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akokosblog-blog · 5 years

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Soulja Boy - Rap Godfather of Internet-Age Rap or Clown?

DeAndre Cortez, known professionally by his rap alias Soulja Boy has been in the news recently with some very big claims.

His appearance on the Breakfast Club show on January 16 elicited diverse reactions from fans and critics alike where he claimed amongst other things that he had the biggest comeback of 2018.

While most hip-hop fans are of the opinion that Tyga and Meek Mill dominated 2018 with their comeback game let’s have a deeper look into the claims of Soulja Boy.

Despite his antics, history remembers Soulja Boy as a visionary, one of the first set of artists to take advantage of the power of the internet.

Pushing himself to the limelight at the young age of 17, Soulja Boy has laid down blueprints followed by countless upcoming rappers who eventually made it in the rap game.

In light of him being a pioneer and helping revolutionize hip hop in the new millennium, here are nine reasons we need to put some respect on Soulja Boy’s name.

1. He broke records with his Debut single

Soulja Boy’s debut single, “Crank That” took the world by surprise, peaking atop the Billboard Hot 100 charts for several weeks. Within a year of its release, “Crank That (Soulja Boy)” set a new record for most digital downloads in the United States. with over three million units sold. This made him the first rapper to achieve that feat.

2. He Created His First Album Using Fruity Loops

Long before rappers were using software programs to create music from the comfort of their bedroom, Soulja Boy proved to be ahead of the curve.

He utilized FL Studio to craft the beats for his debut album, Souljaboytellem.com.

“Just a PC,” Soulja explained to 50 Cent about the making of his album during a 2007 appearance on “Rap City.” “Yeah, no instruments or nothing. Just a PC and a software on there called FL Studio and just the beat and that was it.”

3. He Helped Set Off The Internet-Dance Craze

One aspect of “Crank That (Soulja Boy)” that elevated its popularity was the song’s accompanying dance, which spread like wildfire with die-hard fans.

Transcending hip hop to become a mainstream fad, the “Crank That” dance was the first in rap history go viral on the internet and it helped inspire the various dance challenges that have become the norm in the last decade.

4. He Popularised YouTube As A Platform For Artists

Soulja Boy was already a household name prior to signing with Interscope Records due to his popularity on YouTube, which the rapper used to help promote his music and build his buzz.

One of the first rap artists to embrace YouTube, Soulja’s “Crank That (Soulja Boy)” video amassed tens of millions of views, a first for a relatively unknown artist.

Due to the overwhelming success that came from using the platform, other inspired artists followed suit. This resulted in YouTube becoming an integral asset for breaking new artists and music.

5. He’s A Grammy-Nominated Artist

Soulja Boy’s music has been maligned at times for what some see as a lack of substance and depth. But, he has achieved what a number of more acclaimed artists have yet to attain: a Grammy nomination.

In 2008, “Crank That (Soulja Boy)” was included in the category for Best Rap Song at the 50th Annual Grammy Awards, making him among the youngest rap artists in history to earn a nod from the committee.

While “Crank That (Soulja Boy)” ultimately lost out to “Good Life” by Kanye West and T-Pain, the moment helped validate Soulja as a credible artist of merit from the most respected institution in music.

6. He Helped Pioneer Troll Culture

Rappers like 2Pac and 50 Cent are two of the poster children when it comes to beef. But, Soulja was among the first to shift the tide of rap spats being violent to them being comedic.

His war of words with the likes of Ice-T, Bow Wow and others often included more humor than vitriol. This new beef tactic has served as a precursor to the likes of Lil Yachty, 6ix9ine and other trolls who have followed in his footsteps.

7. His Musical Style Influenced a Generation of Rappers

Names like Lil Wayne, Drake, and Gucci Mane are often mentioned when listing the most influential artists of this generation. But, Soulja Boy has as good of a case as anybody in that group.

Initially pegged as the antithesis of what hip hop represents by rap purists, over time; Soulja’s simplistic lyrics, catchy refrains, and sparse production would become the method of choice for aspiring rappers looking to make their way in the game.

Listen to music by the “mumble-rap” set of today and you’re bound to hear traces of Soulja’s style in their songs. This is a testament to his impact on the landscape of rap.

8. He Revolutionized How Artists Market Themselves Online

First gaining prominence on SoundClick, Soulja’s usage of various social media platforms to connect with his audience online directly helped ingratiate him to fans in a way that had never been seen before.

Originally more popular among independent artists, the rapper being able to translate internet hype into mainstream success opened not only the eyes of fellow artists, but their record labels.

Over time, social media became a prerequisite for artists looking to survive in an industry that had gone from analog to digital, and Soulja Boy was at the forefront of that evolution.

9. His Acumen As A Businessman

Every artist in rap seems to be expanding their portfolio and championing the DIY approach these days. But, Soulja can be credited for taking an active interest in being a businessman from the beginning of his career.

Leveraging his success in the music world into lucrative opportunities in other industries, the artist amassed partnerships with numerous companies over the years.

Delving into fashion, gaming, online gambling and other arenas; his approach to entertaining the public may be whimsical and lighthearted. But, his acumen as a business is nothing to take lightly.

While Soulja Boy’s recent skits might come across to viewers as comedic or entertaining, there is no doubt that he has been a major influence on hip hop.

His verbal antics are viewed by many as means to get people talking about him but there’s a little bit of truth in the claims he’s making. Is Soulja boy the godfather of new school rap or just another poser? you decide.

By Leon.

#alcohol #Breakfast Club show #Clown #cocaine #Crank That (Soulja Boy)#DeAndre Cortez #Godfather #Grammy-Nominated Artist #Rap Godfather #soulja boy #The Internet-Dance Craze #YouTube #Entertainment #Featured #News

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rolliemood · 6 years

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Reputation : Thoughts

Okay so Taylor’s latest album Reputation dropped like a month ago and after obsessively listening to it, I have decided to do just a short and brief review on the album and a quick dive into each individual track to talk about my thoughts on them.

In any case, let me make it clear that I’m not a super hardcore TSwift fan, I don’t have a shrine in my room filled with her posters and merch, I just really enjoy her voice and music. As I certainly do not follow every aspect of her life, I might interpret the meaning of her song or the lyrics wrongly.

These are just my personal thoughts & opinions SO SWIFTIES DON’T @ ME LMAO

Without further ado, lets delve in, and I hope you’re ready for it ! (Pun intended I took like 10 minutes to think of this please appreciate it)

Track 1: ...Ready For It?

This was the second song I heard from the album(First being LWYMMD) and I have to admit I’m not a big fan of this track when I first initially heard it, but it has kinda grown on me.

I loved the part when she transitioned... yes, you know which part I’m talking about if you heard the song

[ In the middle of the night, in my dreams you should see the things we do baby ]

The sweet old school Taylor, stripping away the drums, snares, etc, and singing with her signature breathy “whisper” tone juxtaposed extremely well with the very raw, hard hitting heavy beats. For me, that was the most memorable part of the song.

Obviously, starting off the album with a strong and clear message that she has completely changed up her style, no more nice sweet girl-next-door Taylor, instead with this song and a few other tracks on the album(most notably LWYMMD) really cemented her embracing this “evil” persona of hers.

Lyrics wise it was okay, definitely very raw and bad-girl kinda vibe with lines like

[ Me, I was a robber first time that he saw me Stealing hearts and running off and never saying sorry ]

[ And he can be my jailer, Burton to this Taylor Every lover known in comparison is a failure ]

And of course the last verse

[ Baby, let the games begin Let the games begin Let the games begin Are you ready for it? ]

She sang that last “ready for it” with such sass it just mmmm 10/10

I definitely wrote a bit too much comments for the first track, gonna try to keep the next few tracks short and sweet.

Track 2: End Game ft. Ed Sheeran and Future

Big reputation indeed Taylor... getting both Ed and Future on this track; I’m just going to be blunt here and say I did not like Ed’s rapping, I felt that it was kinda jarring and out of place for my taste, although Future’s verse was much better executed and I actually enjoyed it a lot more. The song is really good, don’t get me wrong but I felt that if Ed didn’t rap or maybe even just given his a verse to sing, the song could have been much much better.

I particularly enjoyed the verse post-chorus, the way Taylor sings the line “Ooh, you and me, we got big reputations, ah” sounds like she really means it, at the same time you can hear a hint of IDGAF with the way she enunciates her Oooh and ah ; Almost as if she’s relishing the fact that she’s put on this pedestal as the “Bad Girl”

[ Big reputation, big reputation Ooh, you and me, we got big reputations, ah And you heard about me, ooh I got some big enemies (yah) Big reputation, big reputation Ooh, you and me would be a big conversation, ah (git git) And I heard about you, ooh (yah) You like the bad ones too ]

Track 3: I did something bad

Then why’s it feel so good? So first off, the song is filled with references to her complicated and “hateful” breakup with the Scottish DJ Calvin Harris, but I won’t be getting into that because I don’t know enough to comment about it.

yikes

I guess I’ll stop here for now cus I’m a lazy mofo.

But without a doubt, I can say that Reputation had the highest production quality among all of her albums, everything just sounds really well put together (I mean all her discographies are good tho) and refined, but is this my favorite album out of the 6 she released? No.

I still think Speak Now was her best work by far and while it’s hard to compare the two simply based on the vastly different styles and themes of the album, but Speak Now is truly a master piece ahead of it’s time.

Ultimately, Reputation is at its core, is about perception. It’s about the media’s perception of her, about her fan’s perception of her and about her lover’s perceptions of her. She is often portrayed in the mainstream media as this snake/scape goat for all the broken relationships and drama she went through or was involved in.

Well, writing reviews was a lot more fun than I expected, I might do her other albums too, maybe other artists as well. Or maybe I’ll be lazy and not write anything at all, who knows?

Peace out

-My reputation’s never been worse so, you must like me for me.-

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supere1113 · 7 years

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Stuff I wrote down while making ‘Identity’

the following is some stuff I wrote down about the tracks on ‘Identity’ as I was making the EP. These were recorded between the months of October 2015 and probably January or February 2016.

Hey, guys! I know I put a lot of thought into the songs on "Identity", so I thought it best to give a rundown of each song on the EP so that everything is interpreted as intended and you guys get to know more about, and hopefully make a deeper connection with them! "Here we go..."

Not quite a hard-hitting b@nger, not quite a soft song, track 1 is an opener that strives to describe me in a radio-length pop song.

The title track of the EP, "Identity" is my attempt at fitting myself onto a song that people can listen to and get a good gist of me and who I am. I'm a child of God first, and also an artist with four main areas of specialty. My first interest was Architecture/Engineering and overall design, second is music, Third is writing and fourth is photography! I love to mix them up all the time, too! For instance, this song (and all the others I've written) is a result of my music skills intermingling with my writing skills. Outside of that, "Identity" sort of paraphrases my life and adventures up to now and what had allowed me to become who I am right now. I also elaborate on my musical identity, particularly in the bridge. I love so many different types of music that I have decided to identify as a "genre-bender" or "genreless" artist. For me, just about any musical style or influence is fair game in my recording process. These songs represent the first opportunity for me to experiment with the concept of blending genres! I wanted the production to be relatively uniform in tone, so I played the instrumental parts with the same effects but in varying styles within the given sonic arrangement. I was inspired by the flow of the amazing Alessia Cara's vocal delivery in songs like "Seventeen" and "Four Pink Walls", Ed Sheeran in general (but especially on "x"), as well as some smaller but still significant influences from Melanie Martinez, Halsey, Beck, The Notorious B.I.G. and Drake. Okay, I threw a little Justin Bieber and The Beatles in there as well! Lolz! I don't know how prevalent this is to other people, but the percussion part is probably the most dynamic element in the entire song as it not only changes styles within itself while complimenting the rest of the instrumental, but follows with the lyrical content and vocal inflections and volume changes. Because of its self-contained dynamic-ness, "Identity" took the longest time to produce and became the most thoughtful and intricate songs on the EP. Main message of the song: I am an artist of many disciplines, a loving soul and a musically eclectic individual; not to be categorized easily... And just trust God; The words I keep with me. I even have those words engraved on the inside of my "blue class ring"! Track 2 is simply, a lighthearted joke.

I was thinking of rhymes last summer and the two lines, "Got my pants ripped up, uniform like Goku/More fire songs than my Avatar Roku" ultimately evolved into "That Hype, Doh..." This song is really me showing my fun, seemingly careless side in a jokingly cocky, hip hop-based, hopefully mainstream-worthy song. I start by just spitting random rhymes and references (from Green Day to Harry Potter) laced with substance for a while before delving into a bit of real stuff. The chorus is meant to be laughed at and to "bring up that hype, doh..." at parties and stuff. The production has a lot of Beck influence as well as N.W.A. and alternative rock influence. New and old Taylor Swift influences can also be found in the chorus and super intricate drum beat. I used an array of different rapping styles to create something all my own. Main message of the song: There doesn't always have to be a point to things. It can be just for fun or just 'cause you want to. Jokes are almost always in style. With track 3, I wanted to put in a softer number because I am not all heavy and powerful on the inside.

There's a good amount of "softness", so to speak in my heart, and "The UnderLyer" really embodies that part of me for this EP. I often carry myself as a strong, pretty much invincible character; not to say that I'm not that way most of the time, but I am also not stone cold and apathetic in the least. Lyrically, the song takes a positive, adult stance on a lot of rather dark subjects that I and many others wrestle with in our minds. In terms of musical influences and production, "The UnderLyer" is essentially like The Red Hot Chili Peppers and Ed Sheeran made a live performance at a pub or a bar. It features loop-pedal-based sounds (a signature of Ed's) and live production techniques as well as a prominent bassline that (at least to me) is reminiscent of the groovy, laid back style and flow of the Chili Peppers. The title actually came from a phrase that the vibe of the original bassline evoked in my head; the type of atmosphere and persona that the song could take on. I also wrote the lyrics to the bassline and "The UnderLyer" is actually the only song on the EP that was written and produced this way. I obviously don't have the best time/content dial because the song was originally meant to be about 2 minutes and 34 seconds in my mind before I extended it to probably 3 minutes and 30 seconds, but it finally comes to an end at 4:27. I aimed for this time after I had fleshed out the lyrics because I have a weird relationship with numbers that evoke personas in them for me and those three just look really cool together; like Charlie's Angels or something (it also matches the exact song length of "Hotline Bling" by Drake almost perfectly). Now, wait, for the segue... Main message of the song: If you're going through rough times in your life, internally or externally, stay positive and keep going through until you get to the end. It will get better. Track 4 is a rebellious song about a rebellion that isn't really a rebellion. It's only meant to make a statement.

On "Y I Don't Care", the drum beat part at the beginning can be interpreted as us as a generation being steadily brought up in a good way I guess, before getting increasingly tripped up, hated on, desensitized or otherwise negatively affected before going into the main beat. When it hits, it can symbolize the collective members of Gen Y saying, "Enough is enough." Not really angrily, but forceful enough to push away all the opposition from those that find our differences from them unsettling. Honestly, the song only sounds menacing and fight-nightish because I'm trying to effectively get a point across and being seemingly aggressive unfortunately seems to be the language that most people understand best. "You mad, bro?" Hate to burst your bubble but I'm not even angry. I originally thought that "Y I Don't Care" would be no more than 5 minutes in length the way I wrote it, but the topics that I had put in it extended it to a near 6 and a half minute song! I even had to take a few lines out at the end because I thought the song was running too long and that I'd lose the interest of my listeners (so I definitely see myself revisiting and/or revamping this song in the future). But don't let the length drive you away; this song keeps you entertained from beginning to end! I'd say that all the songs are genre-benders in their own right, but this one is the genre-bender. Too many influences to count, but Linkin Park, Demi Lovato, Kanye West, KISS, Paramore, my man, Michael Jackson and the later work of the Jacksons are among the biggest. "Y I Don't Care" can actually be seen as an oddball anthem for Millenials. It's long and epic, brimming with strong messages that most younger people can relate to and a little chant-worthy at times! We are different and we force others to stretch their understanding in order to understand us. We "put their minds on the brink!" Main message of the song: We're gonna do what we want to do in life, and it doesn't matter if it's different from what's been done before. We are the future of humanity, so it's gonna happen either way. "Y I Don't Care" is actually my favorite song on the EP because lyrically, I feel it comes from the heart a bit moreso than the other tracks. It also has the coolest instrumentation of any of them in my opinion! "Identity" is probably my close second, though as it is a song all about me and who I am.

Track 5 is a closer, a reiteration and a thank you.

Crazy how many of these songs were written last summer! I wanted "What I Sound Like?" to be the closer, but it really acts as a dawning of my music career; a strong sign that much more is to come! Even if the song or any of my songs don't get really big, I'll still be making music because I honestly do it for me first; which leads me into even further elaborating on my musical identity. In addition, I want my songs to inspire people. If I can do it (as in whatever I set my mind to), than you, the listener, can do it too. "What I Sound Like?" also encourages the people of the world to learn and grow as people, while staying young at heart. There's a reason why Echosmith wants to be like the cool kids; 'cause being a kid is cool and everyone knows it. I also take some time to thank the listeners for checking out this music I've put out. Some of the bigger influences are the beautiful Tori Kelly, Linkin Park once again, 2Pac, Foo Fighters and... Ya know, after awhile, all the influences I was drawing from start to blur together and they ultimately evolve into the song that you end up hearing. Just about every aspect of "What I Sound Like?" was short and fast-paced. It was really the song that went from 0 to 100... real quick. 99.999 something% of the song was recorded and mastered in one sitting! (Most of the vocals were done in one take, as well) I finished the song in less than 5 hours in one night and it actually became the only real radio-length song on the EP at 3:21. I was happy about that because it shows the diversity of my music in the context of song length. Also, for the first time, I didn't feel as if I was over-writing song lyrics as much. I still filled the song with plenty of info though, so I'm also very proud of that! Main message of the song: I like all types of music and I like mixing them up together, you can do it too if you want, and it's okay to stay young on the inside.

Well, thanks for reading and thanks for listening if you have. Ask me any other questions you have using the hashtag #EvansIdentity and I'll try to answer them.

Thanks again, have a great day and good bye!

#EvansIdentity

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