But it wasn’t until this past February, when he dropped the LRG-sponsored mixtape May 25th, that things started to really take off. The tape featured the Bruno Mars-assisted single “Nothin’ on You,” which was instantly embraced by radio. The song hit #1 on Billboard’s Hot 100 and sold more than 2 million copies.
He duplicated that success with “Airplanes,” featuring Paramore’s Hayley Williams, which spent a staggering 26 weeks on the Hot 100, peaking at #2. It even spawned a remix with a reinvigorated Eminem, which helped launch Marshall Mathers back into the public eye.
B.o.B’s two hit singles actually made Grand Hustle release the Atlanta MC’s debut LP, The Adventures of Bobby Ray, an entire month before it was set to hit stores. It sold 84,000 copies its first week and debuted at #1 on the Billboard albums chart, selling more than 400,000 units since.
He also released the T.I. and Playboy Tre-assisted single “Bet I,” which let fans know he wasn’t all pop looks. B.o.B stole the show on Slim Thug’s “So High” and guested on the remix of Cali Swag District’s dance hit “Teach Me How to Dougie.” Additionally, one of the songs from May 25th, “F— the Money” with Asher Roth, became something of an underground hit, even while B.o.B was crossing over into the top 40.
B.o.B rounded out his year by winning a Teen Choice Award for “Airplanes,” performing at the VMAs and BET Hip-Hop Awards and scoring an “MTV Unplugged” special. He headlined his own Shootin for Stars Tour over the summer, appeared at Lollapalooza, opened for Jay-Z and Eminem’s Home and Home concert series, and is set to tour the U.K. with Paramore in November. And, finally, he’s a spokesperson for Adidas.
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