| "Ali Bomaye" | |
|---|---|
| Song byThe Game featuring2 Chainz andRick Ross | |
| from the albumJesus Piece | |
| Released | December 11, 2012 |
| Recorded | 2012 |
| Genre | Hip hop,cloud rap |
| Length | 6:12(Explicit album version) 5:21(Clean album version) |
| Label | |
| Songwriters |
|
| Producer | Black Metaphor |
"Ali Bomaye" is a song by American rapperThe Game, featured as the second track from his fifth studio albumJesus Piece. "Ali Bomaye" features fellow rappers2 Chainz andRick Ross, withproduction from Black Metaphor andsamples "Seven Devils" byFlorence and the Machine.[1] The song has since peaked at number one on theBillboardBubbling Under R&B/Hip-Hop Singles chart and appears in the soundtrack toGrand Theft Auto V. Despite never being released as a single, it is Game's third most streamed song onSpotify as of 2025.[2]
WhenMuhammad Ali facedGeorge Foreman in 1974'sRumble in the Jungle, Congolese (Zairian at the time) audience members cheered Ali by shouting, "Ali boma ye!", meaning, "Ali, kill him!" inLingala.[3] The Game would take inspiration from that chant on the chorus of the track.[4] He toldVibe, "I just happened to be watching the movie and didn't have a song title or arc yet, so I was like fuck it... Ali Bomaye. And that's how I came up with the hook, really." He then sent the track to2 Chainz andRick Ross to polish off the song with their verses.[5] The song ends with askit featuring comedianKevin Hart.[6]
In January 2013, The Game shot the first part of themusic video withRick Ross.[7] On February 11 and 12, 2013 The Game shot the majority of the music video, with 2 Chainz inLos Angeles.[5][7] The final version of the music video was released on July 2, 2013, and featured cameo appearances fromFrench Montana,DJ Khaled andChris Brown, among others. The video Directed byJ.R. Saint and produced byMahad Dar ofCreative Dream Productions.[8][9][10] The video has amassed over 101,000,000 views onYouTube.
"Ali Bomaye" was met with generally positive reviews frommusic critics. DJBooth.net said the "beat on "Ali Bomaye" is absolutely a beast, and on the whole it's just one of those songs that demands some serious head nodding."[11] David Jeffries ofAllMusic called the song a, "10 Commandments-busting anthem, which makes selling your soul to the devil sound swanky and sweet.[12] Slava Kuperstein ofHipHopDX, praised the song's "rich production and epic vocal samples." Also saying, "2 Chainz and Rick Ross are merely tolerable on the cut (neither brings their best), but Game’s ear for production serves him well here."[13] However, Eric Revis ofThe New York Times called Ross' verse on the song "excellent".[14] Also Chris Dart ofExclaim! stated that The Game was overshadowed by 2 Chainz' charisma on the song.[15] However, Phillip Mlynar ofSpin said, "2 Chainz sounds worryingly constipated" on the track.[16]
In August 2013, "Ali Bomaye" was serviced toDJ's as apromotional single from his fifth albumJesus Piece.[17] The song is also featured on the soundtrack toGrand Theft Auto V on the Radio Los Santos station, which featuresWest Coast hip hop.[18][19]
| Chart (2013) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| USBubbling Under R&B/Hip-Hop Singles (Billboard)[20] | 1 |
| Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
|---|---|---|
| New Zealand (RMNZ)[21] | Gold | 15,000‡ |
| United Kingdom (BPI)[22] | Silver | 200,000‡ |
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone. | ||
