50 Cent kicked off his career early on by calling out some of the top figures in music on his single “How to Rob” in 1999. Since then, 50 has continued to piss people off. In the age of social media, this has helped him become one of I.G.’s most popular trolls. He never misses a moment to plug one of his products while poking fun at his targets either. Lets take a look back and Fifty’s many beefs and find out why he was most shocked by his rivalry with Beyonce.
50 Cent vs. Oprah
While rappers can grace some of the biggest talk shows in the world now without much of an issue, during 50 Cent’s rise, it was still a bit taboo to feature a gangster rapper on daytime television. Especially one with a history of gun violence, drug dealing, and misogyny. For 50 Cent, it was a massive goal to get on the Oprah Winfrey Show. Not only would it validate his success, but it would also make his grandmother proud since she loved the program.
When Oprah turned down the idea of having 50 Cent on her show, he decided his next best option would be to make her his enemy. He would talk poorly about her in interviews, berate her fans, and even named one of his dogs Oprah. Eventually, the pair would reconcile and become friends, thanks to Gayle King.
50 Cent vs. Starz
50 Cent has become a television mogul in recent years with the success of his series Power. When the original season wrapped, he got the green light to produce three spin-offs which were airing pretty consistently until earlier this year. Power spin-offs Power Book II: Ghost (season 2) and Power Book III: Raising Kanan (Season 1) had aired back to back, and fans were expecting to see another season follow close behind.
50 Cent took to social media to reveal fans would have to wait 6 months for another installment of Power due to Starz “dragging their feet” to approve the production schedule. This was shocking to many as the series were ranked among the highest in ratings for the channel. 50 used his social media platform to repost complaints from fans and openly mock the network, making it clear that he is not above beefing with the television company if it gets him and his fans what they want.
50 Cent vs. Kanye West
50 Cent and Kanye West’s beef came at one of the highs of their respective careers. After years of drumming up successful album releases through controversy, it made sense that Cent would manufacture a beef with one of his fellow music heavyweights. Unlike past beefs that took place primarily on wax and seemed to be fueled by real hatred or disagreements, West and Cent simply wanted to do a friendly competition of “who’s the best?”
They appeared at award shows and on magazine covers together to promote their albums “Graduation” and “Curtis,” which were dropping on the same day, Sept 11th, 2007. Whoever sold the least amount of records was going to retire from music forever. West came out victorious, and 50 Cent’s album sales were never the same again.
50 Cent vs. Jay-Z
Jay-Z was one of 50 Cent’s earlier targets in his career. Jay was the king of New York in the late ’90s, and as a new rapper from Queens, 50 Cent had his sights set on Jay-Z’s crown. He famously dissed Jay in 1999’s “How to Rob.” Jay-Z fired back on “It’s Hot” from his album Vol 3: The Life and Times of S. Carter. “Go against Jigga yo’ a** is dense. I’m about a dollar, what the f*** is 50 Cents?” he famously said. The line helped people discover 50 and sparked years of back and forth between the two rappers.
Jay-Z is currently head of the Super Bowl halftime committee and reportedly requested that 50 not be a part of this year’s performance, according to N.O.R.E. When 50 got word of this, he taunted Jay-Z on social media, calling him a “gay painter,” a reference to his Basquiat inspired hair.
50 Cent vs. Beyonce
Queen Bey got in on the beef action as well. According to 50 Cent, she approached him in Vegas once to see what the problem was between him and her husband. 50 claims Beyonce jumped up on a banister and claimed, “this bonnie and Clyde s*** for real!” He says Jay-Z stood back and said, “you know what it is.” 50 was shocked at her behavior and that her husband was ok with it. He recalls saying “Oh s***! What the f*** y’all got going on, man?” Bey and 50 Cent share a unique history, one of her earlier solo records was a remix of his breakout single “In Da Club.”
