Social media was abuzz Thursday afternoon with the surprise news that incredibly influential Atlanta rapper Gucci Mane was released from prison. According to TMZ, who caught up with the rapper’s lawyer, Gucci was released from an Indiana prison Thursday morning.
Gucci, whose government name is Radric Davis, had been behind bars since September 2013 for a probation violation related to gun and drug charges. It was reported he was originally to serve six months in jail for the violation, which later turned into 39 months, and he was due to be out this September.
But his lawyer, Drew Findling, told the New York Daily News that Gucci’s attorneys had previously filed motions in court to have the date of his release “shortened and corrected” for time he’d already served.
By the time photos and videos of a free Gucci Mane (with abs) appeared on his girlfriend Keyshia Ka’oir’s Snapchat, the internet was already in a frenzy, wondering which fellow rapper he’d diss first.
Regardless of his legal troubles, which include a dropped murder charge from 2006 and an assault charge in 2011 that stemmed from allegedly throwing a woman out of a moving car, Gucci Mane is one of the most beloved and important rappers currently going.
His iciness—which extends to his diamond Bart Simpson necklace, the ice cream cone tattooed on his face, and his consistent trap house imagery, which is directly responsible for most references to “trap” in contemporary music—have made him arguably the most influential person in rap music.
As many fans have noted, Gucci had a huge hand in putting on some of the most popular rappers in the world, including Future and Nicki Minaj, as well as producers like Mike Will Made It and Zaytoven. Gucci also was working with Drake as far back as 2009. Gucci Mane’s style and flows can be seen and heard throughout rap music, and luckily, Twitter is here to document everyone’s interpretation of it.
Some people celebrated Gucci’s freedom by comparing him to important historical figures:
GUCCI MANEDELA pic.twitter.com/jLHaJNNSFi
— NAACP YOUNGBOY (@FannyPacksHeat) May 26, 2016
https://twitter.com/CuntryCorner/status/735933759552393217
https://twitter.com/CuntryCorner/status/735935016782422016
Others used the opportunity to show off their Photoshop skills:
https://twitter.com/Genius/status/735927552452202496
Gucci Mane Returns pic.twitter.com/f5LHNgnBRP
— Cycle (@bycycle) May 26, 2016
One person posted a classic video of Gucci giving words of wisdom:
https://twitter.com/SheHatesJacoby/status/735925775392608256
Another person hoped there would be a video to document his first day released from prison like there was the last time:
We need a first day out part 2 ! Gucci back bitch pic.twitter.com/fCes5wF1uW
— GLOCK (@GlockRivers) May 26, 2016
Meanwhile there was a growing contingent hoping that Snapchat would ready a filter for the occasion:
https://twitter.com/TheDiLLon1/status/735929180769165313
And at the same time, someone else took the Snapchat filter into her own hands:
I’ll make my own @Snapchat @snapchatsupport, y’all takin too long ! pic.twitter.com/q86J1OpiBS
— TEk kNiGHt * (@HoeImSuckerFree) May 26, 2016
Not to be outdone, some people decided to call out seemingly brand new fans:
Oh y’all Gucci fans now? Name 3 of his charges
— Hentailectual (@DonDrewlio) May 26, 2016
Or seemingly secular fans:
https://twitter.com/DragonflyJonez/status/735942737862766592
Youre all excited about Gucci Mane but let me tell you about Savior Mane.
— 🦫✨America Is Musty✨🦫 (@DragonflyJonez) May 26, 2016
Plus there was a reading of his release as a political reaction:
https://twitter.com/SheaSerrano/status/735917354471686144
Gucci Mane’s lyrics even made it on the ESPN show Highly Questionable as rapped by the inimitable Papi:
lol we all know this was @bomani_jones idea pic.twitter.com/CzsxN4ycUL
— TJ (@edc_tj) May 26, 2016
It all coalesced with Gucci owning nine of the top 10 trending topics on Twitter for a period of time:
Radric Davis currently occupies 90% of the trending topics pic.twitter.com/HkvifTY6zy
— Andrew Barber (@fakeshoredrive) May 26, 2016
Turns out, it was a pretty important day.
