Soulja Boy Apologizes After Exposure of 73 Crypto/NFT Promotions — Investigator Says He Earned $730K
Rapper Soulja Boy (DeAndre Cortez Way) issued a public apology after blockchain investigator ZachXBT published findings that the artist promoted at least 73 crypto tokens and 16 NFT projects between March 2021 and 2023. Many of those promotions later collapsed, were abandoned or were alleged rug pulls and scams. ZachXBT estimates Soulja Boy earned roughly $730,000 from paid endorsements during that period. Notable cases flagged include the RAPDOGE rug pull following a celebrity-driven pump on July 19, 2021; Orion and The Life Token, which allegedly exploited charitable claims before teams abandoned the projects; and Flokinomics, which falsely claimed ties to Elon Musk before liquidity was removed. Soulja Boy said he accepted paid promotions without fully understanding crypto at the time, accepted responsibility for insufficient due diligence and named a promoter called Sahil as arranging some payments. The reports add to ongoing regulatory scrutiny: the SEC previously sued Soulja Boy and other celebrities over undisclosed token promotions involving TRX and BTT. For traders: the revelations underscore heightened counterparty and reputational risk around celebrity-backed tokens and NFT drops, increase the odds of short-term sell pressure on affected tokens, and reinforce the need for stricter due diligence on influencer-led projects.
Bearish
The disclosures are likely to be bearish for the specific tokens and NFT projects tied to Soulja Boy’s promotions. Investigator findings of rug pulls, removed liquidity and abandoned teams increase sell-side pressure and reduce investor confidence in affected assets. Short-term impact: heightened volatility and downward price pressure for named tokens and closely associated influencer-backed projects as traders unwind positions and liquidity providers withdraw. Medium-term impact: reduced retail appetite for new celebrity-endorsed token sales and NFT drops, and greater due-diligence premium priced into similar projects, which will limit rapid speculative inflows. Regulatory attention (SEC suits over undisclosed promotions involving TRX and BTT) also raises compliance risk for influencers and issuers, potentially deterring listings or marketing. Overall, the effect is concentrated and negative for the mentioned tokens and for the broader class of influencer-backed speculative tokens and NFTs, while broader crypto markets not directly tied to these projects should remain largely neutral.