It was 2010. You couldn't walk into a mall, a gym, or a dive bar without hearing that hypnotic, buzzing synth line. It felt like the future, or at least a very shiny, chrome-plated version of it. Far East Movement’s Like a G6 didn't just top the charts; it basically glued itself there. But here is the thing: half the people screaming the lyrics at the top of their lungs had absolutely no clue what they were actually singing about.
A G6? Was it a car? A Gatorade flavor? Some kind of high-end blender?
Actually, it was a mistake. Sorta.
The Gulfstream Confusion
Let's get the technical stuff out of the way because it’s actually hilarious. The "G6" referred to in the song is the Gulfstream G650. It’s a private jet. It is the pinnacle of "I have more money than I know what to do with" luxury. When Far East Movement dropped those lines, they wanted to sound like they were flying higher than everyone else.
There was just one tiny problem. In 2010, the G650 didn't really exist in the way people thought.
The G4 was the industry standard for rappers and CEOs. The G5 (Gulfstream V) was the upgrade. The Far East Movement guys—Kev Nish, Prohgress, J-Splif, and DJ Virman—wanted to one-up the lyrical "G5" mentions they kept hearing in other hip-hop tracks. So, they just went one number higher. It was a flex. They were essentially saying, "You're on a G5? Cool, we're on the one that hasn't even hit the runway yet."
Funny enough, the G650 didn't even receive its full FAA type certification until 2012. When the song was a global #1 hit, the plane was basically a flight-test prototype. They were bragging about a jet that was still in school.
💡 You might also like: Why This Is How We Roll FGL Is Still The Song That Defines Modern Country
How a Garage Track Conquered the World
Most people assume these massive hits are manufactured in a sterile lab by Swedish songwriters. This one wasn't. It started in a basement in Los Angeles. The beat was crafted by The Cataracs (Niles Hollowell-Dhar and David Benjamin Singer-Vine). If you remember the vibe of the early 2010s, it was all about that "Cherrytree Records" sound—electro-hop, heavy bass, and vocals that sounded like they were being fed through a digital meat grinder.
The hook was actually sampled from another song called "Booty Bounce" by Dev.
"Poppin' bottles in the ice, like a blizzard / When we drink we do it right, gettin' slizzard / Sippin' sizzurp in my ride, like Three 6 / Now I'm feelin' so fly like a G6."
It's simple. It's repetitive. It’s also incredibly effective. The word "slizzard" isn't even a real word, but everyone knew exactly what it meant the moment they heard it. That’s the magic of pop songwriting; you don't need a dictionary when the bass is hitting your chest.
Far East Movement was making history here, though they probably didn't realize it between takes. They were the first Asian-American group to hit number one on the Billboard Hot 100. That’s massive. They broke a ceiling that had stayed shut for decades, and they did it with a song about getting tipsy on a plane that wasn't finished yet.
The Sound of the "Electro-Hop" Peak
Why did it work? Honestly, it’s the minimalism.
📖 Related: The Real Story Behind I Can Do Bad All by Myself: From Stage to Screen
Listen to it again today. There isn't much going on. It’s a kick drum, a very aggressive synth lead, and some sparse finger snaps. It’s "dry" compared to the lush, overproduced tracks of today. That dryness made it cut through radio static. In an era of Kesha and Katy Perry, Like a G6 felt grittier. It felt like a club in downtown LA at 2:00 AM where the floor is a little too sticky.
It also tapped into the "Swayze" era of pop culture. The lyrics mention "feeling like Patrick Swayze," a nod to Ghost. It was a weird mix of 80s nostalgia and futuristic techno-optimism. We were all obsessed with being "fly," a term that feels ancient now but was the currency of cool back then.
The Real Cost of Being "Like a G6"
If you actually wanted to live the song, you’d need a staggering amount of liquid cash. A Gulfstream G650 today costs somewhere in the neighborhood of $65 million to $70 million. That doesn't include the fuel, which burns at a rate of about 400 to 500 gallons per hour.
- Initial Purchase: ~$65M
- Annual Maintenance: ~$1.5M - $2M
- Fuel per hour: ~$3,000+
- Crew Salary: ~$250,000/year
The song makes it sound like a party. In reality, owning a G6 is a full-time business operation. But that's the point of the fantasy, right? Nobody wants to hear a song about the logistical nightmare of scheduling hangar space in Teterboro. They want to hear about the blizzard in the ice bucket.
Misconceptions That Still Persist
One of the biggest things people get wrong is thinking the song is about a Pontiac G6.
Please. No.
👉 See also: Love Island UK Who Is Still Together: The Reality of Romance After the Villa
The Pontiac G6 was a mid-size sedan that was discontinued the same year the song came out. It was a fine car for getting to a dental appointment, but nobody is "poppin' bottles" in a Pontiac unless things have gone horribly wrong.
Another misconception is that the song promotes "sizzurp" in a heavy, Southern-rap way. While the lyrics definitely reference "sippin' sizzurp," the song's energy is purely caffeinated EDM. It’s a weird lyrical bridge between the Houston "chopped and screwed" scene and the neon-light world of the Jersey Shore era. It took a very specific subculture reference and turned it into a Top 40 hook that soccer moms were humming in traffic.
Why We Still Care (or Why It Still Slaps)
Trends move fast. Usually, a song like this vanishes into the "Remember the 2010s?" playlists and stays there. But Like a G6 has a weirdly long tail.
It’s used in movies to signal a specific type of high-energy, slightly chaotic wealth. It’s a staple for irony-poisoned Gen Z TikToks. It represents a moment before the world got incredibly heavy—a time when the biggest worry was whether you could get into the VIP section and if the "G6" was actually faster than a "G5."
It was the peak of the "Shades inside the club" movement. It was ridiculous. It was loud. It was fun.
Actionable Steps for the Nostalgic or the Curious
If you’re looking to recapture that 2010 energy or just want to understand the production better, here’s how to dive back in:
- Listen to the "Stereotypes" Remix: If you think the original is catchy, the remixes from that era show how the "LA Sound" was evolving. It’s a masterclass in early 2010s synth programming.
- Check out The Cataracs' other work: They produced "Top of the World" and "Bass Down Low." You’ll start to hear the DNA of modern pop-EDM everywhere once you recognize their signature "cluck" and "snap" sounds.
- Look up the G650ER specs: If you’re a tech nerd, look at what the plane actually became. It holds the record for the farthest fastest flight in business aviation history. The song might have been a bit early, but the plane eventually lived up to the hype.
- Analyze the "Lean" Lyricism: For a deeper look at music history, trace the "sizzurp" reference from Three 6 Mafia (who are shouted out in the song) to the mainstream pop charts. It’s a fascinating, if controversial, study in how underground hip-hop terms get sanitized for global consumption.
The song is a time capsule. It’s a reminder that sometimes, the best way to make a hit is to just make up a higher number and hope the world follows you there. Most of the time, they do.