Gucci Mane

Despite being a creative and versatile rap artist and songwriter, Gucci’s professional career suffered several setbacks because of his wayward ways which kept him behind bars occasionally. He was reported to have been apprehended for the first time in 2001 on charges of possessing cocaine.

Four years later, in 2005, Gucci Mane while hanging out with his friends, fired at another group resulting in the death of one in an act of self-defense. Murder charges were leveled against him after he surrendered to the legal authorities on his own. He was released in 2006 owing to insufficient evidence.

Radric Delantic Davis with stage name Gucci Mane was born in Birmingham county of Alabama on 12 February 1980. His parents separated and he was raised by his mother. At the age of nine, he moved to Atlanta with his mother.

He demonstrated a flair for penning verses as a child but took to rapping when he was 14 years old.

Gucci released an album ‘La Flare’ under the record label ‘Str8 Drop Records’ in 2001 when he was 22. Approximately 1000 CDs of this album were distributed publicly.

In 2002, he, as an associate member of ‘Sign Yourself Click’, signed a deal with SYS Records and also established his recording label ‘LaFlare Entertainment’ by teaming up with Zaytoven, record producer and DJ. Thereafter, he shifted base to New York with the objective of clinching a distribution contract but came back home empty handed.

Following his introduction to Big Cat, the head honcho of Big Cat Records, he recorded and unveiled a track “Black Tee” after finalizing a deal. He also joined forces with Young Jeezy, a budding local rapper and together they released a song “So Icy”.

Gucci’s first indie record ‘Trap House’ was released in 2006 which included the track ‘So Icy’ which he had sung with Jeezy. Though the LP was not released with fanfare and flourish, the album went on to secure a position in the top 20 hits of Billboard R&B/Hip-Hop charts.

'Trap House’ climbed to the top of the Billboard Heartseekers Chart which was remarkably laudable for an indie album. However, there was a bitter wrangle between Jeezy and Gucci with regards to acquiring the rights for the track resulting in their parting ways.

Gucci’s second independent album, ‘Hard to Kill’ was up for sale in 2006; the album included the popular single “Freaky Gurl” which eventually claimed the 12th spot on Hot Rap Tracks.

His first commercial label release was ‘Back to the Trap House’ unveiled in 2007 that included a remix of “Freaky Gurl”.

In May 2009, Gucci Mane secured a recording deal with Warner Bros. Records. Gucci featured as a guest singer on several tracks and song remixes including Maria Carey’s “Obsessed”. Warner Bros Records released his second studio record ‘The State vs. Radric Davis’ on 8 December 2009.

Gucci in his professional career, starting from 2004 till date, has composed, recorded, and released a comprehensive array of single tracks, indie, studio, and collaborative albums as well as mixtapes. His noteworthy releases include ‘Trap House’, ‘Hard to Kill’, ‘Trap-A-Thon’, ‘Murder was the Case’, ‘Ferrari Boyz’, and ‘Black Beatles’.