Gucci Mane has announced he is making a calculated investment in incarcerated rappers, Pooh Shiesty and Foogiano.
In an Instagram post the Atlanta rap veteran shared on Friday (October 18), the “Lemonade” lyricist revealed his plans to drop his entire 1017 artist roster. The only artists to remain signed to his 1017 imprint are none other than Foogiano and Pooh Shiesty.
Gucci Mane explained that a look at his most recent profit and loss statement for the label influenced his decision to be unselfish and allow all of his artists to take their talents elsewhere. The announcement of the roster purge comes just one day after the label’s honorary street holiday 1017 day.
Though Gucci Mane didn’t go into the specifics of each of the artists to be dropped from the label, it didn’t take long for social media, trolls and sleuth to pick out a number of rappers associated with The New 1017 movement. Mississippi rapper BigWalkDog, who signed with 1017 in 2021 almost instantaneously became a target for negative comments and sly remarks following Gucci’s announcement.
“Your label just dropped you [crying laughing emoji],” an Instagram user commented in a post BigWalkDog shared two weeks ago teasing an unreleased snippet.
“Damn bro, I know you hurt @laflare1017 dropped you!” another user wrote, before suggesting he sign with another artist, “Go sign with Finesse [Finesse2Tymes] or sum.”
Overall, it has been a tumultuous few years for Gucci’s 1017 label. Foogiano was sentenced to five years in prison in 2021 after he melted off an ankle monitor and ran from police custody for months over a gun charge stemming from his December 2020 arrest. In April 2022, Pooh Shiesty was also sentenced to five years in federal prison after he pled guilty to conspiring to possess firearms in furtherance of crimes of violence and drug trafficking.
That same June, the popular 1017 rapper and close collaborator with Big 30 and Shiesty, Big Scarr, tragically passed away. In January, Gucci’s up-and-coming artist Enchanting also passed away unexpectedly.