For a long time this belief seemed to be true, well at least until 50 Cent came around. 50 cent came into the rap game and literally took over record sales. With only two solo albums “Get Rich OR Die Trying” and “The Massacre,” he has managed to sell over 20 million albums world wide. For a while it seemed as if 50 was the almighty sure thing. But recently things have begun to change.
Fif has always been known to be conscious of how good he is. He’s always portrayed himself as an indestructible artist, comfortable putting out whatever music he does knowing it’ll be received well, taking on anyone in the record industry knowing that his fans will be behind him. He has always been bulletproof in the industry showing no vulnerabilities. However, as of late, the chinks in his armor have begun to show.
When he put out rappers Lloyd banks, and Young Buck, his success rubbed off on them and it showed, as Banks Album sold 2.6 million records, while young Bucks album also went double platinum despite little promotion. The formula for the success of these artists was simple, put Fifty in the video or feature him in the song, and people would buy it.
That same formula worked out well when The Game’s first album came out. With 50’s Help “The Documentary” sold over 5 million copies world wide. Top that with the G-Unit album which sold 2.4 million copies and 50 seemed like a goldmine. But no matter how good you are, there’s always a time when things just start to go wrong. Even if you’re 50 Cent, his aura of invincibility has slowly begun to unravel one small piece at a time.
Exhibit A- “Talk Of New York” Tony Yayo
“Thoughts of a Predicate Felon” was the debut album of G-unit artist and childhood friend Tony Yayo. Although Yayo’s single “So Seductive” was a constant on the airwaves, his album debuted with a little over 200,000 copies being sold and only 800,000 up to date.
When the album didn’t do as good as previous G-Unit projects, Tony Yayo tried to justify it by using the fact that he was on probation as an excuse, saying it hindered him from promoting the album the way it should have been. At the time this was just considered a minor bump in the road, and no one really worried too much about it.
Exhibit B- Mobb Deep
In June of 2005, after being dissed by 50 on “Piggy Bank” Prodigy and Havoc members of Queen’s infamous hip hop group Mobb Deep surprised fans when they announced they inked a deal with 50 Cent’s G-Unit label. On May 2, 2006 Blood Money came out, it sold 100,000 copies in its first week, and the latest sales records show 200,000 in the U.S., and 524,600 worldwide. The album was a total commercial failure and a huge disappointment for a G-Unit related release.
Exhibit C- Lloyd Banks
The Rotten Apple does rotten numbers- Lloyd Banks’ sophomore album. It debuted at #3, selling 143,000 copies in its first week and with only 279,000 copies sold to date in the U.S. Banks Rotten apple turned out to be a Rotten Failure. The album to date is the hugest disappointment for any albums to be released under the G-Unit label.
The Camp
Put it all together and now Fifty is coming out with his next album entitled “Curtis.” For the casual rap fan the thought is that 50 is coming in to make up for the poor record sales of his label mates while adding to his platinum plaque collection. But unlike other 50 releases, this one seems a bit dull.
Although “Straight to the Bank” was a ringtone success, its lifeline in the radio station rotation has slowly begun to wither away. Couple that with the poor response to his second single “Amusement Park” and the anticipation for this album decreases faster than poverty rate during Bush’s presidency.
To add insult to injury, there have been rumors floating around that their may be tension between G-unit Soldier Young Buck and Fifty. Although Buck has vehemently denied these rumors they continue to pop up.
The Label
Fifty has always had the support of his label, but recently he seems be having problems with them as well. Problems which started to unravel after his forthcoming LP’s release date got pushed from a June release to a September release. He claimed to have personally made that move saying-
“I’m an international artist.” “My fans worldwide deserve to receive my album at the same time as my fans here in the US. Taking that into consideration moving the album to September was a necessary course of action”.
But there have been rumors that the label pushed the album back because of the poor responses from his first three singles. The label problems continued when Fif decided to release a track without Interscope’s consent.
“According to numerous sources, 50 is now catching heat from Interscope Label heads after he leaked a track off his upcoming album, Curtis. The track, “She Wants It”, which features Pop singer Justin Timberlake was released yesterday, July 5th on the web without Interscopes consent”. “The Label has now launched a damage control campaign and has barred radio stations from playing the single as well as contacting numerous websites and bloggers demanding the song be removed”.
Not too long ago it seemed like he could do whatever he wanted on Interscope. He went as far as dissing former label mate Jadakiss while he was still signed under the Interscope imprint. They did nothing then, but it seems like they are putting their foot down now, but what has changed?
In this writers eyes, Fifty was always seen as the Sound Scan Killer, no matter who else was out he always found a way to do serious numbers. As the years go by even he has to slow down, and that is exactly what it looks like his numbers will do this time around.
After starting out with such a bright spark his armor has gone through many battles and always came out unharmed. But by the end of the year, we may all learn that even Fifty Cent isn’t bulletproof.
COMMENTS
50's own ego is one of his downfalls. There's plenty of artist that remain humble and stay relevant and maintain fans. He's alienating a lot of fans with his antics. It was expected though, you can't stay on top forever.
Coming full circle with the Ja shit now... Too bad, maybe the next superstar will learn. In the meantime I still bump his shit tho
50 gone have the most sales this whole year wut da fuck yall talkin bout...i kno da 50 hatin ass niggaz iz gon eat dis shit up...bitches
I was SOOO hungry...lol. A bitch is full now, lol....
Dude Fif' was good for alot, ALOT of years. Now it's time to move on. He's got money comin' in from his water and movies, but homes fu**ed himself over. He said "Fu*k the hood", he's sniched on dudes, and now he's made a song with Justin Timberlake! You really expect his original audience to hold him down? Naw god, naw! Move over and make room for Red Cafe, Omar Cruz, etc...this was and is hip hop history.
Stay Up, one.
Said it once, will say it again; 50 gonna drop a dud this time around and become the new Ja Rule
www.myspace.com/sthamogul
"After starting out with such a bright spark his armor has gone through many battles and always came out unharmed."
Um.
not true.
Jadakiss and Dblock ate 50 cent for lunch.
there's no way around that.
that s true but because of 50's publicity n shit most ppl think he one...
tru dat,He isn't even saying anything about that any more,Any other artist 50 went after he always talked about them like shit for a long time.But 50 knows that he ran into a brick-wall trying to go at Jada,and DBlock.Fucken with Ja Rule was easy for him but going at Jada kiss and DBlock what was this nigga thinking.Jada isn't the kind of rapper that will stop,even when the heat dies down Jada will always keep coming until he retires.And 50 didn't know that part of the game,50 was thinking he7ll do jada like he did Ja but that shit failed.
Let me help everybody with something real quick! 50 IS ALWAYS GOING TO SELL! No offense to white people but when u have a strong base of white people supporting your music in the UK and US U WILL ALWAYS SELL! Also y'all have to remember sound scam people buy there own units just to have a platinum name! Plus older niggaz like 50 so u cant hate on da kid!
yo 2 everybody who commented be4 me, 50 is dat dude, no1 can compete wit him, he makes more money den all ya favorite rappers
to realblood22
ima big jada fan to but nah no way jada beat 50, jus ask ur self where is jada rite now, he not droppin nothin hot, d block fell off mega hard, jae hood album was supposed 2 drop like 100 times already
so at the end of the day, 50 is dat dude
you're letting common sense distort what you are trying to say.
So 50 makes more money and gets on TV more in the end, so??
If he was killed lyrically (which he always is), than he was killed lyrically. No Bullshit.
I thought thats what rapping was about.
Thats like saying Scott Pollard is better than Greg Oden. Well shit he makes more money!!! So in your eyes he must be better.
Is that the only thing people can say about 50 is that he makes more money?
I have never heard any one say,that 50 is "LYRICAL" not once.It's always the same words coming out of everybodys mouth "50 GOT MORE MONEY".And thats good because he is a very fucken good marketing man,But he lacks Lyrical skills and we all no that.As far as lyrical goes i'll put 50 up there with Fat Joe,but a black version so people except it better.There are way better rappers out there but their marketing plain isn't up to par,so they tend to full back behind other artist.Don't go by album sales to find out who is better go by the track list and what these artist are saying.50s last two songs are bullshit well three,There's only so much he can talk about because of who he is.While other artist can always make a come back because there out there where we're at,50 isn't.He doesn't go to the hood,so he can't make the music for us any more because he can't relate to us like that.Him getting shot 9times or 5 times which one is it who knows,and "I'm rich" music he keeps putting out isn't going to cut it any more.Nobody cares about that Rich money shit,and getting shot so now what is he to talk about...Maybe some of you G-Unit lovers need to start a website to help 50 come up with some better music,cause right now he isn't doing so well on the music front.But the water is doing good so he'll always be aight,as far as a rapper he's almost finished...another 2-3 years and he'll be gone.
yall niggaz be on some bullshit 50 allways going too sell all yall be hating on 50 and he got mo money then any rapper in the game thats real talk..and let his album come out frist before yall start hatin and 50 said he puttin out 2 more albums anyway.niggaz be hatin niggaz with money you know what we call them type nigga in my hood.hoe ass niggaz
!!!!FuCK ALL YOU NIGGAZ.. !!!
come on jada say be real nigga didn't even fuck with 50 I don't think nobody in the game can fuck with and real talk 50 is more knowin then jada it's like a local rapper beefin with 50 oh yeahh jada is a local rapper only new york niggaz fuck with jada.. real shit
Talk some kind of facts and no fiction,You sound like a bitch talking that "50 GOT MONEY" shit...Hip hop your ass off his bank account,Or give that man something to talk about...
Banks n Buck the hardest niggaz in g-unit
Sorry to say, but how ironic would it be if this article actually helped create "hype" for Fifty's albums?
People say they know Fifty's business plan and marketing plan, and all that; yet, they contrastingly fall right into Fifty's plan. Keep the Fifty headlines up, the editorials, the BWS and G-Unit fan fights, the random stabs from random artists, and you got a multi-platinum record.
I don't know what's up with all this "FIFTY IS A SNITCH!!" business, but regardless of how much beef and battles he "loses." He still gets something very subliminal to mind, but great in a whole: The continuous headlines. That's why "his armor has gone through many battles and always came out unharmed."
Now, I wouldn't confirm or assume anything about Fifty's album because, shit, his name could very well be strong enough to pull his album through! In a hip-hop fan's mind, Fifty may not be the first to come to mind when someone says "rapper;" but in an average person's mind, it sure as hell is! He's your most hated rapper, and your friend's favorite rapper.
He still got some time left, and if Fifty was smart, he'd realize that the best single he could release right now is one that says "50-Cent featuring Young Buck & Lloyd Bank$" Steven King the thoughts about his album's sale with the motherfuckin' twist!
Sales are about business, and Fifty is business. And nah, Fifty's not my favorite rapper.
You actually brought up some good points. I agree with you.
good shit...
nobody in gunit can sell anymore, i dont think 50 cent is an exception. i kno so many people who are tired of him
man i miss the old 50.the power of the dollar,guess whose back,get rich.
he had the whole game on lock,then the money got to his head.All he raps about now are the bitches and his cars.
Curtis will still sell alot,the white kids need something to buy.It could be worse than black masscre in terms of the songs.Only person that can save this is Dre,but hes gonna have to work like 24/7 and find some super hot beats to pull it off.
Interscope lettin it be known they will not be a pushover for too long. Dr Dre is the only one who has power. Had that power since 1992! Look at Death Row...he was the only one who left in the 2Pac era. He still makin hits and doing his thing with Interscope on his own Imprint. 50 gotta get it 2gether.
Can you imagine 50 Cent independent.
G-Unit/KOCH Records....?
that looks ugly! lol
As much i hate 50, he's probably gonna sell. If T.I. can sell 500,000 albums in a week without a top 10 single, 50 can do it. As for Tony yayo, 800,000 isn't bad for hypeman, that's only a 100,000 less than Games' album ''The Doctor's Advocate''. I really think Kanye West is the one rapper who can multi-platinum besides 50.
luda can too
FIFTY'S STILL THE MAN. HE UST CAN'T BE CARRYING GROWN ASS MEN. HE NEEDS THE STEROIDS FOR THAT.
Lyrical Thought: Actually the poverty rate increased during the Bush presidency...far from decreased, just a thought...lyrically
my mistake I meant it the other way around, but thanks for reading the editorial
he will not sell as much as he did before, but he will sell at least double platinum, even if its just out of people being curious, but keep in mind, if a rapper sells gold in these times its considered and great feet because no-one in hip hop is selling cds because of the downloading and of course WEAK azz albums/artists..
www.myspace.com/tonezworld
www.tonezworld.com
ya kno since its 50, i predict 300,000 on his first week , but hell barely reach platnium
U must be stupid!
u forgot to mention how many albums "buck the world" sold. i think too many mixtapes these big rapppers be puttin out and the internet killed the album sales. they puttin out too much material for ppl to want to buy their album and they oversaturate them selves. maybe thats why 50 hasnt put out a mixtape in a min. anyway, i hope he sells a lot just to keep the game exciting. personally my fav rapper is loso and i dont think his album did serious numbers. but as far as banks i think his next album gonna sell more. hopefully.
50 is gonna sell and gonna contribute to dem sales lol
loll you all make me laugh if you think "CurtiS" will be a flop .... Curtis will be most sell than massacre ...believe me 50 aint worry
i agree with oliwood even if a lot of people hated 50 he would still go platinum he just has a huge fan base. personnaly I think the songs he released so far have been garbage but a lot of classic songs arnt always the ones the radio permotes
Even though I'm a big 50 fan.. I have to sorta agree with this article, he's really digging his own grave. But he is showing some light with the new singles he has released. And he is making efforts to make his label run better (not babying the Unit anymore), lets just see what happens within the next year or so.
this writer is bull shit...hes a hater hes hating on 50..he wants to see 50's downfall...he said that 50 dissed mobb deep on piggy bank...Nigga are u serious 50 aint come at mobb deep 50 been makin music with mobb deep since 2001 man fuck this writer
Yo actually he did play Mobb deep face. Jada dont fuck wit me if you wanna eat// i'll do yo little ass like Jay did Mobb Deep. Yeah so that is kinda of a dis to Jada and Mobb deep even if it wasnt meant. It kinda like if someone said . Yo I'm gonna beat your ass worser then Tyson did that reporter.lol. But anyway why somebody got a be a hater if they speak the truth. Even if though this was a editorial and he got his numbers a little of its still based on fact mostly. The only part in his article where he stated his opinion is when he said he think 50 numbers will slow down. Chill out nigga. But yeah i agree with Lyrical thought. 50's lost that hunger and since he aint in the streets no mo he cant rap about it so he lost that street appeal. Curtis wont do bad but i know he wont be the album of the year
JUST AS IT DID WITH MOST RAPPERS PEOPLE GOT TIRED OF THE BULLSHIT AND STOPPED REALLY FUCKIN WITH HIM AND G-UNIT. WHY CAN'T THESE RAPPERS NOWADAYS CONSISTANTLY PUT OUT HOT RECORDS? IT SEEMS LIKE THE MONEY GETS TO THESE NIGGAZ HEADS AND THEN ITS LIKE "FUCK WHATS HIPHOP AND PUT ME IN THE GAME I CAN PUT OUT BULLSHIT AND THEY'LL STILL LOVE ME." 50 IS NOT THE ONLY ONE SO WE CAN'T JUST HATE ON FIF.
FIF NO MATTER HOW BULLSHIT OR WACK WILL SELL. HE HAS LOYAL FANS. IF HE PUTS EMINEM ON A SONG HE WILL HAVE EVERY WHITE KID RUNNIN OUT TO BUY IT. 4 MILLION WHITE KIDS = 4 MILLION RECORDS SOLD. NOW ADD IN HIS OTHER FANS WHO ARE LOYAL HE MAY SELL 10 MIL. NOT BECAUSE IT'S HOT BUT BECAUSE ITS POP MUSIC. BUT YOU CAN'T HATE ON THAT. IT'S ALL ABOUT MARKETING. JIMMY UNDERSTANDS THIS AND AS LONG AS CURTIS,ANDRE AND MARSHALL UNDERSTAND THIS THEY WILL CONTINUE TO MAKE HISTORY. EVEN IF IT MEANS DROPPIN THE UNIT CURTIS IS GONNA EAT.
BIG J L your white arnt you
279,000 copies sold to date in the U.S. Banks Rotten apple turned out to be a Rotten Failure.
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totally wrong numbers
banks is at 463 u.s and 497 worldwide
banks sold more than cam and jimmy
so yes banks is almost gold worlwide. the nigga is currently touring and im watching the numbers, they are raising
463.000 497.725
official numbers
ummmmm lets see here..... those numbers SUCK!!! how long has the album been out? T.I. beat that in ONE week my dude, lets be serious
I allways find shit like this funny how come nobody talks about JAY-Z like this? his album sales have fallen way off and his songs arent so hot anymore but hes fucking beyonce so hes the man? I hate all of you!
Yayo suck, Banks ok, Buck good, n Fif keepn dem guerillas w/tha bananas. which means (fa tha slower bunch) he got tha money. which again means he's obviously sellin, whether itz energy drinks, records, sneakers (lol, dey ugly az hell doe) and clothing. but he doin wut he gotta do 2 eat, so nobody can knock him
NEW SINGLE WITH T-LAKE IS NICE!!!1
50 aint gon flop but he should of came in like he came in with his first album he would of gurenteed a record sales but now all gunit are distaning themselves from each other but his new sigles is going to guarentee a sell gunit still got good rappers but if you got money on the streets it will guarente money in the music bis because it is all hustle
Wow i had no idea banks cd was such a loss...pshh sad. 50 might be hangin on to this rap shit for a lil bit longer but thats it. his actin career sure aint gon take him no where, and then all he will have left is some cute clothes and young buck...if that.
Ms Clark Kent why arent you in the Forums??
No i'm just very understanding of business works. I'm not white.
This is also why you can't tell who the "Best" is based on record sales.
Funny thing is that fans AND haters are going to buy the album just to see how it is AND i bet there are going to me alot of rappers hoping their albums don't come out the same time as 50's....real convo!!!!
this is whatever...the Unit still sells better than most artists out today, whether it's platinum or not
thats a damn LIE
He probly will sell as much as b4 but it wouldnt suprise me if he didnt, he dug a giant hole for himself by going against so many rappers. Dipset, D-Block, Lil-Wayne, Game, Nas. Thats more than him, banks, Buck and dat wack nigga can handle. Buck would do good for himself if he left G-Unit. Banks is a lazy bum as he and 50 sed dem selves. yayo did more good for G-unit wen he was in jail cuz dey had dat whole "Free-Yayo" shit.
I hope 50 album flops worse than any of the other G-Unit albums have, dat way he might come back hard on his next album and go back to his old shit, those were some good ass joints
1.Jadakiss N Styles ate 50 (i.e Sorry Miss Jackson).
2.Fifty is a businessman, he makes millions without album sales.
3.Fifty isn't bullet-proof.
4.You have to be a Jackass to think his numbers will fade drastically.
5.Fifty has the right RIGHT hand mans to move you off a label.
6.The Industry is fickle, it's how you maintain during the "OFF" years that make you.
7.Son gets the GWAPS regardless of how you and me feel about his music.
DIPSET DIPSET BIRDGANG THIS NIGGAZ ARE WACK LETTS GET TO THA POINT LLOYD BANKS IS DA HOTTEST RAPPER IN GUNIT NO MATTER WAT ROTTEN APPLE BECAME ROTTEN WEN HE CAME OUT WID DAT FIRST SINGLE WID 50 DAT WAS WACK TONY YAYO HES JAS GETTING OLD TO BE ONEST T.I IS THE KING BUT WE ALL NO ONE DAY DAT KING SHIT WILL BE TAKEN ONLY IF HE AINT RIGHT AT DA END OF DA DAY DIPSET RULE NIGGA HAAAA HAAAAA HAAAA BIRDGANG ALL DAY
THE ARTICLE says it all 50 started out as A rapper/businessman now hes Rich Publicist the Diff. now is he cant make solid records anymore.They SAY 1nce YOU GET THE MONEY YOU DONT GP AS HARD AND FIF IS STARTIN TO SHOW THAT THEORY IN HIS CAREER. All The IM RICH IM RICH SONGS and ya career goes down the drain slooooooooowly but surely
I think its unrealistic to expect an artist to continue to make street records when they're so far removed from that environment. I think "Amusement Park" didn't pop because it wasn't that good of a record. Plus we've heard it before. It was called "Candy Shop" the first time around.
new 50cent diss goto myspace.com/gmoneymusic101
i knew 50 wuz gonna flop but shit not diz bad lol
I aint no fan of GAME but he did this. Ever since he left G-unit, and started putting out all those disses towards them, G-unit started to flop.
Makaveli1490, 50 said himself lloyd Banks was at 300,000 on Feb.1,2007 in that interview with Cam, you tellin us Banks sold 163,000 since Feb.1? You're nuts if you think that.
same thing cam said jimmy was at 300,000 on the phone, then on CURTIS is said 400. im lookin at the soundscan numbers now. think bout it, feb. was like 5 months ago
"As for Tony yayo, 800,000 isn't bad for hypeman, that's only a 100,000 less than Games' album ''The Doctor's Advocate''."
Yayo's garbage album sold 800,000K world wide. Doctor's Advocate sold over 3 million. That nigga Banks is a punchline rapper. (I'm no Game fan either).
50's sound is played out. Anything produced by the G-Unit camp sounds exactly the same. 50 might stay be able to deliver over a Dre beat, but we all know a barking dog sounds good over a Dre beat.
AND WHERE U GET 3 MILLION
THE NIGGA IS PLAT, BARELY PLAT
these sales ain't accurate 50 said Banks is at 300,000 like 5 months ago and i heard his gold worldwide.
Yayo did alright 800,000.
how come buck aint listed. Must of not flopped.heard his gold.
If you think Fiddy won't go at least 2x Platinum, you are in denial. First of all, his reputation alone will sell him 700,000-1,000,000 in his first week. After that, his numbers will slump of course, just like the rest of the gotdam music industry. He will fade off with probably 400-500,000 sold in his second week and slowly drop to about 100,000 and stay on the charts with 30-70,000 sold every week at different peaks. This will guarantee him AT LEAST 2x Platinum. With that said, I highly doubt he doesn't do 3x because he has just too much power when it comes to promotion and hits. All of the feedback for "She Wants It" has been extremely positive and with "I Get Money" as well. Things can only get better from here on out with the 50 Cent self-described "In da Club part II" track, "Come & Go" and "Follow My Lead" coming out soon enough. With "Peep Show" and "I'll Still Kill" on the track list as well I don't see this album being nothing more than a bona fide success and chart killer.
why the fuck wont you include the fact that ALL RECORD SALES are extremely low???
who ever write this shit is a fuckin idiot
I CANT BELIEVE DEFSOUNDS
INFO FROM WIKIPEDIA, ARE U FUCKIN CRAZY. WIKIPEDIA?????????????
MOBB DEEP 510.000 548.250
AND THAT WHO SAID THE NIGGA WAS ON PROBABTION. WHERE U GET THAT SHIT FROM
THE NIGGA WAS ON HOUSE ARREST, WHICH MEANS HE COULDNT REALLY BE OUT THAT MUCH
AND YEA RECORD SALES ARE ALL-TIME LOW
IM VERY DISAPPOINTED IN THIS ARTICLE, VERY DISAPPOINTED, VERYYYYYYYYY DISAPPOINTED
Theres no way in hell Lloyd Banks sold 163,000 in 5 months, his shit has been long forgotten. As for you saying all record sales are low, that's true, but G-Unit bragged too much about sales and now it's coming back to haunt them.
same thing cam said jimmy was at 300,000 on the phone, then on CURTIS is said 400. im lookin at the soundscan numbers now. think bout it, feb. was like 5 months ago
Post the numbers since you got access to the soundscan and put an end to all this bullshit. I know when I went to look them up they asked for me to sign up and pay $500. I ain't go that kinda chedda for that shit. I ain't gonna even front.
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yall niggas asked for it
http://www.clickitaliansoftware.net/hosted/vgcgroup/WorldwideAlbum/2006todate.htm
EMINEM OUTSOLD EVERY DAMN RAPPER FROM LAST YEAR AND THIS YEAR OFF A MIXTAPE. NO PROMOTION AT ALL