Early life
Born DeAndre Ramone Way in Chicago, Illinois on July 28, 1990, Way moved from Chicago to Atlanta, Georgia at age seven, where he became interested in rap music. At age 14, he moved to Batesville, Mississippi with his father, who provided a recording studio for Way to explore his musical ambitions.
Career
In November 2005, Way posted his songs on the video-based social community YouTube. Following positive reviews on the site, Soulja Boy then established his own web pages on YouTube and MySpace. In March 2007, he recorded “Crank That” and released his first independent album Unsigned and Still Major, followed by a low-budget video filmed demonstrating the “Soulja Boy” dance. By the end of May 2007, “Crank That (Soulja Boy)” received its first airplay and Soulja Boy met with Mr. Collipark to sign a deal with Interscope Records.
On August 12, 2007, the song appeared on the Emmy-award winning HBO series Entourage, and by September 1, it topped the Billboard Hot 100 and Hot RingMasters charts. Way’s major label debut album Souljaboytellem.com, which was reportedly recorded using just the demo version of FL Studio, was released in the United States on October 2, peaking at #4 on both the Billboard 200 and Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums charts.
On December 9, 2007, Way was sued by William Lyons (aka Souljah Boy of the Mo Thugs) who claims he first created the stage name “Souljah Boy”.
For the 50th Grammy Awards, Soulja Boy was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Rap Song with “Crank That (Soulja Boy)”. He lost to Kanye West’s and T-Pain’s “Good Life”.
The teen rapper recently inked a deal with Dallas-based company, Yums Shoes, for a line of his own sneakers called the “Block Star” and an apparel line. “The Soulja boy exclusive shoe will be released in the fall along with my album,” he said. “The Soulja Boy cartoon will also be released in the fall, so there’s three things to look out for.” The line will be unveiled at the fall Magic fashion trade show in Las Vegas later this year, and the rapper will appear in both television and print ads for it.
Soulja Boy says he will not use better lyrics and get more respect from the rap game, although he could, because it will ruin his reputation and image.
Initial reception
The album Souljaboytellem.com was met with mostly negative reviews, despite a positive one from Allmusic. Several reviewers credited Soulja Boy with spearheading a new trend in hip-hop, while speculating he will likely be a one hit wonder.
Critics and hip-hop figures such as Snoop Dogg, 50 Cent, and Jermaine Dupri cite Soulja Boy as artistically typical of contemporary rap trends such as writing for the lucrative ringtone market, and the ascendence of “Southern hip hop”, emphasizing catchy, mindless music that discards rap’s traditional emphasis on message. And even one article about his songs and heavily criticizing his musical style has dubbed Soulja Boy the “Nickelback of hip hop”. Soulja Boy identifies his goal as making upbeat, party-themed music that avoids the negative, violent image that he sees in most hip-hop. Despite this, his music has been banned from some school dances for sexual, pro-violence content or innuendo and, ironically, many of his recent recordings feature violent content and sexual innuendo. In the original YouTube video for “Shootout”, Way demonstrates his dance while holding a handgun in each hand and pretending to shoot into the audience.
Feud with Ice-T
In June 2008, on DJ Cisco’s Urban Legend mixtape, Ice-T criticized Soulja Boy for “killing hip-hop” and his song “Crank That” for being “garbage” compared to the works of other hip-hop artists as Rakim, Das EFX, Big Daddy Kane and Ice Cube. Soulja Boy responded in a YouTube video by mocking Ice-T’s age (Ice-T was born in 1958) and claiming that he needed to support his family through his brand of music. Ice-T proceeded to offer a video response to Soulja Boy’s reaction in which he neglected to offer an apology while reiterating his belief that Soula Boy’s music was “garbage”. Rapper Kanye West defended Soulja Boy by arguing that Soulja Boy created a new, original work for hip-hop, thus keeping the authentic meaning of the music. Soulja Boy followed suit by buying Ice-T a flaming set of gigantic popcorn machines.
References in popular culture
Soulja Boy recently became an item in the first round NBA playoff series between the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Washington Wizards. In a bout of trash talking before the start of the series, Wizards guard Deshawn Stevenson called Cleveland superstar LeBron James “overrated,” prompting James to say that he wouldn’t return the insult, as that would be “almost like Jay-Z [responding to a negative comment] made by Soulja Boy.” Soulja Boy made an appearance at Game 3 of the series (played in Washington) in support of the Wizards; his music was played over the PA system. Despite his team losing the game by more than 30 points and LeBron posting poor numbers (compared to his exceptionally high averages), LeBron claims that the trick had no effect on him, and that his young son is a big fan of Soulja Boy.
30 Thousand 100 Million Ft Lil B & Arab
Soulja Boy Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
All my niggers go so crazy in this fucking building, swag
So I said thirty thousand hundred million
All my niggers go so crazy in this fucking building
So thirty thousand hundred million
All my niggers go so crazy in this fucking building
So, so, so, so, so thirty thousand hundred million
All my niggers go so crazy in this fucking building
Word around town
I got bitches on my dick, Soulja
Word around town
I got cameras taking pics
Word around town
Man I'm hot, down the beach
Word around town
I spend three million on my wrist
Word around town
I spend twelve million on my
Word around town, bitch
This is how I live
Word around town
My dick, taste like ribs
Word around town, bitch
What happen to
So thirty thousand hundred million,
All my niggers go so crazy and it's fucking so sweat
Soulja I said thirty thousand hundred million,
All my niggers go so crazy in this fucking building
Swag, thirty thousand hundred million,
All my niggers go so crazy in this fucking building
Soulja, Soulja, Soulja, Soulja thirty thousand hundred million,
All my niggers go so crazy in this fucking building
Soulja I said thirty thousand hundred million,
All my niggers go so crazy in this fucking building
Swag, thirty thousand hundred million,
All my niggers go so crazy in this fucking building
Soulja, Soulja, Soulja, Soulja thirty thousand hundred million,
All my niggers go so crazy in this fucking building
So, so, so thirty thousand hundred million,
All my niggers go so crazy in this fucking building
Try for my swag it,
On my dick,
Tear on my, like a
Bitches on my dick,
Suck my dick,
Playboy man chilly
Nigga
The song "30 Thousand 100 Million" by Soulja Boy ft. Lil B & Arab is a self-aggrandizing track about the rapper's immense wealth and power. The chorus repeats the phrase "thirty thousand hundred million" to emphasize his astronomical wealth, while also invoking a frenzied response from his fans. The verse asserts his dominance over women, claiming to have them "on his dick" and bragging about his expensive jewelry. The repetition of "word around town" implies that his reputation precedes him, and his fame and fortune are widely known.
Despite the brash and self-indulgent lyrics, the song has a catchy and energetic beat that encourages listeners to dance and party. The use of slang and colloquial language reflects the song's intended audience of young fans who are drawn to Soulja Boy's persona as a flashy and confident superstar. The guest appearances of Lil B and Arab add to the sense of a unified hip-hop community that celebrates wealth and success.
Overall, "30 Thousand 100 Million" is a song that celebrates materialism and fame, but also embodies the energy and spirit of contemporary hip-hop culture.
Line by Line Meaning
Soulja thirty thousand hundred million
Soulja Boy claims to have wealth in the amount of 30,000,100,000 dollars
All my niggers go so crazy in this fucking building, swag
Soulja Boy's friends are having a great time in the building and are fashionable
Word around town
The rumor circulating throughout the area
I got bitches on my dick, Soulja
There are women who are attracted to Soulja Boy
I got cameras taking pics
Photographs are being taken by surrounding cameras
Man I'm hot, down the beach
Soulja Boy is doing well on the beach
I spend three million on my wrist
Soulja Boy has spent 3 million dollars on his wrist
I spend twelve million on my
Soulja Boy has spent 12 million dollars on something
Bitch, this is how I live
This is how Soulja Boy chooses to live
My dick, taste like ribs
Soulja Boy suggests that his penis tastes similar to ribs
What happen to
Soulja Boy is inquiring about something unexpected that occurred
So thirty thousand hundred million,
Soulja Boy repeats his claim of 30,000,100,000 dollars
All my niggers go so crazy and it's fucking so sweat
Soulja Boy's friends are having a great time and it's very exciting
Try for my swag it,
An attempt is made to imitate Soulja Boy's fashion
On my dick,
Soulja Boy attracts women romantically
Tear on my, like a
The sentence is incomplete and its meaning unclear
Bitches on my dick,
Soulja Boy is surrounded by women who are interested in him sexually
Suck my dick,
Soulja Boy is telling someone to perform oral sex on him
Playboy man chilly
The meaning of this line is unclear
Nigga
A derogatory term used to address a man of color
Lyrics © OBO APRA/AMCOS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind