Hate It or Love It: 12 times a 50 Cent feature took a track to the next level
50 Cent is no stranger to the charts. With millions of albums sold worldwide and 41 songs placing on the Billboard Hot 100, the charismatic rapper, born Curtis Jackson in Queens, New York, is cemented as one of the most commercially successful artists in Hip Hop history.
Trending
The Lone Star State: 18 times rappers gave Texas a lyrical tribute
Master P says there’s no limit to New Orleans’ cultural impact
After cultivating a devoted underground fan base on the strength of several heavily circulated mixtapes and signing to Interscope under Eminem’s Shady Records, the rapper released his nine-times platinum major label debut, Get Rich or Die Tryin', in 2003. It featured appearances from the controversy-stirring Detroit icon as well as Dr. Dre, Nate Dogg, and members of 50’s group, G-Unit.
From there, 50 continued to work alongside Dre and Em, but also went on to found G-Unit Records through his deal with Shady and Interscope. The members of the label’s titular collective were its first signees, which officially launched the solo careers of Lloyd Banks, The Game, Young Buck, and Tony Yayo. The label also released the group’s debut studio album, Beg For Mercy, in 2003, which peaked at No. 2 on the Billboard 200 chart and has sold more than 2 million copies to date.
Subsequent projects from 50 have yet to match the perfect storm of conditions that delivered the blockbuster performance of his debut, but he has remained a dominant force in the industry ever since. And at certain points in his career, the Queens rapper’s mere presence on a track sent it up the charts.
REVOLT looked at 50 Cent’s best features throughout the years and what made them so special. Here’s 12 times a 50 verse took a song to the next level.
1. The Game - Hate It Or Love It
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BuMBmK5uksg&pp=ygUSaGF0ZSBpdCBvciBsb3ZlIGl0
The Game emerged in the early 2000s as a protégé of 50 Cent and Dr. Dre. So, naturally, the duo served as executive producers of Game’s debut album, The Documentary. Among the three songs containing contributions from the New York rapper was “Hate It Or Love,” which saw him chronicling his journey from rags to riches. Between The Trammps‘ “Rubber Band” sample, the visuals being directed by the award-winning Saline Project, and Cool N Dre lending production, everything about this record positioned it to be a smash.
2. Lil Kim - Magic Stick
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Coav1tAY3H4&pp=ygULbWFnaWMgc3RpY2s%3D
As one of several promotional singles from Lil Kim’s third studio album, La Bella Mafia, “Magic Stick” was a massive success. The track debuted at No. 2 on the Hot 100 chart and 50 Cent’s guest appearance helped solidify it as a club anthem. He made references to Aaliyah’s “Rock the Boat” and offered up provocative innuendos like, “My tongue touch ya girl, ya toes bound to curl/ This exclusive stick I don't share with the world.” Interestingly, “Magic Stick” was originally sent to Trina, but according to the Queens rapper, she “f**ked up the record.”
3. Eminem - Encore / Curtains Down
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YTn-QitN5xM&pp=ygUbZW5jb3JlIGN1cnRhaW5zIGRvd24gZW1pbmVt
A perfect closer to Eminem’s fifth studio album, Encore, this record finds the 8 Mile star and his protégé trading bars with Dr. Dre and shining bright on the chorus. But, if “Encore / Curtains Down” isn’t your taste, Slim Slady and 50 Cent have several other bangers, including “You Don’t Know,” “Crack A Bottle,” “Never Enough,” and “Jimmy Crack Corn.”
4. Ciara - Can't Leave Em Alone
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EnL9Ju7oSvU&pp=ygUTY2FudCBsZWF2ZSBlbSBhbG9uZQ%3D%3D
Ciara's "Can't Leave 'Em Alone" infused ‘80s-inspired R&B-pop into her self-titled sophomore album. Produced by Darkchild, the track served as an homage to the “dope boy's turning me on.” Although debatably one of the singer’s best pieces, the record didn't replicate the chart success of its predecessors "Promise" and "Like A Boy.” It did, however, contain a feature from 50 Cent. He contributed a gritty, charismatic verse that complemented Ciara’s smooth vocals, and as a pleasant surprise for the ladies, the Branson Cognac founder went shirtless in the visual companion.
5. Tony Yayo - So Seductive
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wqEncKFd7M8&ab_channel=TonyYayoVEVO
Of all the times 50 Cent graced his G-Unit signees with guest verses, Tony Yayo’s “So Seductive” stands out as a career highlight for both artists. An offering from Yayo’s lone studio album, Thoughts Of A Predicate Felon, it is mid-2000s commercial rap purity with the Queens emcee bragging about his big body Benz while Yayo “put the G in G-Unit.”
6. Pop Smoke - The Woo
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G6XthQpk8uk&pp=ygUHdGhlIHdvbw%3D%3D
For the posthumous Pop Smoke album Shoot for the Stars Aim for the Moon, the late rapper’s estate went all out on features. And the results were worth the expenditure, considering the Lil Tjay-assisted “Mood Swings,” “For the Night,” and “The Woo,” which featured an appearance from Roddy Ricch and standout bars from 50 Cent.
7. Far East Movement - Like A G6 (Remix)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cQNmWM8mJbQ&pp=ygURbGlrZSBhIGc2IDUwIGNlbnQ%3D
Many artists have touched the Far East Movement’s “Like A G6” throughout the years, including Megan Thee Stallion, Diddy, and T-Pain. But in 2010, 50 Cent put his own unique spin on the oddly hypnotic anthem. Across his two verses, the rapper delivered unapologetic rhymes about his go-to topics, which include but are not limited to, being incredibly rich, partying hard, and encounters with women. But the synth-laden riffs made his words hit a little different.
8. Mobb Deep - Have A Party
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q9cAz1M9398&pp=ygUWbW9iYiBkZWVwIGhhdmUgYSBwYXJ0eQ%3D%3D
Expecting anything less than heat from 50 Cent on a song called “Have A Party” would be outright foolish. Released in 2005, Mobb Deep enlisted Nate Dogg for the chorus, while 50 laid down lines about going from slinging on the corner to being able to own the block. Although it didn’t chart, the record bolstered the rap duo’s seventh studio album, Blood Money. Notably, the 17-track offering was released via G-Unit Records and housed a whopping seven features from the rapper-turned-entrepreneur.
9. Lloyd Banks - Hands Up
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5lfzarWWy4A&pp=ygUUaGFuZHMgdXAgbGxveWQgYmFua3M%3D
It’s no secret 50 Cent’s relationship with his G-Unit counterparts has been rocky at best over the past decade. He and Lloyd Banks have traded shots both on and off record, but while they were cool, fans got some great music. Among those hits was “Hands Up,” which had Eminem credited as a producer. With this one, 50 Cent came through with a head-nodding hook to balance Banks’ rapid-fire flow: “Hands up! Shorty, when you party with me/ We goin' way past quarter to three/ I'm good in the VIP/ I got my hammer right here with me.”
10. Jeremih - Down On Me
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AaXaig_43lU&pp=ygUKZG93biBvbiBtZQ%3D%3D
Taking on something so seductive and sensual was a slight detour for 50 Cent, but a smart move for Jeremih, whose “Down On Me” wound up being his highest-charting gem. It peaked at No. 4 on the Hot 100 and spent 33 weeks on the chart, which was about three months longer than the singer’s previous hit, “Birthday Sex.” Nonetheless, the New York phenomenon harmonized well with the sultry tone. Jeremih even playfully alluded to the 2000 incident where 50 was shot: “Let's go and take nine shots, we'll just call it 50/ And I'm gonna licky, licky, licky 'til her hickey.”
11. Nicki Minaj - Beep Beep (Remix)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h4sacYq0_lo&pp=ygUPYmVlcCBiZWVwIHJlbWl4
"He walked on this s**t," Nicki Minaj said of her collaboration with 50 Cent on “Beep Beep (Remix).” And it’s hard to disagree, especially with how his gritty approach matched the intensity of the Trinidadian star’s original song. 50 Cent virtually skated over the Murda Beatz-produced cut, poking fun at his detractors and spitting bars about him being “with the s**t” with ruthless precision. The artists performed the record live for the first time at Madison Square Garden for her “Pink Friday 2 World Tour.”
12. Soulja Boy - Mean Mug
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uy-dCNQPNW0&pp=ygUQbWVhbiBtdWcgNTAgY2VudA%3D%3D
While Soulja Boy’s rise to stardom may have been met with pushback from previous generations, 50 Cent synced up with the artist for “Mean Mug” from 2010’s The DeAndre Way. Instead of referencing the Chicago-born rapper’s dance that had been dominating the internet years prior, he hilariously made a nod to Cali Swag District’s “Teach Me How to Dougie.” “B**ch, go run, do the Dougie, all the gangstas, they love me,” he spit. The song ultimately unfolded like an unexpected duet, with Soulja Boy’s cheeky charisma tangled with 50 Cent’s unflinching demeanor.
You Might Also Like
