50's future solo efforts, attempting to recapture the massive success of GRODT, became increasingly formulaic.
Following that album, G-Unit appearances were relegated to mixtapes and group albums, before the original crew fell apart entirely. But because the record sounded so masterful, and the rapper’s personality was still evident, it sold incredibly well.īut losing what made 50 Cent distinctive had its costs. 50’s sly humor was replaced almost entirely by outright threats. Yayo and Banks, separated, appeared on one song each. There were a vanishingly small number of street-level Queens tales-almost all of them confined to “Many Men (Wish Death)”-on the album. Get Rich or Die Tryin’ contained enough powerful beats, great song concepts, and digs at rap rival Ja Rule to disguise something very fundamental: this was a different 50. They assisted 50 in jacking songs, catching (metaphorical) bodies, and having loads of fun in the process-which was reflected in the music he produced.Īt least initially, the operation was a success. G-Unit initially consisted of Tony Yayo, the ride-or-die soldier and Lloyd Banks, the young spitter with a seemingly endless supply of punchlines. ĥ0 was accompanied by a crew in his adventures.
I feel like this album I'm getting ready to launch can do the same thing.Having something to lose did something that getting shot nine times couldn’t-it made 50 Cent vulnerable.ĥ0 Cent was not afraid of anything or anyone: feuding with Jay Z on “ Be a Gentleman,” talking about Queens’ most notorious criminals and drug dealers-by name-on “ Ghetto Qu’ran,” and even insulting a feared gang on “ Round Here” And he did it all with a sly sense of humor, and full knowledge that he was playing the villain. Get Rich or Die Tryin' stood apart and it was that thing they gravitated to and it worked with intensity. I don't follow the trend of what they're doing. That hipster vibe, like the black hippies, where everyone wanna get high and have fun.it will turn around. They had big songs, but they didn't have the same aggression you'd face in the environments that we come out of.
Then, you had Ja and Nelly and a lot of the lighthearted music became big. Before 50 Cent, there was DMX that had that kind of aggressive energy. Things trend in hip-hop and there's cycles. When you say classic, it's music that's going to mark time. The person they're saying is "he's cool, but." is selling records, while the person that they're saying is "lyrical" ain't selling shit. If the person judging you doesn't even write music, that's pretty odd for them to place where you are. The Top MCs for MTV and them doing that.these different things kinda make people lose interest in where they're being placed publicly. Well, what rules are we following by? There was a period, where how many mics you got in The Source meant something or if you got the extra, extra large in XXL. Here, 50 talks to XXL about Freelancers, his friendship with De Niro, how he plans on changing boxing, why Lloyd Banks and Tony Yayo dropping mixtapes isn't enough, and his thoughts on Kanye West penning "Perfect Bitch" for Kim Kardashian. Still, 'Fif hasn't forgotten about the music, as he preps for the November 13 release date of his upcoming album, Street King Immortal. Adding to that is the fact that 50 is trying his hand at boxing promotion with the newly-formed The Money Team promotions, alongside his best friend Floyd Mayweather. The G-Unit general stars alongside Robert De Niro-for the second time-in the upcoming drama thriller, Freelancers, which opens in New York City and Los Angeles on Friday (August 10) and is available on Blu-ray and DVD on August 21. Still tryin' to make hits, still tryin' to improve his acting and still tryin' to make more money. Nearly a decade later and 'Fif got rich.but he's still tryin'. It's unbelievable to think that 50 Cent dropped his undeniable classic album, Get Rich or Die Tryin', nearly 10 years ago.