Soulja Boy Credits Himself For Birthing The “New Wave Of Hip-Hop” Amid Hip-Hop 50

Soulja Boy has claimed stake in the “new wave of Hip-Hop” when it comes to the internet and streaming, amid Hip-Hop 50. On Sunday (Aug. 13), Draco took to Twitter (now X) to give himself flowers.

The “Crank That (Soulja Boy)” rapper made claims that the onset of his career caused anxiety for the fate of Hip-Hop, but above all, he still paved a way for others.

“When I came in the game they said I killed Hip-Hop,” Soulja tweeted. “But really, I birthed the new wave of Hip-Hop with internet/streaming. Ahead of my time. #HipHop50.” In another tweet he said, “Now everyone vlogs their career like me. Now everyone uploads their music to the internet. Now everyone goes live for their fans. I started it. Thank me or not. Flowers/Credit or not. #HipHop50.” See Tweets below.

Soulja’s impact on the culture was recently put on display at the 2023 BET Awards in June.

As part of BET’s celebration of Hip-Hop’s 50th anniversary, the ceremony dedicated a portion to rappers who have created viral dance movements. Soulja was rightfully highlighted in the segment.

The performance included a live display of Soulja’s 2007 smash hit, “Crank That (Soulja Boy),” as well as King Combs “Harlem Shaking,” and dirty south rappers bringing back the nostalgic days of “Lean Wit It, Rock Wit It,” the “Stanky Leg,” and “Walk It Out.” The event ended with the entire room “Swag Surfing.”

It’s no question that Soulja Boy was one of the first Hip-Hop artists to go viral on streaming platforms like YouTube, as well as crash Limewire and make his own gaming console. He also was the first rapper to get 1,000,000 likes on a tweet.

Recently, Big Soulja dramatized even more firsts in a music video for the song “Limewire.” Playing on the idea of him being the first rapper to do it all, Soulja visualized what it would look like if he created everything since the beginning of time.

In the Yasha Gruben-directed video, the 33-year-old took credit for inventing fire, painting the Mona Lisa, discovering America, and taking the first step on the moon. He even laid claim to creating Einstein’s Theory of Relativity, the Constitution, and the modern digital currency Bitcoin.

Revisit the video for “Limewire” below, and check out Soulja giving himself credit for the new wave in Hip-Hop above.

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