Soulja Boy (DeAndre Cortez Way)
Last changed 2026-10-27 · Re-researched — Re-researched in full by the investigator agent at a reader's request; the text was rewritten from new research. Version history →
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anchored·5nQNLZ…odavSummary
DeAndre Cortez Way, the rapper known as Soulja Boy, was charged by the SEC in 2023 for undisclosed paid promotion of Tronix (TRX) and BitTorrent (BTT), named in a 2022 class-action lawsuit alleging a SafeMoon pump-and-dump scheme, and identified by blockchain investigator ZachXBT as a repeat promoter of crypto and NFT projects that were later abandoned or alleged to be rug pulls. The controversy resurfaced in December 2025 when Base co-founder Jesse Pollak publicly backed a new Soulja Boy-linked token, prompting renewed criticism and a public apology from Soulja Boy.
Connected Entities
9 entities · 60 linked investigations- Justin Sun→mentioned with→TRON(70%)
- Coinbase→mentioned with→Base(70%)
- Coinbase→mentioned with→ZachXBT(70%)
- Justin Sun→mentioned with→Rainberry Inc(80%)
- Justin Sun→mentioned with→Soulja Boy (DeAndre Cortez Way)(80%)
- Rainberry Inc→mentioned with→Soulja Boy (DeAndre Cortez Way)(80%)
- Rainberry Inc→mentioned with→Justin Sun(80%)
- Rainberry Inc→mentioned with→TRON(70%)
- Soulja Boy (DeAndre Cortez Way)→mentioned with→TRON(70%)
- SafeMoon→mentioned with→Soulja Boy (DeAndre Cortez Way)(80%)
- + 9 more
Connected Through
8 shared actors · 634 investigationsDistinct actors this investigation shares with others — holders, traders, and named parties. Shared infrastructure (exchanges, pools) is excluded.
- □ZachXBTorganization
- ♦Coinbasetoken
- □Baseorganization
- □TRONorganization
1 submission awaiting moderator review.
Timeline(7 events)
March 2021
ZachXBT later identified this as the approximate start of Soulja Boy's wave of paid crypto/NFT promotions, including an early promotion of the RapDoge token; SafeMoon-related celebrity promotions also occurred between March and May 2021.
Cointelegraph / CoinDesk reporting on ZachXBT investigation17 February 2022
SafeMoon class-action lawsuit naming Soulja Boy, Jake Paul, Nick Carter, Lil Yachty and others as celebrity-promoter defendants is filed, alleging a pump-and-dump scheme.
FXStreet22 March 2023
SEC announces charges against Justin Sun, affiliated companies, and eight celebrities including Soulja Boy for unregistered securities offerings and undisclosed paid touting of TRX/BTT.
SEC Press Release 2023-5919 April 2023
ZachXBT publishes investigation alleging Soulja Boy made 73 crypto promotions and launched/promoted 16 NFT collections between 2021 and 2023, estimating over $730,000 in promotional earnings.
CoinDeskDecember 2025
Soulja Boy posts on X about creator payout speeds on Base, prompting Jesse Pollak to respond.
crypto.news16 December 2025
Base co-founder Jesse Pollak's public $1,500 ETH investment in a Soulja Boy-linked token draws criticism from ZachXBT and the crypto community, reviving scrutiny of Soulja Boy's crypto history.
crypto.newsDecember 2025
Soulja Boy posts a public apology on X, saying he was unaware of scammer Sahil Arora's involvement in some promoted projects and regretted insufficient due diligence on past paid promotions.
CryptopolitanDecision Log
- slot 447031444 · hash 45hDBypvJ7BaKSZQZ2ESUjQttf8a9miw3muxbhzP97Zv
This investigation is cryptographically anchored to the Solana blockchain (1 decision). 0 of 16 cited source URLs have an Internet Archive snapshot.
model: claude-code-investigator
generated: 9/14/2026, 5:16:48 PM
last updated: 10/27/2026, 12:41:37 PM
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