07/08/07 NEW Jayz and Eminem Track

[Tash8]

8/7/2007

What’s up?

Everything is going good. I’m up here in my office in Manhattan.

How would you compare your new album Curtis to your first two albums?

I would like to say it’s better than the first two, but for me to say anything can compete with Get Rich or Die Trying is the wrong thing for me to say just because of the first impression I had on people. That first impression was great. Generally, the response I’ve been getting from people I’ve played the record for, they’re saying it’s better than The Massacre but they’re aren’t sure if it’s better than Get Rich or Die Trying.

You just went in and did eight new songs for Curtis. How did the new material come out?

I didn’t like the response I was getting from the first two records. They were good responses, but I’m looking for something great to happen. As far as “Straight to the Bank” and “Amusement Park” was concerned, they both served their purpose, but it didn’t feel like I was coming out with a new album. So now when I returned with “I Get Money,” I go, “Okay, now I fixed it” because it feels right with the way people are responding to it in the nightclubs. It feels like “In Da Club” early on before everybody really got used to the record and was knowing it. That’s what “I Get Money” reminds me of.

Is your buzz getting to where it needs to be for Curtis to be successful?

Oh, yeah. Absolutely. I think hands down, between “I Get Money” and “Ayo Technology,” the song I did that’s produced by Timbaland and Justin Timberlake, I think the interest generated from those two records can easily sell the album.

Do you have a favorite song on Curtis?

I have a bunch of favorites. I like this album. I have a bunch of favorites. I actually went and worked with other artists. “Follow My Lead” is my favorite right now. It’s featuring Robin Thicke. I think production-wise, people will play the record over and over.

Just about every artist in the game has done a freestyle over “I Get Money.” Are you going to do a remix to “I Get Money”?

I might have to make a remix, but you know, I usually don’t make remixes when I feel like I did the record the right way the first time. There was no remix for “In Da Club.”

Do you have a favorite freestyle from another artist over “I Get Money”?

I haven’t heard all of them, but everybody’s rapped to it and that’s an indication of the record being hot.

What producers did you work with on Curtis?

Dr. Dre, Eminem, Timbaland, Tha Bizness, Dangerous, LLC…I think Jake One. There’s a few other producers on there. And Havoc produced a record on there.

You’ve always had big names for production, but does that always guarantee a hit?

Nah, it doesn’t. Big producers don’t guarantee a hit. They have a higher consistency than the little producers, but you have to find music to match your cadence and your content. A hit is a marriage between a good beat and the artist writing the right things over it because I’ve heard really great production when the artist did the wrong thing to the beat and it just wasn’t a hit because of that.

How many records can Curtis sell?

I think I can sell 8 million records. I think it’s possible. I think that might be the roof of everything right now, about 8 million. My following outside of the US is bigger than in the US right now. I sell more records outside of the country than I do inside of the country. So if I can reach the point where Justin Timberlake’s at right now, I’ll have about 8 million records sold.

Is it possible for a hip-hop artist to go diamond today?

Now? Man…No, I don’t think so. I don’t think it’s possible.

What would you bet that your album will outsell Kanye’s Graduation on September 11?

I bet you Kanye West will tell you that my album will sell more than him. The first thing he said is, “I don’t mind my album being No. 2.” It’s not a competition. They can try and market it however they want, but there’s not a direct competition or comparison between 50 Cent and Kanye West. Are you kidding me? All you can say is that it’s good for hip-hop and everyone’s excited and everyone wants to go into the store at that point. He can kind of piggyback off of me coming on 9/11 and say that we’re both coming at the same time so it’s easier to remember. It’s almost like a joint promotion. Kanye West can’t have a conversation without someone saying, “50 Cent’s coming out the same day. What do you think?”

How are you gauging the success of Curtis?

Just the response to the project, period, when the streets have it.

You always have a lot of input on your album covers. What do you want to bring on the album cover this time around?

I wanted it to be more artistic, so I went and did different things as far as how the photos were shot. Since the album is titled Curtis, I wanted it to be a little more personal and that’s why I brought the camera closer to me in the actual photos. If you look at the picture that they have out as my cover, it’s really in my face.

Are you happy with your situation at Interscope today?

Well, yeah. My deal is almost up and then I have to renegotiate like everybody else.

A lot of fans focus on how you create controversy and the business moves you make. Do you get the respect you deserve as an MC today?

It doesn’t matter. I think everybody has a right to their opinion. It’s their own opinion and they can say what they want. I’m interested in receiving my check. We’re in the business of selling music. That’s what it is, right? The music business. Come on, man. They give out trophies to people who they feel like they want people to want to be like. You know? On certain levels, I don’t think that they want people to want to be like 50 Cent.

Why is that?

I have no idea. We’re going to have to ask the board at the Grammy’s. I won’t receive Lifetime Achievement Awards and I won’t receive the awards I’m supposed to. My last album sold 1.1 million in four days. My first album is the highest-selling debut album, period, at 872,000 and I followed with another 822,000 the second week. I didn’t receive a trophy, period, for The Massacre for hit records like “Candyshop,” “Just A Lil’ Bit,” “Disco Inferno” or the “Outta Control (Remix)”. I didn’t receive nothing. How about the soundtrack to Get Rich or Die Trying? That sold over 3 million records and I didn’t receive any trophies for that. I don’t get trophies. They give plenty of trophies to Kanye West and he’ll continue to get those. It’s the content in my music that’s limiting them from giving me the trophies.

Would you ever change the content of your music?

Hell no! Because that’s who I am and the music is a reflection of me and my experience. They can keep the trophies. In fact, I can go to the store and just buy them.

You always have a lot of unexpected tactics when you deal with your rap enemies. Where does that mindstate that you have come from?

It’s my natural instinct. From where I’m from, you have to be prepared to deal with it on different levels. You know, before I dealt with Cam’ron and before I put out that YouTube video for “Funeral Music,” I contacted YouTube to see how receptive they would be to creating some type of marketing campaign or some type of publicity around something that I could do with them. And then I told them, “Watch how much traffic I can draw to 50 Cent.” I told them to watch anything that says “50 Cent Diss” or “Game – 50 Cent Diss” or “Cam’ron – 50 Cent Diss” or whatever it is, as long as it has “50 Cent” on it. So they started watching it and then I put out “Funeral Music” and then Cam put out his version and everybody wanted to watch and see everything that was going on and it felt great that now I’m able to do promotions for my album with them. When it comes time to release my record, when you go to the homepage of YouTube, everything on it’s going to be 50 Cent.

Looking at the situations you’ve been in with other rappers like Ja Rule, Jadakiss and Fat Joe, have you destroyed the careers of everyone you’ve dealt with?

Yeah. Or I’ve damaged them, if not destroyed them. Careers exist. You know what happens to artists? This is how you destroy them. Once you get them to where they’re thinking about you more than just making a hit record, you got ‘em. That’s how you destroy artists because with consistency, the public doesn’t care. They don’t care who does a hit, they just want a hit. They’ll try to tell me, “No,” until I deliver something and they say, “That’s damn right. We can’t front on that. That’s damn good.”

Game claims he single-handedly destroyed G-Unit. How do you respond to him?

I don’t.

In your interview with XXL, you talked about how artists inside G-Unit got comfortable and had to step up their work ethic. Have you noticed a change in everyone since the article came out?

I think all of them understand that they have to do what they have to do. I’m not going to be everyone’s career. Everybody else has to create their own careers and go do it and fucking work. You can’t sit around and wait for me and when the money comes in you look like, ‘Let me get some.’ (laughs) It’s not realistic. Everybody has to fucking work.

Is everything cool between you and Young Buck?

Yeah, everything’s good. Buck is like my little brother. Sometimes he just says shit and I wonder, ‘What the fuck is he thinking?’ But he does what he want.

Have you started working on the next G-Unit album?

Yeah, we actually did. We just started. So we’re getting it together now.

What’s the next G-Unit release?


The actual group album. Then you’ll get a chance to hear all of us.

Will we see an M.O.P. album in 2008?

I don’t know. The next time you speak to M.O.P., you got to ask them because they’re the holdup.

How so?

They have issues in the group that they need to deal with. It’s not a G-Unit thing. It’s more of an M.O.P. thing.

You don’t do a lot of collaborations with artists outside of G-Unit. Why is that?

I don’t, but on this album, I extended myself. I worked with Justin Timberlake on the Curtis album. I worked with Robin Thicke. I worked with Mary J. Blige. I worked with Akon. I worked with Nicole from the Pussycat Dolls. So I went outside of G-Unit to create Curtis.

Why don’t we see you on other artists’ albums?

It would have to be about the song. They would have to approach me and play the song for me and if I was excited about that then I might do it. But I was featured three times on Em’s last album. He’s an artist that’s bigger than me when he’s active. He’s not active right now. I’m arguably the biggest rapper in the world because Em is not active. But when he comes out, he is the biggest rapper.

You co-executive-produced Freeway’s Free At Last album with Jay-Z. Will we ever see you and Jay-Z rhyme on a track together?

There’s an existing song with Jay-Z, 50 Cent and Eminem on it. I think Jay-Z did a song with Em called “Renegade” and he repaid that favor. So when Em finally decides to put out his album, you’ll get a chance to hear us together.

Have you started planning your next album?

Yeah. I’ve already recorded about 12 records in preparation for that record. I’ll continue to record because that’s just the way that I am because music may change by then.

Will that come out in 2008?

Yeah.

Can you take us through a normal day for 50 Cent?

Well, today so far, I got up. I came in and since 9:00 I’ve been doing interviews and television promotions. It’s not going to stop until about 10:00 tonight. I stopped for about 10 minutes and I had something to eat and then I had to come right back and get on the phone with you. It’s a nonstop situation right now, especially when I’m actually doing the marketing and promotions for the CD. It’s endless. And then I’ll go back from here to the hotel and lay down and just start all over again tomorrow. I did international press all day yesterday. I got here at 9 and we started at 10 and we went ‘til about 10:00 at night and then I went to the hotel and I came back and we started at 9 again today.

What’s the best lesson you’ve learned in the hip-hop game so far?

To run on your own energy because other people, they’re going to say all kinds of things. Realize that you’re public property when you do get in and everyone has a right to their opinion on you. In the neighborhood when you’re home and somebody says something about you, you’re ready to go down there and have a fight or see why they’re talking about you. Once you get into a celebrity space, if they’re not talking about you, then you’re not doing your job.

What do you want to say to everybody?

I’m so hot right now. I know you can feel me. (laughs)


http://www.hiphopgame.com/index2.php3?page=50cent2

[°[~CHR!$~]°]

chea eminem and jay-z...should be dope...
i cant wait fo Em his new material

[Shady's_Back]

Nice read cheers

For those who can't be bothered to read the whole interview...

You co-executive-produced Freeway’s Free At Last album with Jay-Z. Will we ever see you and Jay-Z rhyme on a track together?

There’s an existing song with Jay-Z, 50 Cent and Eminem on it. I think Jay-Z did a song with Em called “Renegade” and he repaid that favor. So when Em finally decides to put out his album, you’ll get a chance to hear us together.

Hopefully be good!

[shady6]

dayum, can't wait.

[vermin]

I think I'm gonna buy an Activity to Marshall

[westpsyco]

propz

[MinM]

that interview made me fuckin crazy again. cuz i cant wait for Em's new album.

[katastrophe]

im not gonna anticipate it. i doubt thisll come out anytime soon if even at all. i think em's album wont come out until late 2009. what dre needs to do is something like BIG's "Born Again" album where he takes unreleased material from eminem and has artists featured on it. i think thatll be really good

[rahul.never2far]

Propz

[Restlesswon]

nice read

[Shads]

chea eminem and jay-z...should be dope...
i cant wait fo Em his new material

Important Missing Part......And 50 Cent.

That Will Just Kill What Ever Track There Is Of Jay-z & Em

[sinemm]

chea eminem and jay-z...should be dope...
i cant wait fo Em his new material

[Flamez]

oh cheaaaaa can't wait for the new eminem stuff woooooooooo

[Epidemik]

sick.. im lookin forward to this collab.
em usually brings the heat when he collabs with big artists.

[DrRapid]

Cheers Can't wait but still have long to go....