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.”
Hustle
Gucci Mane Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I'm all about my hustle, I'm all about my hustle (yeah)
I'm all about my hustle, I'm all about my hustle
I'm all about my hustle, I'm all about my hustle (go)
Show me some', pay me if you owe me if you owe me some' (yeah)
Before I have to pull a Tiger Woods and put a hole-in-one
I'm hustlin' up the money trying to double up my actual (yeah)
Me and you could probably link 'cause opposites attractable (huh?)
'Cause I'm so rich and you so broke but that shit wouldn't be practical (no)
These people always ask me, "What I do for recreation time?" (Huh?)
I hustle through the holidays, I don't even get vacation time (no)
Don't believe in wastin' time, it ain't no way replacin' time (time)
Took some time and did the time, you took the stand and drop the dime (rat)
My bitch is a hustler, a chick like that is hard to find (nah)
Came so far from mixin' down, I'm hustlin' through the winter time (it's Gucci)
Show me some', pay me if you owe me if you owe me some' (yeah)
Before I have to pull a Tiger Woods and put a hole-in-one
I'm hustlin' up the money tryin' to double up my actual (yeah)
Net worth that I'm really worth, that shit they post ain't factual (that's cap)
All about my hustle, I'm all about my hustle
I'm all about my hustle, I'm all about my hustle, bitch
All about my hustle, I'm all about my hustle
I'm all about my hustle, I'm all about my hustle, bitch
Big ol' golden gates, you at the Gucci Mane estates (it's Gucci)
It's money on the table, by your head, let's say the grace (let's say the grace)
God thanks for protectin' me, them bricks I had to take (I had to take)
I know that I wasn't perfect, Lord, I know I made mistakes (Lord)
When it comes to hustlin', I'll go down as one of the greatest (the greatest)
Come pull up to my table, yeah, I'm passin' out the plates (let's eat)
Arm hired hitmen now, they peepin' out the drapes (shooters)
My hustle just ain't local, now my shit move state to state (Wop)
Say you wanna be like Wop, I think your plan is great (it's great)
The difference between me and you, I came up movin' weight (Wop)
Ice on like a hockey rink, but I don't even skate (burr)
Icing on top all my bricks, they think I'm movin' cake (burr)
Show me some', pay me if you owe me if you owe me some' (yeah)
Before I have to pull a Tiger Woods and put a hole-in-one
I'm hustlin' up the money tryin' to double up my actual (yeah)
Net worth that I'm really worth, that shit they post ain't factual (that's cap)
All about my hustle, I'm all about my hustle
I'm all about my hustle, I'm all about my hustle, bitch
All about my hustle, I'm all about my hustle
I'm all about my hustle, I'm all about my hustle, bitch
When it comes to hustlin', I'll go down as one of the greatest (greatest)
'Cause when it comes to hustlin' I'll go down as one of the greatest (greatest)
'Cause when it comes to hustlin' I'll go down as one of the greatest (greatest)
'Cause when it comes to hustlin' I'll go down as one of the greatest (greatest)
Say you wanna be like Wop, I think your plan is great (it's great)
Say you wanna be like Wop, I think your plan is great (it's great)
God thanks for protectin' me, them bricks I had to take (I had to)
I know that I wasn't perfect, Lord, I know I made mistakes (Lord)
The song Hustle by Gucci Mane is about his dedication and hard work to achieve success in his career. In the song, Gucci talks about being all about his hustle and putting in the work to double up his net worth. He boasts about his success and challenges others to show him payment if they owe him anything before he has to take drastic measures. The lyrics also touch on Gucci's past mistakes, such as taking bricks and moving weight, but he thanks God for protecting him through it all.
Gucci Mane's lyrics convey that he has always been working hard, even during the holidays, and doesn't believe in wasting time. He and his girlfriend both work hard, and he thinks that makes her a rare find. He also mentions that he is being watched by hired hitmen, but his hustle has now grown and is moving state to state. Gucci believes that he will go down in history as one of the greatest hustlers due to his hard work and dedication.
Overall, the song Hustle is an ode to the grind and the hardworking people who are dedicated to their craft.
Line by Line Meaning
All about my hustle, I'm all about my hustle (it's Gucci)
I am fully committed to my work ethic and making money, it's a core part of my identity as Gucci Mane.
Show me some', pay me if you owe me if you owe me some' (yeah)
If you owe me money, pay up or face the consequences.
Before I have to pull a Tiger Woods and put a hole-in-one
I will resort to violence if necessary to get my money.
I'm hustlin' up the money trying to double up my actual (yeah)
I'm working hard to increase my net worth by earning and saving money.
Net worth that I'm really worth, that shit they post ain't factual (that's cap)
The public perception of my wealth is not accurate, my true net worth is higher than what people think.
Me and you could probably link 'cause opposites attractable (huh?)
Despite our differences in wealth, we could work together and complement each other.
'Cause I'm so rich and you so broke but that shit wouldn't be practical (no)
Working with someone who has a vastly different financial situation is not a practical business decision.
These people always ask me, "What I do for recreation time?" (Huh?)
People are curious about my life outside of work and money-making.
I hustle through the holidays, I don't even get vacation time (no)
I work even during holidays and don't take breaks because I prioritize my hustle.
Don't believe in wastin' time, it ain't no way replacin' time (time)
Time is extremely valuable, I don't believe in wasting it because it can't be replaced.
Took some time and did the time, you took the stand and drop the dime (rat)
I served time in prison for my mistakes, but I don't respect those who cooperate with the authorities.
My bitch is a hustler, a chick like that is hard to find (nah)
My partner is also a hard worker and motivated to succeed, which is rare and valuable.
Came so far from mixin' down, I'm hustlin' through the winter time (it's Gucci)
I've come a long way from humble beginnings in music production, and I'm still working hard year-round to make money.
Big ol' golden gates, you at the Gucci Mane estates (it's Gucci)
I live in a luxurious estate, with a grand entrance gate that signifies my success.
It's money on the table, by your head, let's say the grace (let's say the grace)
I have a lot of money on the table for us to enjoy, let's give thanks for our blessings.
God thanks for protectin' me, them bricks I had to take (I had to take)
Thank you God for keeping me safe while I took risks in my drug dealing past.
When it comes to hustlin', I'll go down as one of the greatest (the greatest)
I will be remembered as one of the most successful and hardworking hustlers in history.
Come pull up to my table, yeah, I'm passin' out the plates (let's eat)
Join me at my successful business earning money, and let's enjoy the fruits of our labor.
Arm hired hitmen now, they peepin' out the drapes (shooters)
I have hired armed men to protect my valuable assets, and they are keeping watch for potential threats.
My hustle just ain't local, now my shit move state to state (Wop)
My business and money-making ventures have expanded beyond local areas, and now operate in other states.
Say you wanna be like Wop, I think your plan is great (it's great)
I'm happy to be a role model and inspire others to work hard and achieve success like me.
The difference between me and you, I came up movin' weight (Wop)
The main difference between me and others is that I made my fortune through drug dealing.
Ice on like a hockey rink, but I don't even skate (burr)
I have a lot of expensive jewelry and diamonds, but I don't actually participate in the sport of ice skating.
Icing on top all my bricks, they think I'm movin' cake (burr)
People think that my illegal drug deals involve large amounts of money or cake, but it's just a front for moving bricks of drugs.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: Anthony Germaine White, Donell Barton, Radric Davis
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@justinshin2279
"People know me as the dope man's dope man..." classic
@BBb-ft7sn
Hustle Anthem Forever
@thebricksquadboss6787
Real gucci fans In here
@KRAZYKRACKERKILLER1
Best independent album of 05 hands down! Big Cat Laflare Ent before So Icy and 1017I use to listen to this so much while I was hustling. This was my anthem motivator for that year.
@saaddolo0057
SOID DRONE SLAYER I rode around hustling all day to this.i see y'all saying the same haha
@BBb-ft7sn
Hustle niggaz get that 💰
@samuelcoleman4264
This is a classic! Trap house and Hard to kill are his best works until this date. Every single song on both album straight fire.
@marshb6595
Samu
@jocelynakana9018
Last verse he doubles up "uh"
I love it!
@rightisrightandwrongiswron2234
2019💪🏾still