DeAndre Cortez Way (born July 28, 1990 in Chicago, Illinois), better known … Read Full Bio ↴DeAndre Cortez Way (born July 28, 1990 in Chicago, Illinois), better known by his stage name Soulja Boy Tell 'Em or simply Soulja Boy, is a Grammy-nominated rapper, dancer and producer. He shot to fame in September 2007, when his single “Crank That (Soulja Boy)” reached number one on the Billboard Top 100. He released his debut album, Unsigned & Still Major: Da Album Before da Album in 2007 and followed this with 2007’s souljaboytellem.com and 2008’s iSouljaBoyTellem. His fourth studio album, The DeAndre Way, was released on November 2010.

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.

Crank Dat Jump Rope
Soulja Boy Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

(Talk:)
Ay Soulja Boy In Da Buildin
Ay I Want Ya'll To Dat Dat Poole Palace And Swing Both Of Ya'll Arms Around Real Quick
You Know Wut I Call Dat I Call Dat Da Jump Rope

(Chorus:)
Crank Dat Jump Rope,Crank Dat Jump Rope,Crank Dat Jump Rope,Crank Dat Crank Dat Jump Rope
Crank Dat Jump Rope,Crank Dat Jump Rope,Crank Dat Jump Rope,Crank Dat Crank Dat Jump Rope,

Crank Dat Jump Rope,Crank Dat Jump Rope,Crank Dat Jump Rope,Crank Dat Crank Dat Jump Rope
Crank Dat Jump Rope,Crank Dat Jump Rope,Crank Dat Jump Rope,Crank Dat Crank Dat Jump Rope
Crank Dat Jump Rope,Crank Dat Jump Rope,Crank Dat Jump Rope,Crank Dat Crank Dat

Ayee Well Lets Get Dis Money Homie
I Got A Brand New Dance Im Bout To Do It On Em
Ayee If U Aint Knew Get Wit It
Like Shawty Lo Lets Get It
I Got A Stack Heen Got Me
I Bet My 5 He Cant Do It Nothin Like Me
30/30 Mean 60 On Deck
60 Handz Dat Keep In Check

(Chorus)

Watch Me Pull Up My Pants
Everybody Dey Can Do Dis Dance
U Can Lean Wit It Rock Wit It
If U Want U Can Even Hop Skotch Wit It
Aye Do Do Yo Shuffle
Aye Use Use Yo Muscle
Crank Dat Motorcycle
Im Lookin For A Dyme Peice Where Da Telescope

(Chorus)

Lets Do It, Lets Get To It
Jump Rope Do Do Do It
Watch Me Do It Let Me Get Em

(Chorus)

(Talk:) Ay Ya'll Hit Up

Ay Ay Soulja Boy Tell Em
Im Out

Overall Meaning

At the beginning of Soulja Boy's song "Crank Dat Jump Rope," he instructs his listeners to swing both of their arms around quickly, calling it the "jump rope." The chorus repeats the phrase "Crank Dat Jump Rope" multiple times. The song then transitions to Soulja Boy talking about a new dance he has created that he is going to perform. He boasts about his ability to do the dance better than anyone else and references a stack of money he has as proof. Soulja Boy then proceeds to give instructions on how to do the dance, including leaning, hopping, and shuffling. The song ends with Soulja Boy proclaiming that he's "out."

The lyrics to "Crank Dat Jump Rope" are lighthearted and fun, encouraging listeners to let loose and dance along. The song is reminiscent of early 2000s hip hop, with a catchy beat and simple lyrics that are easy to sing along to. The song's title references jumping rope, a childhood activity, which adds to the nostalgic feel of the track.

Line by Line Meaning

Ay Soulja Boy In Da Buildin
Soulja Boy is present and ready to perform.

Ay I Want Ya'll To Dat Dat Poole Palace And Swing Both Of Ya'll Arms Around Real Quick
Soulja Boy instructs his audience to mimic a jumping motion with their arms, which he likens to jumping rope.

You Know Wut I Call Dat I Call Dat Da Jump Rope
Soulja Boy names this arm-swinging dance the 'Jump Rope.'

Crank Dat Jump Rope,Crank Dat Jump Rope,Crank Dat Jump Rope,Crank Dat Crank Dat Jump Rope Crank Dat Jump Rope,Crank Dat Jump Rope,Crank Dat Jump Rope,Crank Dat Crank Dat Jump Rope, Crank Dat Jump Rope,Crank Dat Jump Rope,Crank Dat Jump Rope,Crank Dat Crank Dat Jump Rope Crank Dat Jump Rope,Crank Dat Jump Rope,Crank Dat Jump Rope,Crank Dat Crank Dat Jump Rope Crank Dat Jump Rope,Crank Dat Jump Rope,Crank Dat Jump Rope,Crank Dat Crank Dat
The chorus repeats Soulja Boy's instructions to 'Crank Dat Jump Rope,' emphasizing the dance's name and actions.

Ayee Well Lets Get Dis Money Homie
Soulja Boy is ready to perform to make money.

I Got A Brand New Dance Im Bout To Do It On Em
Soulja Boy has a new dance and is excited to show it off.

Ayee If U Aint Knew Get Wit It
Soulja Boy encourages his audience to join in if they don't already know the dance moves.

Like Shawty Lo Lets Get It
Soulja Boy compares the excitement of this new dance to that of the popular rapper Shawty Lo.

I Got A Stack Heen Got Me
Soulja Boy has money to spend thanks to his successful performances.

I Bet My 5 He Cant Do It Nothin Like Me
Soulja Boy boasts that nobody can do this dance like he can.

30/30 Mean 60 On Deck
Soulja Boy references his watch as a way to show that he has lots of time to perform and make money.

60 Handz Dat Keep In Check
Soulja Boy's fans watch him closely as he performs the new dance.

Watch Me Pull Up My Pants
Soulja Boy describes a move in which he pulls up his pants while dancing.

Everybody Dey Can Do Dis Dance
Soulja Boy's claim that anyone can do the dance seems to reinforce the simplicity of the arm-swinging moves.

U Can Lean Wit It Rock Wit It
Soulja Boy references another popular dance, the 'Lean Wit It Rock Wit It,' suggesting that this new dance can rival its popularity.

If U Want U Can Even Hop Skotch Wit It
Soulja Boy implies that this new dance is versatile and can fit with other popular dance trends.

Aye Do Do Yo Shuffle
Soulja Boy instructs his audience to do a 'shuffle' move.

Aye Use Use Yo Muscle
Soulja Boy further instructs his audience to engage their muscles in this dance workout.

Crank Dat Motorcycle
Soulja Boy introduces another move in the dance, the 'Motorcycle.'

Im Lookin For A Dyme Peice Where Da Telescope
Soulja Boy expresses his desire for an attractive, high-quality woman.

Lets Do It, Lets Get To It
Soulja Boy reiterates his enthusiasm for performing and making money.

Jump Rope Do Do Do It
Soulja Boy repeats the dance's name and encourages his audience to do it with him.

Watch Me Do It Let Me Get Em
Soulja Boy implores his audience to watch him perform and join him in the dance.

Ay Ya'll Hit Up
Soulja Boy ends his song with another invitation to his audience to contact him.

Ay Ay Soulja Boy Tell Em
Soulja Boy repeats his name and reminds his audience who is performing.

Im Out
Soulja Boy signals the end of his performance and song.

Contributed by Liam G. Suggest a correction in the comments below.