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So much of breaking out in the entertainment industry in our social media era is predicated on having a strongly branded image and persona paired with an understanding of how to capitalize on it. In a society that so desperately craves creativity at every turn, music artists have gone above and beyond in the last decade to earn their buzz. This week’s artist of the week in Guapdad 4000 is no exception to creating his own new lane by any means necessary.
The ‘scamway’ rapper from Oakland, CA is starting to get some traction and buzz while staying in his own, unique lane through his funny personality, singing talent, and versatile r&b/ hip-hop style. Guapdad took his scamming to the mainstream this past year in a major way and has since worked with some of the hottest rappers in the industry. All while actually keeping his space on the tracks, adding most of the takeaway and hook lyrics for his fans. In other words, he added the catchy or “best” parts of the songs while working with artists like 6lack, Chance the Rapper, Maxo Kream, Denzel Curry, G-Eazy, Snoop Dogg, E-40, Tory Lanez, Slimmy B, and Yung Pinch.
While Guapdad jokes of his time scamming with credit card theft this isn’t necessarily the cold hard facts. Guapdad grew up with parents in and out of jail and the responsibility to do what it took to take care of his siblings as well as himself from a young age. His latest album Dior Deposits touches on this a bit. In Prada Process with 6lack he expresses coming “from immigrants, I'm livin' different / We was foolin' with them cards, we shoulda been magicians, ha.” Addressing the hard knock life before the glam, much of this song dives deeper into the mentality coming from the struggle.
Showing off his versatility to switch to a more R&B sound on some of his biggest songs to date in Stuck With It and Gucci Pajamas even the casual listener can get a feel for the hidden talent and immense potential that Guapdad has to offer.
Guapdad started in August of 2018 with his album Scamboy Color which didn’t go unnoticed, but also didn’t quite reach what it was capable of as he started his journey to create his own style of music and brand likeness. He followed up with a track called “Come Over” once again still not putting him on the map. But Guap’s unwavering confidence in his music, consistency, and determination in those past two years have put him in a totally different position.
Building up this buzz he gained the attention of Drake networking through the DM’s unintentionally as explained on his No Jumper interview. Guap replied to Drake’s story of some diamonds and when the OVO legend responded, Guap realized who he was talking to, responding to him saying “Oh shit, this is Drake.” Ultimately, we haven’t seen any collabs from the two yet but the co-sign from our generation’s biggest hitmaker isn’t the worst way to launch a promising career.
Another notable scamway story from the Oakland native involves another Oakland legend in G-Eazy, ‘stealing’ the set of his music video for their collab single ‘First Things First’ which has done over 637K views to date.
And how could we do an article on this budding superstar without mentioning his vital role on the Grammy nominated Revenge of The Dreamers III album also? He’s the man behind the greatness that are tracks like Costa Rica, Don’t Hit Me Right Now, and Wells Fargo.
Members of our staff (the ‘boomers’ of Enigmatic like Parker and Raf) even recall the days of Vine past where Guapdad became a regular viral figure on the legendary social media platform (#RIPVine). From Youtube, to Instagram, and the late Vine Guapdad shows an impressive knack as a business man for both creating a platform for himself that can both be profitable and display longevity on the internet. Go check out his Youtube channel to watch some of his vlogs, campaigns for his albums/merch, and more. This is truly a cat that gets it.
Whether discussing his past or present discography and internet fame, there’s no doubting this young Oakland phenom’s immense potential and talent for someone so early into what’s shaping up to be a promising career.
Make sure to give Guapdad 4000’s music a listen, show some friends, and give him a follow on his social media @guapdad4000. Follow us on Instagram @engmtcent and send this article to a friend too!