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.”
Hot Boyz
Gucci Mane Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Panoramic roof fit my new Bentley, see the stars
Red STR8, Red Bentley and red jeeps I got them hot toys
You hot like Wop and pot but tell the truth you know you're not boy
Fuckin' around with lames that's how lil scooter got shot boy
These shooters been well trained enough, they missed a lotta shots boy
I'm Mr show off showing it all cuz Gucci got a lot boy
She miss 8ball she snort a lot a lotta bloody snot boy
Got so much money hiding in this shit and get this shit just riding boy
My lil' boy been spoilin' man, you know that boy is riding boy
I'm from down south say i'm country, bitch, but i'm not pickin' cotton boy
Riding around in my bentley i'm like mothafuck a top boy
Rolly pollie on my wrist my nigga cause i can't wear no Swatch boy
I paid 150000 for the Rolex gold clock boy
Me and thug keep showing golds man we feel like we the Hot Boys
They call me Big Gucci Big Guwop when i drop my hard top
Call me Gucci me slick Gucci when i drop my drop top
If you ain't down with Brick Squad nigga youse a have-not
Man we showed out in the parking lot
And we could shoot out the parking lot
Kill a nigga for a parking spot
So sad your friend got chopped up
Ain't gonna show remorse at all so i leave a smoke a whole quap
Mojo truck like 7 feet tall that boy be ballin a whole lot
Me and [?] taking money you know me we gonna send shots
Drop top baby. y'know nigga gotta be seen
In the drop top baby, with birdman, I know you heard me
That big car cost like $2 million and 800 bands
I'm a stunna man
Got 6 slugs in a top
Now hundreds man this commas man
Free my nigga lil boosie
Asshole like Trae the Truth
They caught me riding in a benz with slim
Now them bitches wanna give me they coochie
Now im spitting like im mothafuckin' thoothless
Thats cuz im mothafuckin' toothless
$2, 000 for every tooth in my mouth now bitches say i'm talkin too ruthless
Bi-Bi-Bitch you're a rat like rufus. Last year I was screaming free Lil Tunechi
Now I'm in Hit Factory with Little Tunechi
Skateboard on dueces
Makin' nothing but movies
My favorite gun is a UZI
Hot boys but this ain't a movie
Shoot his ass in his head
Leavem dead
Y'all get this verse for curly head
Hot boys hot boys hot boys hot
I'm my motherfuckin' spot
We ain't shooting nothing but fuckin; Glock
Ain't this is not a jam now we can buss it at cop
In Gucci Mane's song "Hot Boyz," he begins by shouting out to his fellow Hot Boys, specifically naming Turk and advocating for his freedom. He goes on to discuss his luxurious lifestyle, referencing the panoramic roof of his Bentley and his collection of "hot toys," which are likely weapons. He acknowledges his own status as a hot boy, likening himself to fellow rapper Wop and asserting his superiority over those who merely pretend to be one. Seemingly referencing a past incident, Gucci warns against associating with "lames" and the consequences that may come with it, as evidenced by Lil Scooter getting shot. He continues to boast about his wealth and success, mentioning his ability to consume large amounts of drugs and his possession of one hundred pounds. He then concludes by stating his southern roots but distancing himself from being thought of as a "cotton-picker" and celebrating his own success and extravagant lifestyle.
Overall, the lyrics in "Hot Boyz" depict Gucci Mane's luxurious and dangerous lifestyle, as well as his pride in being a successful hot boy. While the song's meaning may not be particularly deep, it offers a glimpse into the rapper's mindset and lifestyle, as well as the culture surrounding the hot boy archetype in certain hip-hop communities.
Line by Line Meaning
Free my nigga Turk he out now shoutout to the hot boys
Shoutout to the Hot Boys while appreciating the release of his friend Turk.
Panoramic roof fit my new Bentley, see the stars
Gucci Mane boasts about the panoramic roof that fits his luxurious car, which allows him to see the stars while driving.
Red STR8, Red Bentley and red jeeps I got them hot toys
Gucci Mane takes pride in the different red cars he owns, calling them his hot toys.
You hot like Wop and pot but tell the truth you know you're not boy
Addressing a person by stating that they are not as 'hot' as Gucci Mane or drugs, such as weed or 'pot'.
Fuckin' around with lames that's how lil scooter got shot boy
A warning to not associate with lame people as it may lead to getting shot, just like Lil Scooter.
These shooters been well trained enough, they missed a lotta shots boy
Gucci Mane boasts about how well the shooters he employs are trained, even though they have missed a few shots.
I'm Mr show off showing it all cuz Gucci got a lot boy
Gucci Mane takes pride in showing off his riches because he has a lot of them.
She miss 8ball she snort a lot a lotta bloody snot boy
A derogatory comment about a woman who snorts a lot of cocaine, causing bleeding from the nose.
100 pounds i took that shit cause i'm cream of the crop boy
Gucci Mane takes pride in being the best and hence took 100 pounds of drugs.
Got so much money hiding in this shit and get this shit just riding boy
Gucci Mane hides his money in his car and doesn't need to do anything to earn it.
My lil' boy been spoilin' man, you know that boy is riding boy
Gucci Mane boasts about how well he spoils his son, who is also riding in a luxurious car.
I'm from down south say i'm country, bitch, but i'm not pickin' cotton boy
Gucci Mane proudly identifies himself as someone from the south who is not involved in picking cotton.
Riding around in my bentley i'm like mothafuck a top boy
Gucci Mane is seen driving around in his Bentley with the top off, asserting his dominance and not caring about anything else.
Rolly pollie on my wrist my nigga cause i can't wear no Swatch boy
A statement about wearing a Rolex on his wrist instead of a Swatch because Gucci doesn't settle for anything less.
I paid 150000 for the Rolex gold clock boy
Gucci Mane paid a large sum of money for his expensive, gold Rolex clock.
Me and thug keep showing golds man we feel like we the Hot Boys
Gucci Mane and Young Thug feel like they are a part of the 'Hot Boys' because of the gold they flaunt.
They call me Big Gucci Big Guwop when i drop my hard top
A nickname Gucci Mane goes by when he drops the top of his car - Big Gucci, Big Guwop.
Call me Gucci me slick Gucci when i drop my drop top
Another nickname, 'slick Gucci', given to Gucci Mane when he drops the top of his car.
If you ain't down with Brick Squad nigga youse a have-not
A statement that says if you're not associated with Brick Squad, you're not part of the elite.
Man we showed out in the parking lot
Gucci Mane and his crew flaunt their riches and status in the parking lot.
And we could shoot out the parking lot
Implying that they are not afraid to use their guns or start a shootout in the parking lot.
Kill a nigga for a parking spot
A statement that the crew would do whatever it takes to get a parking spot, even kill someone.
So sad your friend got chopped up
A sad tone when talking about a friend getting killed.
Ain't gonna show remorse at all so i leave a smoke a whole quap
Gucci Mane doesn't show any sign of remorse for his friend's death; instead, he smokes a lot of weed.
Mojo truck like 7 feet tall that boy be ballin a whole lot
Gucci Mane boasts about his mojo truck, which is 7 feet tall and reveals his high status.
Me and [?] taking money you know me we gonna send shots
Gucci Mane and his partner are taking money and will retaliate with violence if necessary.
Drop top baby. y'know nigga gotta be seen
A statement about how Gucci Mane needs to be seen in a drop-top car.
In the drop top baby, with birdman, I know you heard me
Gucci Mane is seen in a drop-top car with Birdman and asserts that everyone has heard of this.
That big car cost like $2 million and 800 bands
Gucci Mane mentions that his car is very expensive, costing over $2 million and 800 bands.
I'm a stunna man
A statement that Gucci Mane is a stunner; he puts on a show with his riches.
Got 6 slugs in a top
A statement about having six bullets in his gun's magazine.
Now hundreds man this commas man
Gucci Mane boasts about having a lot of money, represented by hundreds of dollars and commas.
Free my nigga lil boosie
A statement to free Lil Boosie, who was in prison at that time.
Asshole like Trae the Truth
A comparison that Gucci Mane is an asshole like Trae the Truth.
They caught me riding in a benz with slim
A statement about being caught riding in a Benz with Slim, another rapper.
Now them bitches wanna give me they coochie
Gucci Mane implies that women are attracted to him because of his riches and status.
Now im spitting like im mothafuckin' thoothless
A statement about spitting rhymes like a person whose teeth are missing; this implies Gucci Mane's rhymes flow smoothly.
Thats cuz im mothafuckin' toothless
Gucci Mane asserts that he is 'toothless'.
$2, 000 for every tooth in my mouth now bitches say i'm talkin too ruthless
Gucci Mane paid $2,000 for every tooth he had replaced and gained the reputation of speaking ruthlessly.
Bi-Bi-Bitch you're a rat like rufus. Last year I was screaming free Lil Tunechi
A derogatory comment about a person being a rat like Rufus, followed by stating that Gucci Mane was screaming 'free Lil Tunechi' last year.
Now I'm in Hit Factory with Little Tunechi
A statement about being in the Hit Factory with Lil Wayne.
Skateboard on dueces
Gucci Mane reveals he owns a skateboard on 22-inch wheels, also called 'dueces'.
Makin' nothing but movies
Implying that Gucci Mane is only making movies yet bringing in a large amount of wealth.
My favorite gun is a UZI
Stating that his favorite type of gun is an UZI.
Hot boys but this ain't a movie
Gucci Mane states that he and his crew are hot boys, but their life isn't just a movie.
Shoot his ass in his head
A violent and aggressive statement that literally means to shoot someone in the head.
Leavem dead
Saying to leave the person dead after they've been shot in the head.
Y'all get this verse for curly head
Gucci Mane implies this verse is for a person who is called 'curly head'.
Hot boys hot boys hot boys hot
Repeating the phrase 'hot boys' multiple times.
I'm my motherfuckin' spot
Asserting that he is in his rightful position.
We ain't shooting nothing but fuckin; Glock
A statement that the only gun they're shooting is a Glock.
Ain't this is not a jam now we can buss it at cop
Implying that they're not making music; instead they can 'buss it' or shoot a cop.
Contributed by Lila L. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@chadhowland9787
Why Thug gotta go so hard 🔥
@cydrobinson7565
This was the first time I heard Thugga. My partna put me on and said he’s up next.
@dorothieachille746
2022 still keep it real
@kendrickellis8726
Classic 🔥
@davidmarquez7023
Mane I miss old Thug and Gucci so fire 🔥
@Tw0tson
real thug fans remember the golden era 2012-2014
@elijahsmith6422
Definitely got to include 2015 too. That was the peak of his golden era
@Tw0tson
@Elijah Smith i actually didnt like that era too much, still solid tho, it is thug afterall
@Viinqzt3rr
2019
@sycofya1677
Best intro ever