Is ANY Player Worth $400 Million? Apparently, Yes
7 years ago
25 May
The word âpokerâ and the number â$400millionâ in the same sentence would probably only have you thinking of Howard Lederer and the Full Tilt Poker debacle which has hit the news again this week.
However, youâd be wrong. There is another âplayerâ inking a massive deal with the poker world â SoulJa Boy, the American rapper, record producer, actor and entrepreneur â and he isnât apologizing for anything!
His $400million contract has been the subject of disbelief since he tweeted about it on the first of the month, but yesterday saw it confirmed by World Poker Fund Holdings who described him as âone of the most influential urban entertainers and artists on social media today.â
As I reported several weeks ago, Soulja Boy had teamed up with the likes of infamous Main Event winner Jamie Gold to launch CelebrityWorld.com, an online casino based around celebrity endorsement and interaction â âdirectly connecting active social gamers with an abundance of live and celebrity driven experiential content,â according to WPFH.
And the 25-year old âSupermanâ MC who hit the big time at the same time as Gold, is at the centre of these plans according to Matthew Bird of the World Poker Fund company who said:
Soulja Boy represents the best of the best and we are already seeing the impact from his presence.â
I invest in things I understand,â said Soulja Boy. âI enjoy music, and of course gaming. Being an influencer is a form of currency. Having portfolio diversification is critical if you want to be an effective brand ambassador. With regards to World Poker Fund, I believe in its strategy, its team, the vision, and managementâs ability to target its financial goals.â
Alongside the CelebrityWorld.com site, the WPFH also plan a âsoon-to-launch in-flight gaming platform which aims to service the three billion plus global travelers across multiple airlines worldwideâ.
Soulja Boyâs investors also has plans to produce two reality TV poker shows, âPoker Bossâ and âAmerica Loves Pokerâ and will be counting on Soulja Boy to bring some of his 15million followers on social media into their grasp.
âWe no longer are fed content from major news networksâwe seek it out and consume it by individual influencers that enrich our lifestyles,â said Bird of their investment.
The price-tag, of course, is a thing of wonder - $400million is a huge chunk of change across a five year endorsement deal, and the âCrank Thatâ billboard number 1 artist had raised eyebrows when he tweeted on May 1st -
$400 million deal confirmed. I still they think they low balled me though. I was thinking two or three billion.â
The poker deal isnât the only one SoulJa Boy had been making of late, though, as he also announced a partnership with FilmOn which came about after Beyonce sampled his 2008 hit âTurn my Swag Onâ for the song âHold Upâ from her controversial album Lemonade.
According to rap music expert Adam KrĹĂĄvek:
Soulja Boy isnât at the very top of the rap world, or any other distinct field, but has created a hugely successful âindividual brandâ around himselfâ.
Something which WPFH will no doubt be banking on as being worth $400million, stating:
The world of marketing is changing, today's biggest influencers are not brands, but individuals who create content that drive loyalty and brand sentiment.â
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