anyways good read yayo is cocky banks is smart, the usual.
Following the controversial departure of Young Buck from the infamous rap group, G-Unit is back on their grind promoting their second group LP, Terminate On Sight. As the saying goes, the more things change, the more they stay the same-- the Unit is back to their three founding members who say the time for happy music is over and it's time to terminate the competition.
Defsounds sits down with Tony Yayo and Lloyd Banks as they fire on all cylinders at the competition, including their thoughts on fellow rappers Nas, Game, and former group mate Young Buck.
Check out part 1 below or listen to the audio at the end. Part 2 coming this Wednesday- Banks and Yayo discuss solo projects as well as their future ventures.
Defsounds: So how was the tour, you guys just got back didn't you?
Banks: Yeah, we just got back from Australia, we stopped in Australia first—we went to Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, then we flew to New Zealand and did a show there, then we flew to Johannesburg, K-town, Tanzania.
Defsounds: What happened in Angola?--What was the whole chain snatching thing about?
Banks: You know what, you have to go to Angola to even understand the kind of energy and love they have for G-Unit, it ain't no artists that went there prior to us—except for maybe Jay Z, he might've toured around that way. When you go there, it's a overwhelming love—the people'll run and latch onto you. They're not going on stage with the intentions of taking anything from you—they want to come on stage and hug the artist and some times they don't let go. So it looks like its more than what it was.
Defsounds: The kid that snatched the chain—he was given up..did Fif ever get his chain back?
Banks: I don't even know what happened with that—you just broke news to me.
Defsounds: Yep, his mother gave him up—let's talk about Terminate On Sight, who produced the album for the most part?
Banks: I don't think it's like for the most part, there's a lot of different production on there. Swizz Beats on there..
Yayo: Shout out to Swizz, Polow Da Don
Banks: Polow Da Don is on there, Dangerous LLC is on there, Stereo, Rick Rock, it's a lot of new production also cause we don't limit ourself. As a artist you should want to give producers the same inspiration and the same shots that you would want as an aspiring rapper.
Defsounds: Right, did you guys get any production from Dre?
Banks: Nah, we didn't get any productions from Dre—not on this album.
Defsounds: What about features, will it just be you, Fif, and Yayo?
Banks: yeah well Buck is gonna be on the album, I guess that can be considered a feature now. He's on about three or four records.
Defsounds: Was this the first Tour you guys did without buck?
Banks: Nah it wasn't, we've done tours where it might've been just me and buck, me and fif, or me and Yayo. We all tour on our own, without anybodies help. So it's nothing that'll distract anyone—we just get out there and get it.
Defsounds: How's the atmosphere in G-Unit now that Buck no longer a part of the group? Has it affected anything between the three of you or is it the same it's always been?
Yayo: I think people forgot that the first—when we first came out it was Tony Yayo, Lloyd Banks, and just 50. We did it without Buck—he was nowhere know what I'm saying?..We brought him to life. To me, it'll be some changes because you didn't really hear me on Beg For Mercy but you will on Terminate On Sight, so it's just Yayo's time to shine.
To me, it didn't affect no ones vibes—me and Banks grew up together so it's nothing. Banks is like my brother, 50 is like my brother. The decision Buck made affected our friendship but not the music, T.O.S. July 1st, everybody's excited..whoa whoa whoa! And I like the way she do it!..We got plenty of more crack. We always give you a album full of cuts, never one hit wonders.
Defsounds: You took some shots at Buck in a recent freestyle for Dj Self, can fans expect anymore of that on the album?
Yayo: I took shots at buck?
Defsounds:...yeah..you dropped a couple of lines about his IRS debt.
Yayo: oh I don't even remember.
Banks: [laughs]
Yayo: You're gonna hear some more. A couple of rappers get their skirts pulled up on the album—he's just one of them.
Defsounds: Speaking of, Rider Part 2—is 40 Glocc mad you guys took his track and blew it up?..He released it in 2006 and no one really paid attention to it.
Yayo: nah, 40 Glocc is a good friend of G-Unit and Infamous Mobb—he was at the video shoot.
Banks: Yeah and it was never an issue with the beat, he never purchased that beat so it wasn't really a problem.
Defsounds: What made you guys change the title to Terminate On Sight a second time?
Banks: Well it's the follow up to Beg For Mercy, Beg For Mercy was talking directly to rap that year. It's no different right now, the timing of the album is perfect just cause the last couple of years wasn't the year for aggressive music. It was really like a happy time—everybody's dancing and popping champaign and shit so I think that the time, we're in a very very aggressive mode and you can tell from the mixtapes we've dropped.
I think it's appropriate that we have this aggression right now because its lacking—Terminate On Sight is just talking to anybody that considers themselves competition.
Defsounds: Yayo and Fox said in a couple of interviews that someones carrier is going to be ended on this album—ca n you shed some light on that?
Banks: You wanna know who's career is going to be ended?
Defsounds: I want some details!
Banks: I bet you do [laughs]
Yayo: Well, we sent Fat Joe to the Rap cemetery.
Banks: We sent Fat Joe to the rap cemetery before the album came out!
Defsounds: yeah, so he's off the list then, who else?
Yayo: Cam Ron, we sent him to rap retirement, Lil Wayne is on R&B mode, I think Jim Jones gets it too.
Banks: You know what I always say, if it don't apply, let it sly.
Defsounds: Hold up, you said Jim Jones? I thought you guys had no beef with Jim Jones.
Yayo: I mean, he and Fif they cool—I was in Atlantic city and we were kicking it a bit, finding Cam'ron is like finding Nemo..Game wants to blow his head off and his record got like 45 spins so we ain't even gonna talk about him. Fat Joe...two weeks on Soundscan, 5,000 copies—he's nobody.
Banks: Wha—What are you looking for when you tell people you want to kill yourself?
Defsounds: What am I looking for when I tell people what?
Banks: Game is saying he wants to kill himself—I just seen the cover to a magazine where he wants to blow his head off.
Defsounds: Well you gotta remember he has multiple personalities so that might just be one of the suicidal ones.
Banks: Well how the fuck does that exist in hip hop?..the last person I knew that had multiple personalities wasn't considered to be hardcore gangsta street rapper.
Defsounds: That's true...
Banks: If you're animated and you were costumes and you jump around doing all that crazy shit—yeah thats acceptable, but that was never acceptable for anybody in hip hop—I don't even wanna name no names or anything..
Defsounds: but cammon, it's a new age in hip hop, where guys can kiss other guys and still be declared number 1.
Banks: You know what you my nigga, just for that
Yayo: Yeah I like you for that,
Banks: that's what I'm saying, theres no standards anymore—theres nothing, theres no principles that exist and thats what T.O.S. Is here for. I'm not with the tight jean shit, I'm not with the glitter belts, I'm not into agreeing with disagreeing or none of that shit and theres a whole big core audience that's not into that shit either.
Defsounds: You guys are dropping on July 1st, the same day as Nas—How do you guys feel about that..any thoughts?
Banks: I don't know...we don't really know that yet—that's just when he wants to drop that.
Defsounds: Yeah but as of now, are you guys expecting to sell more or less than the competition—what are your expectations for the album?
Banks: You can't really compare it though cause we're the only group thats dropping—it'll be unfair to compare, three artists to one artist.
Defsounds: Right, but you know the fans are still going to make a case about that so, how do you feel about going up against Nas on July 1st.
Banks: umm...no comment.
Yayo: I didn't even know Nas was dropping on July 1st.
Banks: just another album—I don't even feel like they can be compared cause it's two different things. We have T.O.S. And he has the Nigger album, so the approaches are completely different, the subject matters are completely different...
Defsounds: Are you guys gonna buy Nigger?
Banks: I don't know, it depends on what I hear before the album comes out, I haven't heard a record yet.
Yayo: But it's all about T.O.S. July 1st!..WHOA WHOA WHOA WHOAAA..We live this!
Do me a favor ask Nas if he be in the streets!..ask him if he's living like me and Banks live! We living this shit!..I don't even wanna hear that shit, I'm in the streets right now, bulletproof truck, smoking, doing what I'm doing, we're the number 1 rap group in the-fucking-world. I'm tired of all the questions, everybody wants to know about Buck—he got a couple of features on the album, we let him rock, you understand what I'm saying but it is what it is!
Defsounds: You have a lot of animosity towards Buck Yayo
Yayo: I don't have animosity, animosity is hate, and I don't hate him cause I have more money than him. Believe you me, I ain't drop a album in two years, my money's longer than half of these rappers out there! You understand what I'm saying, my truck I'm in is two hundred thousand, shit can stop AK bullets. I wanna ask you about Buck cause this is the most media he ever got, if I flipped on Banks and Fifty tomorrow would you be calling my crib often?
Defsounds: Would I be what, you have really bad reception in that bulletproof truck..
Yayo: Would you be calling my phone often...it'll be the most media I'll ever get. It's like beefing with Game, I get tired of the questions because it's not about that, it's about T.O.S.
Like when we do a G-Unity cover, this Cocksucker gets it next—XXL gives it to him [The Game] next. If he didn't have beef with us, he wouldn't get the cover!
If Buck wasn't beefing with 50 and us right now, you wouldn't have people calling him.
Defsounds: That's not true, I'll hit him up, maybe thats my boy!
Yayo: Well let me ask you a question, is this the most media Buck has ever gotten in his life? Be honest!
Defsounds: It definitely is.
Yayo: That's all I wanted to fucking know! You know what it is, this industry shit, this media shit is a motherfucking circus. Ya'll never could get over me, I don't give a fuck, ya'll think I'm crazy—I don't give a fuck about the media! I don't give a fuck about Jimmy Iovine, Interscope, Steph Johnson, Buck, Game, none of that shit—I don't give a fuck about it, T.O.S. July-mothafuckin-1st, the proof is the fucking pudding we make hit records!
