope than I would be a lyin man
If I complimented you, I would be lying.
Fire than the fire man
I am hotter than the fireman.
Hotter than the frying pan
I am hotter than a frying pan.
And you would never see me homie, its like you a blind man
You will never see me since you are figuratively blind.
I started my own label 'cause I am my own man
I am independent and started my record label.
You niggas are not a label
You all do not have a record label.
Yall too fuckin old, man
You are way too old to be in the music industry.
Go pick up some ol cats
You should only recruit veteran and experienced artists.
Then pick up my ol facts
Learn and educate yourself with my music tracks
Then pick up my ol albums, study me and learn man
Listen and study my old albums to learn and enhance your skills.
Gucci got a old soul
I act beyond my actual age.
But he got that new swag
I have recency bias and a modern style.
Jumpin out his rolls royce
I show-off in luxury cars like Rolls-Royce.
Flexin on yall broke ass
I'm showing off my wealth, and you are broke in comparison to me.
I just got some mo problems cuz i got some mo cash
As I become richer, I encounter new problems.
I just been out four months,
I served a four months sentence in prison.
Caught up with ya, blown past
After being released, I have surpassed your expectations.
[chorus]
This is the chorus of the song.
My left wrist a hundred k, my right wrist two hundred though
My left hand's watch cost $100,000, and my right-hand watch's value is $200,000.
My necklace cost 500 crack, earrings cost me 60 pack
My necklace expenses are worth 500 x quantity of crack, and earrings are worth 60 x quantity of crack
20 on this pinkie baby where we at? 900 man
My pinky ring cost $20,000, and we are around 900th street.
Hundred cash for pocket change so Ima rock a million
I keep $100 in pocket change, but I flaunt with millions in cash.
So icey's an army and you just a civilian
So icey refers to my team, and you are just a bystander.
Seats are all reptilian, my girlfriend is sicilian
My seat in my car is covered in reptile leather; my girlfriend is of Sicilian descent
If I said I wasnt the best
If I said I was not the greatest.
I'd be lying to ya
I would be lying to you because I am the best.
If you asked me to be honest,
If you inquired for an honest opinion,
I would say that I'm the truth
I would admit that I am the real deal.
Just like my neice she snaggle-toothed
My niece has crooked teeth.
But still she so stupid-cute
But she is still very adorable and charming.
You ask her she say unc the truth
If you ask her, she would say that her uncle speaks the truth.
Hear the verse so fuckin sick they quarantine the vocal booth,
My rhyming skills are so contagious that the studio must close down.
My auntie told me go home get rest, water and a lotta soup
My aunt advised me to go home after work and take proper rest while eating a lot of nutritious soup.
Guuucciiii
My name, which is Gucci.
[chorus]
This is the chorus of the song.
Contributed by Mateo F. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
270Ptown
I can’t explain how hard this shit is, and you can make someone who didn’t just live thru it understand... he going tf off.
“Gucci gotta old soul, but he got that new swag, jumping out his rolls Royce; flexin on ya broke ass *Come on*!” My fave part lmao. He meant the shot outta every line
Birdie Brietling
Ahhh the good old days. I was listening to him when I was getting through college. This is when Gucci didn’t care about anything. He just stayed persistent with his music, even when people called him wack
Numeral Uno
💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯
JandR
Yea this is a rare gem 💎 I use to listen to this going to bed and this the song that made me choose gucci over jezzy at the time shout out jezzy I'm also a fan no shade
davonizdashit
This is LEGENDARY
Justin Pickett
dav
MarTinez Hardy
this still goes hard...Free Gucci
madchasters
listened to gucci all through high school and college, i miss this shit
Seth Flowers
Its 2023 and that “Something like a wise man, eye fixed on the prize man, and if i told ya you was dope then I would be a lying man” line is still hard as fuck
Mr Wavy
Bruhh this shit go so hard I'm still fuckin wit it in 2017 👌👌👌💯💯 facts