Rapper Soulja Boy has publicly apologized after blockchain investigator ZachXBT exposed his involvement in promoting numerous cryptocurrency and NFT projects that turned out to be scams. The artist, born DeAndre Cortez Way, admitted to poor judgment in his past promotional activities spanning 2021 to 2023.
ZachXBT's investigation revealed that Soulja Boy promoted crypto tokens and NFT collections at least 73 times since March 2021. The blockchain investigator identified 16 of these NFT collections as scams or failed ventures that collapsed shortly after the rapper's endorsements.
The "Crank It" artist posted a statement on X early Monday morning addressing the allegations. He claimed ignorance about the fraudulent nature of the projects he promoted. Soulja Boy specifically mentioned being unaware that a scammer named Sahil was paying him to endorse fraudulent schemes.
"At the time, I was doing paid promos without understanding the crypto/NFT space the way I do now," the rapper stated. He emphasized that these promotions occurred years ago and that he has since gained extensive knowledge about the cryptocurrency market.
Major Scam Promotions and Investor Losses
The RAPDOGE token stands out as one of the most damaging examples. Soulja Boy tweeted on July 19, 2021, encouraging followers to pump the token's price. He tagged other celebrities, including Lil Yachty and Quavo, who also promoted the project.
Within hours of these celebrity endorsements, the RAPDOGE project executed a rug pull. Liquidity was withdrawn, leaving investors with worthless tokens. The project has remained defunct since the incident.
ZachXBT also highlighted two projects called Orion and The Life Token. These ventures allegedly exploited cancer and suicide prevention charities to inflate token prices artificially. Orion's team deleted their Twitter account within one month of Soulja Boy's promotion. The Life Token was abandoned in early 2022.
Another project called Flokinomics falsely claimed connections to Elon Musk. The team paid for media promotion to appear legitimate before removing all liquidity. According to ZachXBT's calculations, Soulja Boy earned over $730,000 from crypto and NFT promotions during the investigated period.
Regulatory Scrutiny and SEC Involvement
The US Securities and Exchange Commission previously filed a complaint against Soulja Boy and several other celebrities. The regulatory action accused them of unlawfully promoting Tronix (TRX) and BitTorrent (BTT) tokens.
The SEC's main concern centered on disclosure violations. The celebrities failed to reveal they received compensation for endorsing these tokens. Other named individuals included actress Lindsay Lohan, WWE athlete Jake Paul, and musicians Akon and Ne-Yo.
