Plies
Background information
Birth name	Algernod Lanier Washington
Born	(1976-07-01) July 1, 1976 (age 35) Fort Myers, Florida
Genres	Hip hop
Occupations	Rapper
Years active	2007–present
Labels	Big Gates , Slip-n-Slide
Associated acts	DJ Khaled, Trey Songz, Rick Ross, Trick Daddy, T-Pain, Akon, Young Jeezy
Website	www.pliesworld.com

Algernod Lanier Washington (born July 1, 1976), better known by his stage name Plies, is an American rapper and founder of Big Gates Records. Born in Fort Myers, Florida, Washington was a wide receiver on the football team of Miami University in Ohio in 1996 and 1997 before he became a rapper. After dropping out of college, he founded Big Gates with his stepbrother. Signed to Slip-n-Slide Records, from 2007 to 2008 he released three albums. Plies debuted in 2007 with The Real Testament with successful singles "Shawty" and "Hypnotized". Plies also released two albums in 2008, Definition of Real and Da REAList, and later released Goon Affiliated in 2010.

Early life[link]

Plies was born Algernod Lanier Washington in Fort Myers, Florida and grew up in the East Dunbar area of Fort Myers.^[1] While at Fort Myers Senior High School, he played receiver and defensive back in its football team, was crowned Homecoming King, and was named the "Best Dressed" student of his class.^[2]

He attended Miami University and under the name Nod Washington was wide receiver on its football team in 1996 and 1997,^[3] then transferred to the University of Central Florida and dropped out.^[2] In 1996, his sophomore year, Washington had 25 receptions for 262 yards and 2 touchdowns, the second-most receptions of his team for the season.^[4] The next season, Washington played only one game and had one 9-yard reception.^[5]

Career beginnings[link]

In the late 1990s, Plies and his stepbrother Ronnell Lawrence Lavatte, also known as Big Gates, established an independent record label, Big Gates Records. Although Plies initially refused to rap, after a demonstration for one of his artists, Big Gates decided to keep Plies' verse on the track "Tell Dem Krackers Dat". Big Gates and Plies promoted the single and traveled many times to Miami, which eventually led to a deal for Plies on Slip-n-Slide Records.^[1] Plies's girlfriend Brandy Lacole Lyons gave birth to a son, Nijier Lanier Washington, at the University Community Hospital in Tampa, Florida on October 20, 2003.^[6] After signing to Slip-n-Slide in 2004, Plies released several mixtapes.^[2]

Music career[link]

[edit] 2007: The Real Testament

The Real Testament was released in August 2007. His debut single "Shawty" featuring T-Pain topped the Billboard Hot Rap Tracks chart and peaked at number nine on the Hot 100. "Hypnotized", the second single, featured Akon, and peaked at number three on the Rap chart and 14 on the Hot 100.^[7] The third single was "I Am the Club". On February 29, 2008, the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) certified the album Gold for having sold over 500,000 units; five days later the RIAA did the same for singles "Shawty" and "Hypnotized".^[8] Plies made guest performances on DJ Khaled's "I'm So Hood", also featuring T-Pain, Trick Daddy and Rick Ross in 2007, which peaked at #19 on the Hot 100 and is included on Khaled second studio album We the Best, and Fat Joe's single "Ain't Sayin' Nothin'" from The Elephant in the Room in early 2008.

[edit] 2008: Definition of Real & Da REAList

Definition of Real, his second album, was released in June 2008, 10 months after releasing his first album. The lead single was "Bust It Baby Pt. 2" featuring Ne-Yo, which peaked at number two on both the Hot Rap Tracks and Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks charts and number seven on the Hot 100.^[7] The album debuted at number two on the Billboard 200, selling over 214,000 copies its first week.^[9] The next single was "Please Excuse My Hands", featuring Jamie Foxx and The-Dream.^[7][10] RIAA certified Gold "Bust It Baby" on September 17 and Definition of Real October 14.^[8] In the same year Plies released his third album, Da REAList, in December 2008, six months after the release of his second album. The first official single off this album is "Put It on Ya", featuring Chris J. The album debuted at number 14 on the Billboard 200 with 114,000 copies sold in its first week.^[11] The second single is "Want It, Need It", featuring Ashanti and the third is "Plenty Money". He did a guest performance on Ludacris's single "Nasty Girl" from Ludacris's album Theater of the Mind. He also appeared on Khaled's song "Out Here Grindin' also featuring Akon, Ross, Young Jeezy, Lil Boosie, Ace Hood and Trick Daddy, which peaked at #38 on the Hot 100 and is from Khaled's third album We Global.

[edit] 2009-2010: Goon Affiliated

In an interview with Plies and according to Slip-n-Slide Records, the rapper announced that he completed a fourth album. Tentatively, he planned to release it on February 16, 2009, but stated that the exact date depended on the success of his third album.^[12][13] The album, Goon Affiliated, ended up being released on June 8, 2010.^[14] The album's first two singles are "Becky" and "She Got It Made" featuring Bei Maejor. The album debuted at #5 on the Billboard 200, much more successful than his previous album. He continued to make guest appearances on Usher's "Hey Daddy (Daddy's Home)" (that version not making the Usher's sixth studio album Raymond vs. Raymond), Gucci Mane's "Wasted", from The State vs. Radric Davis and Young Jeezy's "Lose My Mind", from Jeezy's fourth album Thug Motivation 103: Hustlerz Ambition, all of which made the top 40 of the Hot 100.

[edit] 2010-present: Purple Heart

On September 3, 2010 Plies released a mixtape entitled You Need People Like Me which had a song entitled "Boosie" dedicated to the incarcerated rapper Lil Boosie.^[15] On November 18, he released another mixtape entitled You Need People Like Me Pt. 2.^[16] On December 23, 2010 he released another mixtape entitled No Chaser.^[17]

In 2011 Plies released two mixtapes entitled I Fuck With The DJ & Aristotle. On May 3, 2011 Plies announce the title for his fifth studio album entitled Purple Heart. On September 22, 2011 Plies released his first promotion single from Purple Heart entitled "Just (The Tip)" which featured Jeremih & Ludacris.^[18]

On February 24, 2012 Plies released the promotional mixtape On Trial which included the first single from his album Purple Heart entitled "With You".^[19] On April 17, 2012 Plies released a single entitled "We Are Trayvon" that was dedicated to Trayvon Martin which all profits from the single be donated to the "Trayvon Martin Foundation".^[20][21]

Lyricism and public persona[link]

David Jeffries of allmusic described Plies's debut album The Real Testament as tracks covering both gang life and love.^[22] Similarly, Jeffries described the lyrical content of Da REAList as having "a spectrum that runs from irresponsible gun talk to irresponsible sex talk".^[23] A profile of Plies in the December 2008 issue of Vibe magazine observed that Plies constantly referred to himself as "real" in his music and album titles. However, it pointed out that the word "has virtually synonymous with 'criminal' and, in some cases, almost superseded the idea of being able to actually rap".^[2] In July 2008, hip hop website HipHopDX published an investigative report suggesting that Plies exaggerated his criminal background.^[24]

Legal issuses[link]

On July 2, 2006, after a shooting at a Gainesville, Florida nightclub, Plies was charged with illegal possession of a concealed weapon, and members of his entourage were charged with attempted murder.^[25] The shooting, in which 5 people were injured, started after Plies' microphone was cut off for Lil Boosie to perform, after Plies' performance ran over time. According to the promoter Jonathan Smith, Plies became "enraged". A fight began with fists and shouting, and ended with at least six rounds of bullets being fired.^[26]

Discography[link]

• The Real Testament (2007)
• Definition of Real (2008)
• Da REAList (2008)
• Goon Affiliated (2010)
• Purple Heart (2012)

Awards and nominations[link]

• BET Hip-Hop Awards^[27]
  • 2008: Ringtone of the Year ("Bust It Baby Pt 2" with Ne-Yo) (Nominated)
  • 2008: People's Champ Award ("Bust It Baby Pt 2" with Ne-Yo) (Nominated)
  • 2008: Best Collaboration ("Bust It Baby Pt 2" with Ne-Yo) (Nominated)

• Ozone Awards^[28][29]
  • 2007: Best Rap/R&B Collaboration ("Shawty" with T-Pain) (Won)
  • 2008: Best Rap Album (The Real Testament) (Nominated)
  • 2008: Best Rap/R&B Collaboration ("Bust It Baby Pt. 2" with Ne-Yo) (Nominated)
  • 2008: Club Banger of the Year ("I'm So Hood" with DJ Khaled, Trick Daddy, T-Pain and Rick Ross) (Nominated)

• Grammy Awards^[30]
  • 2011: Best Rap Performance By A Duo Or Group ("Lose My Mind" with Young Jeezy) (Nominated)

References[link]

External links[link]

• Official Website

Look up ply in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

Ply, Pli, Plies or Plying may refer to:

• Ply (game theory), a turn in game play
• PLY (file format) or Polygon File Format
• Plying, a spinning technique to make yarn
• Plies (rapper), American rapper
• Pli, an academic journal
• Ply, a layer of paper or wood, such as with toilet paper, tissue paper, paper towels or plywood
• PLY, an implementation of the yacc parsing tool for the Python programming language
• Tire ply, a layer of cords embedded in the rubber of a tire

See also[link]

• 3-Ply, a California music band
• Two-ply, a comic book publishing term
• Plié, a ballet term that has a somewhat similar pronunciation

This disambiguation page lists articles associated with the same title. If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended article.

Gucci Mane
Gucci Mane performing in Williamsburg, Brooklyn on August 29, 2010.
Background information
Birth name	Radric Davis
Born	(1980-02-02) February 2, 1980 (age 32) Birmingham, Alabama
Origin	Atlanta, Georgia, United States
Genres	Southern hip hop, gangsta rap
Occupations	Rapper
Years active	2005 – present
Labels	1017 Brick Squad Records, Asylum, Warner Bros.
Associated acts	1017 Brick Squad, Young Money, V-Nasty, Yo Gotti, Soulja Boy, Plies, Usher, Young Jeezy, E-40, French Montana, Maino, Jadakiss, CTE, Lil' Kim, Birdman
Website	www.guccimaneonline.com

Radric Davis^[1] (born February 2, 1980),^[2] better known by his stage name Gucci Mane, is an American rapper. He debuted in 2005 with Trap House and followed with albums such as Hard to Kill in 2006, Trap-A-Thon and Back to the Trap House in 2007. In 2009, his second studio album The State vs. Radric Davis was released, and The Appeal: Georgia's Most Wanted was released in 2010, and is his highest charting album so far. Gucci Mane has released many other mixtapes and independent albums as well.

While serving a six-month jail term for assault in late 2005, Davis was charged with murder, though the charges were later dropped due to a lack of evidence. In 2009, he served a year-long county jail sentence for violating probation for his 2005 aggravated assault conviction.

Biography[link]

Early life[link]

Davis was born in Birmingham, Alabama, and later moved with his single mother to Atlanta. He enjoyed writing poetry as a child, and began rapping at age 14.^[1]

[edit] 2005–2006: Trap House and Hard to Kill

In 2005, Davis released his independent debut album entitled Trap House, which featured the successful single "Icy" with Young Jeezy. Disputes over the rights to this single caused a rift between the two artists. Hard to Kill followed in 2006. Hard To Kill included the hit single "Freaky Gurl". The song peaked at number 12 on the Hot Rap Tracks, number 19 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs, and at number 62 on the Hot 100.

[edit] 2007: Back to the Trap House

The official remix of Freaky Gurl featuring Ludacris and Lil Kim was included on his 2007 commercial debut album Back to the Trap House. Gucci Mane appeared on OJ da Juiceman's "Make Tha Trap Say Aye" and began working on various mixtapes.^[3] Gucci Mane signed to Warner Bros. Records in May 2009.^[4]

[edit] 2009–2010: The State vs. Radric Davis

He appeared on remixes of the songs "Boom Boom Pow" by The Black Eyed Peas, "Obsessed" by Mariah Carey and "5 Star Chick" by Yo Gotti and made a guest appearance on Mario's "Break Up" (he has made 17 guest appearances total in 2009). Gucci Mane's second studio album The State vs. Radric Davis was released under the label Warner Bros. Records on December 8, 2009. Its first single, "Wasted" featuring Plies, was originally from Mane's 2009 mixtape Writing on the Wall. It peaked at number 36 on the Hot 100, number 3 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs, and number 3 on the Rap Songs making it Gucci Mane's most successful single to date. The second single is "Spotlight" featuring Usher. The third single is "Lemonade". The fourth single is "Bingo", featuring Waka Flocka Flame and Soulja Boy Tell 'Em. On October 2, 2009, Gucci Mane was listed at number 6 on MTV's annual Hottest MC in the Game list.^[5]

Gucci Mane performing on August 29, 2010.

[edit] 2010–present: The Appeal: Georgia's Most Wanted and other projects

After being released from jail, Gucci Mane stated that he would start or change the label name from So Icey Entertainment to 1017 Brick Squad Records. The Appeal: Georgia's Most Wanted, was released on September 28, 2010.^[6] The first single from this release was titled "Gucci Time",^[7] produced by Swizz Beatz. It premiered on Gucci Mane's official MySpace page on August 6.^[8] The single also features Swizz Beatz and was released to US urban radio stations on August 24, 2010.^[9]

On March 18, 2011, Gucci Mane released his 10th EP, The Return of Mr. Zone 6, mostly produced by Drumma Boy.^[10] It debuted at #18 on the Billboard 200, and is his highest charting EP. The album also debuted at #2 on the Rap albums chart and #8 on the R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart. He also released a collaboration album with Waka Flocka Flame named Ferrari Boyz on August 5, Gucci's first collaboration album.^[11] It's first single is "She Be Puttin On" featuring late-fellow Brick Squad labelmate Slim Dunkin. Ferrari Boyz debuted at #21 on the Billboard 200. Gucci Mane released another collaboration album, this time with rapper V-Nasty, called BAYTL, on December 13.^[12] The album's first single is "Whip Appeal" featuring P2theLA.^[13] Three days after the album's release, while traveling to the video shoot of "Push Ups", a song from BAYTL featuring Slim Dunkin, the latter got into an argument with another person who shot Dunkin dead at an Atlanta recording studio.^[14] On February 5, 2012, Gucci Mane released his Trap Back mixtape. It features guest appearances from Yo Gotti, Rocko, Waka Flocka Flame, Jadakiss, 2 Chainz, and Future, the latter three recently appearing on Young Jeezy's third studio album Thug Motivation 103: Hustlerz Ambition. The first single is the mixtape's title track.^[15] Music videos have been filmed for the songs "Quiet", "Face Card", "In Love With a White Girl" featuring Yo Gotti, "Chicken Room" featuring Rocko, and the title track, and "Sometimes" featuring Future.^{[16][17][18][19][20][21]} Trap Back has been met with positive reviews so far, scoring a 7.8 from Pitchfork Media, a 7.5 from AllHipHop, and an "L" from XXL.^[22][23][24]

Legal issues[link]

2001[link]

In April 2001, Davis was arrested on cocaine charges and sentenced to 90 days in county jail.^[25]

2005[link]

On May 10, 2005, Davis was attacked by a group of men at a house in Decatur, Georgia. Davis and his companions shot at the group, killing one. The corpse of one of the attackers, Pookie Loc, was found later behind a nearby middle school. Davis turned himself in to police investigators on May 19, 2005, and was subsequently charged with murder. Davis claimed that the shots fired by him and his party were in self-defense.^[25] The DeKalb County district attorney's office dropped the murder charge in January 2006 due to insufficient evidence. The previous October, in an unrelated matter, Davis had pleaded no contest to a charge of aggravated assault for assaulting a nightclub promoter the previous June; at the time the murder charge was dropped, he was serving a six-month county jail sentence for this.^[26] Davis was released from jail in late January 2006.^[1]