Here’s a Timeline of Soulja Boy and Chris Brown’s Beef
The new year that is 2017 barely set in before trouble began brewing between two of music's most engaging artists: rapper Soulja Boy and singer Chris Brown. Soulja, who has become the new poster boy for beef in hip-hop after waging war with any and everybody throughout the second half of 2016, started this beef how he usually does. The rapper used his social media accounts to allege that Brown caught feelings and took issue with him leaving a flirtatious comment on an Instagram photo belonging to Karrueche, Brown's ex-girlfriend. Phone calls and disparaging tweets and Instagram videos were exchanged, ultimately leading to Breezy challenging Soulja to a fight. The offer, which Soulja would accept, resulted in what has been the most talked-about topic in hip-hop in 2017 thus far.
Both artists are no strangers to social media warfare, with a long list of former foes and beefs in their rearview to show for it. And not only have they been able to talk a good game, both have been able to back it up when required. Soulja Boy's 2008 shooting incident and Chris Brown's 2012 run-in with Drake in a New York City club is evidence that both have been able to face the music and walk away with war stripes. Brown and Soulja may have started their careers as clean-cut teen titans in the aughts, but they've since evolved into two of hip-hop's biggest live wires, able to blow a gasket and go on a tirade at the drop of a dime.
With the impending boxing match between the two confirmed by both sides, and the various twists and turns in this beef, XXL details how this whole beef between Soulja Boy and Chris Brown got started and where it's headed.
- 1
Soulja Boy Says Chris Brown Wants to Fight Him Over Karrueche
Jan. 2On Jan. 2, Soulja Boy continued his streak of unpredictable outbursts, this time taking aim at singer Chris Brown. Soulja claimed Breezy called his phone to give him a mouthful after the rapper commented on one of Karrueche's Instagram posts. He went on Twitter to launch attacks at Breezy and then posted a video clip further going in on the "Liquor" singer.
“Ayy Chris Brown you a bitch nigga,” Soulja says in his video. “When I see you I’m gon’ beat the fuck out you nigga. You think you hard because you hit Rihanna nigga, ’cause beat Rihanna up nigga? Do that shit to me pussy ass nigga. The fuck wrong with you nigga? You gon’ call my phone on Facetime talking ’bout some ‘Oh, why you liking Karrueche pictures on Instagram man, why you liking Karrueche pictures on Instagram.'”
Brown would issue a response of his own via Instagram, but kept the tough talk to a minimum, instead challenging Soulja Boy to a boxing match to settle their differences. This officially set the beef in motion.
- 2
Soulja and Chris Trade Shots on Instagram
Jan. 3Soulja Boy and Chris Brown continued their war of words on Jan. 3, with both artists taking shots at the other via social media.
“Boy better go to sleep,” Chris Brown wrote in the caption of an Instagram post. “No more corny media shit… WE GONE LINE IT UP! Say NO MORE OR SAY WHAT U WANT! I’m gone beat dat ass regardless. I’m done talking for today.”
Soulja, who reveled in the attention the beef was getting from major media outlets, also threw slights at Breezy.
“I made CNN for beefing with a coke head woman beater,” Soulja Boy wrote in one tweet. “Chris u looking crazy right now. See u in the ring. Set up the fight I’m done talking @cnn.”
With both sides verbally agreeing and seemingly willing to engage in fisticuffs, the beef seemed to be far from over and began looking more like a drawn-out war.
- 3
Soulja Says He's Setting Up Boxing Match Against Chris
Jan. 4Soulja upped the ante in his beef with Brown, announcing that he was in the process of setting up a boxing match between the two, and had even gotten a few big names involved on Jan. 4.
The rapper went on Twitter, writing, “Setting up the boxing match with Chris Brown Bitch Ass. Wanted [Adrien Broner] to train me, but he can’t, so I’m getting Floyd.”
He then poked holes in Brown's street credibility, tweeting, “Chris Brown can never go to my hood,” adding “It’s been two years since he pulled up on my block.”
Although Breezy would not entertain those specific comments, his rumored affiliations with gangs made many fans take Soulja's words with a grain of salt.
- 4
Soulja Boy Apologizes to Brown and Other Rappers He's Beefed With
Jan. 4After making waves by announcing that he was setting up a possible boxing match between himself and Brown, Soulja Boy appeared to wave the white flag, apologizing to his fans and the artists involved for his behavior.
“I just want to send an apology over the past couple of months, I’ve been acting out, I’ve been wildin’ out,” Soulja stated in a PSA he shared on his Twitter account. “And at the end of the day, it’s not about who starts the beefs, it’s about who ends them.”
The catalyst for Soulja's change of heart may have been the hospitalization of his mother, which the rapper makes mention of in the clip. “No amount of money, no amount of cars, no amount of fame will make me be alright with knowing my mom’s sick,” Soulja explains. “I know she’s not proud of my actions and what I’ve been doing recently.”
Soulja would also make it a point to mention a few of the foes he had beefed with over the previous months including Quavo along with Brown, a peace treaty that was sentimental, but would prove to be short-lived when all was said and done.
- 5
50 Cent Says Mayweather Promotions Will Endorse Soulja Boy and Chris Brown Boxing Match
Jan. 4Soulja Boy's former mentor and Chris Brown's collaborator 50 Cent got involved in the beef between the two artists, adding more fuel to the fire. “Tell Soulja I said stop apologizing,” 50 Cent wrote on Instagram. “Get the Draco out build up the hype for the fight. #putthemoneyonthewood I’m covering the bet for every set. LMAO.”
50 Cent would also confirm that Floyd Mayweather would indeed be a part of the proposed boxing match as well in the post. “We talking money now, BIG MONEY CHAMP said he will take the bet,” 50 wrote. “Mayweather promotions is gonna promote the fight. This is the shut up, or put the money up challenge. #wherethebagat.”
Chris Brown, who had been relatively mum in comparison to Soulja Boy, even took the time to echo 50's sentiments, commenting on the rapper's Instagram page. “50.. make sure these niggas get our money right!” the singer wrote. “WE ONE BUY A YAGHT AFTER THIS.”
While Breezy more than likely meant "yacht," we hope his hand skills are more up to par than his spelling when the moment of truth comes.
- 6
Chris Confirms Boxing Match
Jan. 4Jan. 4 was one of the more hectic days in the beef between Soulja and Chris, and included a flurry of shots between the two. After 50 Cent jumped into the fray encouraging the beef between the two stars, Breezy went on Instagram to confirm that he and Soulja would indeed be meeting in the ring. Following Chris Brown's declaration in a lengthy caption to a video post mocking Soulja, the rapper posted the official promotional poster for the bout, resulting in fans speculating who would win rap's latest royal rumble.
- 7
Floyd Mayweather and Adrien Broner Promote the Fight
Jan. 5The impending fight between Soulja Boy and Chris Brown got a little more real when professional boxer Floyd Mayweather stepped into the situation to lend his boxing and promotional expertise. Following Adrien Broner, who shared the official poster promoting the fight on Instagram, Floyd appeared in an clip uploaded to Soulja's account, with the two hyping up the fight. “Champ, what we gon’ do? Mayweather Promotions,” Soulja Boy says. “We gotta get the money. The biggest fight of the century!”
- 8
Soulja Is Warned by Chris to Never Mention His Daughter
Jan. 5Things got especially heated in the ongoing back-and-forth between Chris Brown and Soulja Boy when the crooner took offense to the rapper reposting a photo of baby mama Nia Guzman and daughter Royalty repping Mayweather’s Money Team. Brown made it clear that although he was down to meet Soulja in the ring, any mention of his daughter was off limits.
“Bro, all jokes aside my nigga, like, seriously, we’re gonna set up this fight,” Brown said in the Instagram clip. “It’s gonna be professional. You can do all that but one thing you gotta stop doing, my nigga, Ima be real with you, stop bringing my daughter into this, my nigga. Stop saying shit about my fucking daughter, bro… I’m telling you right now on Jesus Christ, on anybody you fucking believe in… Allah, Buddha, I don’t give a fuck, nigga."
- 9
Soulja Says Beef With Chris Started Over Rihanna
Jan. 6When Soulja Boy and Floyd Mayweather sat down for an interview to discuss their partnership and his upcoming bout with Brown, Soulja made a shocking allegation, stating that his beef with Breezy was due to his friendship with Rihanna. “What he really mad about is I was with Rihanna. And nobody would have never knew that if you didn’t call my phone tripping about Karrueche,” explained Soulja. “I was with Rihanna, son. Rihanna, nigga. Google the shit, YouTube the shit.”
- 10
Soulja Says He's Going to Beat Up Chris for Rihanna
Jan. 8Soulja Boy continued to take jabs at Chris Brown, firing off multiple tweets aimed at the singer. “Me and @chrisbrown used to fuck hoes in the same room together now he wanna trip over an Instagram like this nigga snort too much coke smh,” Soulja posted, while also mocking the fact that Mike Tyson would be training Brown.
The rapper would again throw Rihanna's name into the beef, promising to avenge her infamous assault at the hands of Brown in 2009.
“I was going to chill but now I’m going to finish this nigga. I’m doing it for Rihanna. That was fucked up how he beat her ass like that,” Soulja tweeted, resulting in additional bad blood between him and Chris Brown in the buildup to the fight.
- 11
Soulja Asks for Help From Personal Trainers for the Fight
Jan. 8While Chris has given minimal quotes about his upcoming fight with Soulja, the latter has done the complete opposite, taking every opportunity to insult or threaten the singer. The rapper appeared to be a bit more focused rather than delivering threats when he decided to seek assistance from personal trainers on how to gain weight and strength for the fight.
“I got Floyd Mayweather training me for the big fight,” Soulja says in the video. “Now I’m still looking for all the personal trainers, all the muscle fitness companies, everybody hit me up in my DMs, I’m tryna get some weight up. Y’all let me know what I can do.”
Training at this time may be a bit too late in the game to see substantial results, but Soulja's post, which has since been deleted, shows that he has every intention of stepping into the ring with Breezy.
- 12
Mike Tyson Confirms He's Training Chris Brown
Jan. 9Mike Tyson revealed he would be training Chris Brown for the upcoming fight, which made the match seem like it was inevitable.
“So it’s confirmed. I just got off the phone with Frenchy and Chris Brown. I’m training Chris, he chose me as his trainer to take on Soulja Boy,” Tyson said, before taking the opportunity to respond to Soulja's previous comments about him. “And Soulja Boy, what the fuck you talkin’ bout, ‘Only thing I’mma teach him is how to bite somebody’s ear off.’ Yeah that’s right, I’mma teach him every dirty trick in the book to knock you out, ‘cuz I’m not gonna teach him how to run.”
Only time will tell if Soulja will prevail, but getting on Iron Mike's bad side is not conducive to walking out of a ring in one piece.
- 13
Mike Tyson Is Working on a Soulja Boy Diss Track
Jan. 9Leave it to Mike Tyson to join the lengthy list of athletes who have dropped a song. This time it's a diss track. The former heavyweight boxing champ gave a preview of what's to come on his Instagram page.
"'IF YOU SHOW UP'... It's going down," Tyson wrote in an Instagram post, which featured a clip of the diss record. "I'm going to teach him how to knock your ass out @souljaboy. Song dropping soon on my YouTube with @chrisbrownofficial. Produced by @thedamonelliott. S/O @fredfrenchy."
Looks like Iron Mike is serious about this fight.
- 14
Floyd Mayweather Wants Soulja and Chris to Fight for Charity
Jan. 11If anyone knows what it takes to promote and put on a successful boxing match, it's Floyd Mayweather. The boxer, who is set to train Soulja Boy as well as promote the fight, made an appearance on ESPN's First Take, during which he revealed his desire to make the match a charity event.
“My thing is this... hip-hop artists, R&B artists talking about physically hurting each other in the streets,” Mayweather said. “My thing is put down the guns and pick up the gloves and let’s do this. It can be a charity bout. It can go towards something positive. I have Mayweather Promotions, and we’re about being positive. So, is the fight gonna happen? We’re working on it. It’s a lot of work.”
Mayweather also denied reports that the boxing match between Chris Brown and Soulja Boy would take place in Dubai, insisting that the bout would take place in Los Angeles or Las Vegas instead.
- 15
Wack 100 Says Floyd Mayweather Isn't Calling the Shots for the Fight
Jan. 11Following Floyd Mayweather's appearance on First Take, The Game's manager, Wack 100, responded by declaring that in spite of Mayweather's quotes, the fight between Soulja Boy and Chris Brown would be taking place in Dubai. He also added that Floyd Mayweather and 50 Cent have no say in how or where the fight will go down. According to Wack, he's making the arrangements and calling the shots.
“We gonna take the fight to Dubai,” Wack said. “Mike Tyson’s definitely involved. I’ve had conversations through other people with Floyd. 50 Cent’s not needed for the fight. Floyd’s not needed for the fight. If the politics is right, we can talk business. At the end of the day, Floyd and 50 Cent ain’t never gonna control nothing that’s a West Coast situation."
Although Floyd Mayweather and 50 Cent have yet to respond to the comments, what we do know is that the bout between Chris Brown and Soulja Boy is gearing up to be the fight of the century if this timeline is any indication.
- 16
Mike Tyson Thinks Fight Will Go Past First Round
Jan. 12Boxing fans will likely think Soulja and Chris will fall out in the first round but former heavyweight champ Mike Tyson has a different idea. According to Tyson, he believes the two artists will get in the ring and go past the first round.
“It’s gonna be a tough one. I don’t think it’ll be a first-round knockout. They gonna be scrappin',” he said.
- 17
Soulja Wants to Be Friends With Chris After Fight
Jan. 13Looks like Soulja plans to be cool with Breezy following their fight in the ring. In addition to claiming he stopped smoking weed to prepare for the boxing match, the rapper said he's looking to be friends with Brown.
"I think I'm gon' win. I'm not saying it's gon' be an easy win," he said. "After the fight we can shake hands and be friends."
He also shot down rumors that Dubai is the final location. According to him, it's either Los Angeles or Las Vegas in March.
- 18
Soulja Drops Chris Brown and 50 Cent Diss Track
Jan. 15Soulja put his energy into recording a diss track aimed at Chris Brown and 50 Cent. “Hit ‘Em With the Draco” finds the rapper taking shots at both, kicking off the intro with a declaration. “Ay, 50 Cent, what you talking about? You made all that money off Vitamin Water and then filed for bankruptcy. You know I’ma knock Chris Brown out when I see him,” Soulja boasts.
He predicts the final outcome as well when it comes to the verses: "Hit ’em with the Draco one time/Hit ’em with the Draco two times/Stand in the box, I jab, I jab/I’ma knock out Chris Brown,” he raps.
- 19
Mike Tyson Drops Video for Soulja Boy Diss Track
Jan. 17Boxing legend Mike Tyson embraces his inner rapper on the Soulja Boy diss track "If You Show Up." On the song, which has an accompanying video, Iron Mike calls out Soulja and his social media antics.
“If you show up, it’s going down/I’m gonna teach him how to knock your ass out,” Tyson spits. “Talkin’ shit on Instagram/But social media don’t make a fuckin’ man/Everybody talk shit behind the keys/I’mma sting like a venereal disease/If you’re fuckin’ with my clique, you’re goin’ down/I’m Mike Tyson, and you’re gonna feel the wrath/I’m the God of the ring, greatest around/Soulja Boy you can’t fuck with Chris Brown!”
The track proves Tyson is playing no games when it comes to this forthcoming fight.
- 20
Soulja Boy Gets Evander Holyfield to Train Him
Jan. 30The boxing match between Soulja Boy and Chris Brown is taking more twists and turns. Now legendary boxer Evander Holyfield will train Soulja Boy instead of Floyd Mayweather.
The Game's manager, Wack 100, linked Soulja Boy with Holyfield, who offered the rapper some words of advice: train hard and talk less.
- 21
Soulja Boy Says Chris Brown Refuses to Fight Him
Feb. 19Soulja Boy claimed in early February that the status of the fight was still up in the air because Breezy refused to sign the documentation that would make the boxing match official.
“Can’t believe this nigga scared to fight me sign the contract Bitch Ass nigga set up the boxing match,” Soulja wrote on Twitter about Brown.
- 22
Chris Brown Explains Why He Won't Fight Soulja Boy
While on an Instagram rant against his ex Karrueche Tran, Breezy explained to his fans why he’s bowing out of the fight with Soulja.
"It was a legit thing on a positive scale [and] all the wrong people, all the middle men got in the way... It's immature first and foremost. Second of all, ain't no nigga ever gonna hold me out."