Chicago-born rapper Soulja Boy will not be charged by DA after weapons arrest
LOS ANGELES -- The Chicago-born rapper Soulja Boy will not be charged by the district attorney after being arrested Sunday in Los Angeles on suspicion of being a convicted felon in possession of a firearm, authorities said.
A case was declined due to insufficient evidence, ABC Los Angeles affiliate KABC learned.
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Soulja Boy exploded onto the scene in 2007 with the smash hit "Crank That (Soulja Boy)."
The Los Angeles Police Department confirmed that the arrest of DeAndre Cortez Way, his birth name, took place at about 2:35 a.m. in the Melrose neighborhood of L.A. Officers conducted a traffic stop in the area of Melrose and North Genesee avenues and discovered that Way, a passenger in the vehicle, was in possession of a firearm.
It's not yet clear what spurred the traffic stop.
Way was booked into jail in the LAPD's Wilshire Division on suspicion of a felony, the agency said.
No additional details were immediately made available.
Way, 35, built a following off of the success of "Crank That," which was attached to a popular dance trend upon its release. He's continued to release music since and has had success as an online streamer.
In April 2023, a jury ordered the "Crank That" singer to pay $235,900 in punitive damages to a woman who alleged that the rapper yelled profanities, kicked her, stomped on her stomach and bashed her head with a large gun during a party she attended at his Malibu home in 2019. The amount was the same that the panel had given the woman a week earlier in compensatory damages.
In December 2016, Soulja Boy was arrested at his Hollywood Hills home, where a gun was found by officers, the LAPD said. The rapper was on probation at the time.
CNN contributed to this report.
