Itβs said that art mirrors life. In hip-hopβs case, thereβs always been a deliberate entanglement of perception and reality. Fans demand their MCs be realβ¦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.
βI wish everybody well whoβs making money in this rap game,β the Atlanta-raised rapper says, dismissing the controversy that followed him in the past. βMy own rap game is going so good, Iβve got so many things on my plate at my label, that I donβt got time for other peopleβs business.β 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.
βI live my life with no regrets. I just wish that a lot of things never happened, but anybody can wish,β says Gucci. Sounds like a man with his eyes on the prize. And youβd 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 βBlack Tee,β 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 βIcyβ single, featuring Jeezy. Clamor over song rights sparked dispute, and the resulting rift grew.
Controversy notwithstanding, Maneβs independence was cemented: βI was on the independent scene for about two years,β he recalls. βItβs 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 itβs a gamble out there with the independent circuit. One thing youβd better have is good music because without that, you go downhill fast in the independent game.β
Good music firmly in hand, Gucci was fast approaching stardom when more tragedy befell him. But letβs backtrack; how did the man born Radric Davis in Bessemer, Alabama, become Gucci Mane, mouthpiece for Atlanta stuntinβ? Mane remembers little from his time in Alabama, just that it was rural, and that itβs changed dramatically since he left at the age of nine. βI gotta shout out Alabama though, because they holdinβ it down,β he affirms. βEvery time I go there to do a show, Iβm impressed with how hip-hop culture has taken root.β
Maneβs identity coalesced when he moved with his mother to Atlanta. βI lived all of my adolescent and adult life in Atlanta,β he explains. βIβm from East Atlanta Zone Six; it was hard, man, it was real rough. I grew up in the Starter jacket era: theyβd take your Starter jacket, your 8Ball jacket, theyβd 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 youβd get jumped. It was wild when I came up.β
Itβs 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. βI was just a young dude in a single parent house most of my life. I canβt complain that much. I would guess itβs like any black child growing up in a single parent household. There are a lot of people who know how that is. I didnβt 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; sheβs been there through the whole struggle. Thereβs a lot that goes along with that; it made me who I am today.β
A stepfather would enter the picture during Maneβs adolescence, introducing not only a male figure, but also inspiration for Maneβs unusual moniker. βMy father came in, the original Gucci Mane; thatβs what people in the neighborhood called him, and thatβs 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.β Drawing inspiration from a pantheon of rappers before him βBig Daddy Kane, LL Cool J, Ice Cube, the Beastie Boys, N.W.AβMane went on to release Trap House, a lethal brew of his signature sound: βI call my music straight Gucci: going hard and whatever beats you make you for me, if Iβm feeling it, if Iβm rocking with it, Iβm gonna crush it. When you hear me, you hear a lot of pain, a lot of hood; you hear whatβs going on in the inner city in Atlanta.β
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. βI learned to keep better company, watch where I go, and be mindful of my surroundings at all times,β he reveals. βWatch what I say, watch what I do and how I do it, just keep myself out of the wrong crowd.β
βI always stand up man,β he continues. βIβm one of the toughest guys I know. Itβll take a lot more than that to break me down.β Undeterred, Mane was back in the studio, preparing 2006βs 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: βThere was a bidding war going on, and I liked Atlanticβs approach. They made it known that they wanted me, they felt where I was going and that I could grow with them.β
Asylum/Atlantic Records welcomed Gucci Mane in early β07, 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 ββI got them in training; they be in the weight room, pumping iron, doing pushups, shopping at the mall, buying iceββGucci is focused on his magnum opus, Back to the Trap House. βI started working on the album, and by the third song, I was like βThis is going back to the Trap House.β 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.β
βSince I went major, I want everybody to know Iβm still keeping it street, keeping it hood,β Gucci maintains. βIβm trying to take it back to all my fans that I had when I first started my career. And at the same time, Iβm trying to open up my new album to a new fan base. So itβs a mix for everybody coming together, like my first album was.β Gucci has always prided himself on his innate ability, and his refusal to let guest appearances dictate the tone of his records. βI just want people to know Iβm a great songwriter, man,β he asserts. βIβm passionate about what I do, and itβs 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; itβs a God-given gift and I just get paid for it. It come from God, itβs like wondering what makes a bird fly. He made me a poet like the great poets of the past.β
But donβt mistake Gucciβs confidence for self-absorption. The vicissitudes of his career have dictated a longer view. Lyrics aside, heβs less preoccupied with visible means and more so with acting as an emissary from his under-repped block. βIβm not the one to glorify what goes on in the hood,β he insists. βWe have everything there, the whole range from violence to people getting on the bus and going to work. Thereβs a lot more to the hood than just drugs. Itβs a bigger story, thereβs 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. Iβm 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.β
And Gucciβs professional aims have matured as well. While other rappers stress platinum plaques, Gucci hasnβt forgotten the route he took to stardom. βI made a lot of CDs on my own. People fucked with me and supported me, and just made me the man I am today. Thatβs 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 jobβs been done.β
Fortunately for Gucci, he should be prepared to welcome an army of new fans with Back to the Trap House. But longstanding fans shouldnβt fear; theyβll recognize βFreaky Gurl,β 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 Gucciβs 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 βBird Flu,β the albumβs number two single, laced by New-York based Supa Sonics. Elsewhere, firm guest verses from Rich Boy and Pimp C of UGK round out Gucciβs regional flavor, while Bay-area producer Zaytoven (of βIcyβ renown) locks down Gucciβs 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. βIβm best known for controversy but Iβm 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. Iβll be banging them out till I canβt bang no more.β
Potential
Gucci Mane Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴
Mwah
Ricky Racks
Ha, ha
Whoo
All that ass sittin' on your back, you got potential (ha)
You got potential (whoo), you got potential (wow)
You got potential (ha), you got potential (yeah, yeah)
You keep throwing that pussy back, you got potential
You got potential (ha), you got potential
Your waist so slim, your gap so fat, you got potential
You got potential (oh), you got potential, ha
Counting my paper in binders (yeah)
Look for your girl, you can't find her (what?)
You can't find her, you can't find her (no)
All in my crib, I'm behind her (yeah)
Yeah, what? First day, fucked her with condom (huh)
Yeah, hey, then I got comfortable, fucked her, no condom (yeah)
Yeah, sleep on my comp in a hammock (uh)
Cut that bitch off, need a bandage (what?)
Getting money, they can't stand it (yeah)
Getting money, they can't stand it yeah
I took that bitch out of her panties (huh)
College bitch, fucked her on campus (huh)
Diamonds, they wet like Atlantis (yeah)
Boy, I'm so high, I'm not landing (no)
Fuck from the back, give her damage (yeah)
I was the one, I ain't plan it (yeah)
I was the one, I ain't plan it (yeah)
Ball them blue hunnids up, they look like Sonic, yeah (what?)
Look at my Rollie and timing (go)
Tell me how fast you can count it (go)
Tell me how fast you can count it (go)
All that ass sittin' on your back, you got potential (ha)
You got potential (whoo), you got potential (wow)
You keep sucking that dick like that, you got potential
You got potential (ha), you got potential (yeah, yeah)
You keep throwing that pussy back, you got potential
You got potential (ha), you got potential
Your waist so slim, your gap so fat, you got potential
You got potential (oh), you got potential, ha
Pulled up three deep, jumped off the jet, me Dolph and Uzi
I'm flying to the pussy, I feel like a groupie
Four bitches, one Gucci Man, it look like a movie
Suck me so long in Jacuzzi, I'm feeling woozy
Girl, you so smart, you's a genius, that's why you're choosy
Got on four rings on one finger, it's Ruby Tuesday (Burr burr)
Your print bulgin' like my pockets, you got potential to me
Got a lil' waist and pretty face and that's essential to me
And if your man ain't worth a mil' no need to mention to me
And if you niggas ain't gettin' no money, then please don't listen to me
She wanna learn, I wanna teach, she got detention with me
She only fuck with rich niggas, great decision to me, it's Wop!
All that ass sittin' on your back, you got potential (ha)
You got potential (whoo), you got potential (wow)
You keep sucking that dick like that, you got potential
You got potential (ha), you got potential (yeah, yeah)
You keep throwing that pussy back, you got potential (hey, hey)
You got potential (ha), you got potential
Your waist so slim, your gap so fat, you got potential
You got potential (oh), you got potential, ha
Ayy, who is that shining like that? (damn)
Rocking all of them diamonds like that (woo)
All of my bitches they love me (yeah)
And I love all my bitches back, yeah
She like the way that I talk (yeah, man)
But I like the way that she walk (ay)
She said all she ever wanted in her life was a boss (uh)
Just put 5 mil' in the bank, ayy, just stuck 2 mil' in a safe, yeah
50 racks on me today (for real)
Nigga, you broke, you in the way (for real)
Today in that 488 (for real)
Man I'm gettin' tired of my Wraith (for real)
Passenger seat, that's my bae (ha)
On the backseat, got that K (grrah)
Met her today and I fucked today (woo)
Pussy so good don't know what to say (shit)
Call her tomorrow, replay
Bring one of your friends, three way
I hit her and say "what you doing?" (ay)
You ain't with me, bitch, you losing (this dog)
Says she got a friend for Uzi (aight)
Say she got a cousin for Gucci
All that ass sittin' on your back, you got potential (ha)
You got potential (whoo), you got potential (wow)
You keep sucking that dick like that, you got potential
You got potential (ha), you got potential (yeah, yeah)
You keep throwing that pussy back, you got potential
You got potential (ha), you got potential
Your waist so slim, your gap so fat, you got potential
You got potential (oh), you got potential, ha
The song "Potential" by Gucci Mane starts with the producer Ricky Racks saying "ha" and "mwah" before Gucci Mane jumps in with the hook, "All that ass sittin' on your back, you got potential". The song is about Gucci Mane being attracted to a woman who has a lot of potential sexually and financially. He praises her physique, particularly her slim waist and curvy hips, and suggests that her sexual skills make her desirable as a partner.
The lyrics also touch on Gucci Mane's wealth, with him bragging about his money and luxurious lifestyle. He mentions counting his money in binders and having so much wealth that people can't stand it. He also asserts that he only wants to be with women who are equally financially successful, stating that if their man isn't worth a million dollars, he doesn't want them.
Overall, the song is a celebration of money, sex, and power. It portrays Gucci Mane as a successful, wealthy, and sexually desirable man, who only wants to be with women who are similarly successful.
Lyrics Β© Universal Music Publishing Group, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd., Warner Chappell Music, Inc., EMPIRE PUBLISHING
Written by: Adolph R. Jr. Thornton, Radric Delantic Davis, Ricky Jr. Harrell, Symere Woods, Maxwell Nichols
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
JSwole The 808 God
Guwop + Dolph + Uzi = Summertime heatwaveπ₯π₯π₯π₯
Vocea HipHop
Boy u right! U got Potential!
Unidentified Panda
fax
Mathias
account why you here thenπ
Jordan Cook
π₯π₯
FrozenTits_Records
I'm just happy to see dolph still making songs with Gucci. He still showing love no matter the situation. Loyalty is royalty
Giovani Puente
Rip dolphπ
Chris Jackson
Uzi got that βbad n boujieβ
Flow againππ―π₯ππ½ππ½π
Casey Recci
very true
Montecelo !
This just a old song. He didnβt recently make this