Hip Hop Vibe Staff Writer
There was a brief period in time when hip hop did love Soulja Boy, obviously it did not last very long. People loved "Crank Dat," but soon grew tired of Soulja Boy. Many of his biggest supporters soon said his music was not hip hop. These same people had written him off as a one hit wonder.
Soulja Boy almost proved fans right when his sophomore album sold fairly low and his "Birdwalk" single received no radio play. But, his next two singles took off. "Turn My Swag On" was released right before the holiday season and became one of summer 2009's biggest hits, along with "Kiss Me Thru the Phone."
In 2009, Soulja Boy also landed a collaboration with Snoop Dogg and he appeared to prove critics wrong. He boasted that he could be lyrical, but chose not to be. Then, Soulja Boy promised he would show off his lyrical side of his third album, The DeAndre Way. Despite releasing some hits off the album, the record sales were tremendously low.
The critics who doubted Soulja Boy since the beginning have been laughing hard at him. But, several rappers have come to his defense. Game and Joe Budden said he makes up for it with his digital sales. Killer Mike, a fellow Atlanta rapper, has also joined in this defense. He said things happen in the rap game that cannot be explained and admitted he never understood record sales. Killer Mike said he was sure Soulja Boy dominated in digital sales and ringtone downloads, though.