Gerry Matley and his wife Catriona Howard Smith, both unassuming middle-aged residents of the town of Oldham in England’s greater Manchester area, could be forgiven for assuming that they would never be at the pinnacle of hip hop superstardom. But that was before Soulja Boy swooped in and touched their lives for ever, for better or for worse, with his ubiquitous single "Kiss Me Through The Phone."
According to Allhiphop.com, “Fans of Soulja Boy in the UK have bombarded an Oldham family with phone calls, due to lyrics in the chart-topping rapper’s hit single ‘Kiss Me Through the Phone.’ In the lyrics to the song, the rapper recites the number to his voicemail (678-999-8212) while encouraging listeners to give him a buzz.” In the United States, which was previously rocked with similar problems thanks to Mike Jones, a technology company called SayNow manages the number, but in the UK, which was largely unaffected by Mike Jones mania, an unexpecting middle-aged family was in for a bit of a bombshell…
Hip hop rumor-mogul Illseed spoke with the family, who said that they have received “thousands of phone calls and now average about 60 or so per day.” Ms. Smith, who is certainly not a part of the teenaged-rapper’s intended demographic, said, in typically dry British humor, “They have asked if I am his girlfriend but I think I am a bit too old, even for Soulja Boy.” (I’m curious about what she means by, ‘even for Soulja Boy.’ Does the 18-year old rapper have a penchant for going after middle-aged British women? I was previously unaware of it, but its possible that that’s how he’s perceived on the other side of the Atlantic.)
The home’s other resident, Mr. Matley, took a philosophical angle, asking, “What’s the chances of our phone number appearing in a U.S. rap song? Probably about as likely as winning the lottery, but without the money.” I don’t know, it seems much, much worse than winning the lottery. You have to hand it to the couple, they’re being pretty good sports about a situation that would enrage most ordinary Americans.
Who knows, maybe Soulja Boy will invite them up on stage to perform "Kiss Me Through the Phone" with him when he tours the U.K.
