50 Cent Thanks Dre & Eminem

50 Cent is his own man and his own artist, but the Queens-born rapper can never forget the two mentors that helped him become the superstar that he is today. 50 shared his appreciation for Dr. Dre and Eminem and all that they've done throughout his career--and especially the faith that they had in him early on.

"You don't really expect to have someone come into your life... that you know has nothing but good intentions," said 50 of Eminem. "He made so much money selling records that he don't really have interest in a lot of the other stuff... So for me, they'll be asking me questions...about the deals I do away from music. For Dre, the big thing was the 'Beats,' the headset."

"I love Dre...Without 'In Da Club' and Dre's guidance on the first record...none of those other things would've happened!" 50 added. "That's the biggest record of my career still! Dre can be difficult at times, and not intentionally. He can be on his own and in his world...like the [headphone thing], we had to clear that up face-to-face, me and Dre, personally."

50 Cent On Crossover Appeal:

50 Cent recently spoke to MTV about the difference between his career and his mentor/cohort Eminem. Despite the two being affiliated for years, 50 acknowledged that Em has had a different road than 50 Cent as he discussed the benefits and detriments of being a crossover artist in hip hop.

"You can't compare Eminem and 50 Cent's career on any level," 50 added. "Eminem doesn't know what the inside of Hot 97 looks like. He's never even had to go there. So the top 40 and crossover-radio platforms are detrimental to the success of an Eminem project, and for me to get to the top 40 or crossover space, I have to have music that performs so well on your Hot 97s and Power 106s of the world until it actually goes up to that point."

50 Cent Publishing Anti-Bullying Book

50 Cent has set his eyes on stopping bullying. The Queens rapper has signed a deal with the Penguin Young Reader Group to publish a fictional book with an anti-bullying message called Playground. The book is due in January of next year.

50 has already released his memoir "From Pieces to Weight and self-help book called "The 50th Law."

Bullying has come under intense scrutiny in the past year, with a rash of teen suicides related to the torment kids have been receiving from their peers for various reasons.

50 Cent's Interscope Frustration

50 Cent has explained his recent grievances with Interscope and the release of his new single, "Outlaw." According to 50, the few months of iciness between himself, Dr. Dre and Interscope head Jimmy Iovine hampered the single's release for months. 50 lashed out Interscope previously via his Twitter page. In a recent interview, He explained why things had gotten bogged down.

"So I had the record I was ready to launch, and we sat down and everybody talked," he said. "What happens is, there are a lot of people involved in my actual launch, because its three parties; it's Shady, then you got Aftermath, then you got Interscope, and then you got me on my end. So by the time we got to go sit down with [Interscope chairman] Jimmy [Iovine], we talked a little bit, and then I ended up having to go see Dre, because we had the little issue, the confusion about the Twitter stuff."

"It's not necessarily Dre or Jimmy [holding up the process]; it's more the guys that they pass the responsibilities onto," he added. "It takes longer for people, because they'll be like, 'OK, we're gonna do this and we're gonna do that,' and the building will start having those conversations, but they're not actually moving at that point."

50 announced that he would also be appearing on Dr. Dre's next single, "The Psycho." The two have ended their dispute over 50's custom headphones--a dispute which many speculated centered on Dre's belief that 50's audio equipment brand would directly conflict with his.

50 Cent Delays Album Again

50 Cent, after days of back-and-forths between himself and his label, Interscope, looks to be delaying his album yet again. The rapper's project has been shelved and/or delayed several times over the past two years, and the latest round of uneasiness between the two parties involved has resulted in the still-untitled LP being pushed back possibly to November 2011.

50 said as much on from his Twitter account this weekend.

"My headphones and my album coming in NOV," 50 tweeted to his fans, responding to a fans question about what he was going to do next. Given the amount of times his album has been delayed already, there is no certainty that this release announcement is official.

50 Cent's New Look

Fans and media were a little surprised when photos popped up online of rapper 50 Cent sporting a Bishop Eddie Long-esque curl. The Queens native hasn't given an explanation as to why he changed his look, but everyone is speculating that it could be for a movie role or part of 50's ongoing campaign to draw as much attention to himself as possible.

He's lost weight and sported a jheri curl for previous movie roles.

Global Grind wrote: "Not sure if it was the glistening sun, but it looks like there may have been a few light brown highlights in there too."

50 Cent Joins "Detox?"

It looks like 50 Cent and Dr. Dre have put their differences behind them.

The former affiliates were reportedly feuding earlier this year over their rival headphone brands, Dre's Beats By Dre and 50's Sleek By 50; but now that 50 has dismantled his headphone line, it looks like the two are buddies again. 50 revealed that he has done some recording for Dre's long-awaited Detox album.

"I did a joint with dre for his album that's crazy. They were suppose to put it out this weekend but you never know with dre," he tweeted. "Soon dre got some heat RT @bigseano84: @50cent when is Dre album detox comin?"

50 Cent Inks Cell Phone Deal

50 Cent is reportedly launching a new cell phone venture. According to 50's manager, Chris Lighty, the G-Unit head has signed a deal with UberMedia to debut Uber50, a custom theme for users of UberMedia's Blackberry-based Twitter app UberSocial.

"[The deal between 50 and UberMedia] was [struck] during the period that Uber got locked out of Twitter and got fined," Lighty said. "[50] had to use a different app. He was one of them [going crazy] and one of the more vocal [ones.] Uber saw that and contacted us."

Additionally, 50 Cent also plans to move further into the health foods market. The rapper plans to launch a vitamin supplement company.

"We're working on a new supplement company," Lighty said. "We're going to build new supplements cause it's a big opportunity like Vitamin Water was. We want to market and promote it when we put out 50's album. There are different options of penetration for supplements through music; like going to GNC [for] protein shakes, vitamins, [etc.]. No beverage. When you go to a vitamin shop, there's no one of pop culture [representing], it's mostly muscle heads. We'll cut through the clutter with 50 in the store saying, 'You want to be 10% of me so take what I'm taking.'"

Highsnobiety TV - A Set Free Minute with Mr. Cartoon on 50 Cent

Highsnobiety TV - A Set Free Minute with Mr. Cartoon on 50 Cent from Highsnobiety on Vimeo.


A life long b-boy, Set Free works as a cultural conduit, spending his days connecting brands to niche lifestyle. Throughout his journey, he’s collected as many stories as he has amassed sneakers (impressive), and with the “Set Free Minute” brings his experiences to life in short segments.

In the Latest Set Free Minute, he links up with the modern day Picasso, Mr. Cartoon. Cartoon tells a story about one of his craziest experiences in life; giving 50 Cent a tattoo. Check it out above and be sure to catch the previous episodes with Don Cannon and Mos Def at the following link: highsnobiety.com/​news/​tag/​set-free-minute

@Iam_SetFree for Highsnobiety

Chelsea Handler On Dating 50 Cent

Late night host Chelsea Handler opened up to fellow talk show host Piers Morgan about her brief fling with rapper 50 Cent. Chelsea says things never got too serious, but she was pleasantly surprised by the real Curtis Jackson.

"We dated, very casually," Chelsea told Morgan. "He was, nothing happened, you know, he's a very sweet, nice guy, but obviously, I was just sampling, kind of, the atmosphere and seeing what was out there. And I'm satiated. He's fun. He's a great guy. [He's not what I expected], not at all. He's the complete antithesis of what you would imagine. He's a sweetheart, he's sweet, funny, he's got a great sense of humor. I don't really like gifts from rappers in general since I'm not a hooker. I don't like when men buy me ridiculous gifts especially when I don't know them well. I can buy my own gifts."

50 Cent Explains Ending Sleek

50 Cent has explained his canceling of his headphone line, Sleek By 50. The rapper's G-Unit brand terminated its contract with Sleek Audio and 50 reveals that he intends to launch his own line of audio products.

"As reported, the license arrangement between my company, G-Unit, and Sleek Audio to produce headphones branded as 'Sleek by 50' has been cancelled," 50 explained. "Instead, I have established a new company that is developing a complete line of audio accessories, including wireless headphones, offering superior sound quality along with cutting edge technology for all music lovers to enjoy."

"As an artist, I am committed to bringing top-of-the-line audio products to my fans," 50 added. "And I am excited that I have the resources to achieve just that with this new venture."

Capone Warns 50 Cent

Rapper Capone is still raging against Mobb Deep's Prodigy after Prodigy made allegations that Capone testified in a case against Killer Black, who is the brother of Mobb Deep member Havoc. Capone has also asked 50 Cent to remain out of this feud. Mobb Deep are affiliated with 50's G-Unit imprint.

"50, 50, I am asking you stay of this please, my ni**a. I got love for you," Capone said. "You're from Queens, you're a Queens ni**a like me, but just this is not a situation which - at the end of the day, it's hammer time."

"I got caught in a situation, and I gave a false statement [to police]," Capone added. "I lied. Come to find out, the motherfu**ing statement came back, they tried to use me as a witness. But I lied. I wasn't Killer's co-defendant, I wasn't there when the crime happened, I aint speak to him after. But I didn't put nothing in there to incriminate nobody. The n***a you say I snitched on was running in the streets with me. Get your facts right."

Bars-N-Hooks member Mike Delorean also blasted Prodigy for his book. Mike was irate that Prodigy would bring up his deceased mother.

"P you was a wankster, you talking about things you don't even know. you wildin' talking about ni**as mothers. You talkin' about ma dukes and she's resting in peace. Man, the goons are on your head," Mike Delorean said.

Soulja Boy Was Sad Over Poor Sales

Nothing makes rappers sadder than when nobody buys their album. Soulja Boy revealed in a recent interview with Complex Magazine that the dismal sales of 2010's DeAndre Waymade him contemplated hanging up his microphone.

Then 50 Cent had to go and open his big mouth.

"[I stopped Twittering when my sales came back because] I just needed to take a break," Soulja Boy said. "I needed to think about things. I needed to evaluate my camp and what was going on in my circle. I had to talk to my family, the label, and my management. I had a big talk with the big bruh 50 Cent. I'm going to forever thank 50 because he guided me. When I was at my lowest point in my career and I just felt like I ain't really want to do this music no more. I was like, 'Man, I'm still young. I made enough money.' My head was on a whole different radar, but he was like, 'Man, you tripping little bro. You've got to keep it going.'"

50 Cent Promises New Single

50 Cent is promising to release a new single this week. The rapper tweeted the announcement and DJ Whoo Kid claims that he has heard several songs from the album 50's been working on for months.

“I heard like 22 records already,” Whoo Kid said. “He called me the other day, and said he needs 16 more songs,“ Whoo Kid says. “I’ve heard like nine definitely crazy [songs], and then he’s trying to collab with other people too. So it’s still up in the air. I’m assuming this will be the last album on Interscope. But he does a new deal every day. He’ll put it on ThisIs50.com either way, so you’ll know.”

Whoo Kid was with 50 in New Orleans on the set of the upcoming film Freelancers, to be released next year.

50 Cent On Mister Cee

While the entire hip hop world continues to buzz about the arrest of Hot 97's Mister Cee, seemingly every hip hop notable has offered an opinion on the incident. 50 Cent spoke to Miss Info about Cee's arrest for committing a lewd act with a transvestite prostitute, and said that Cee just has to move on from the issue.

"It's only entertaining because he means that much to hip-hop culture and his association to it," 50 said. "I recognize Mister Cee as the guy who introduced us to 50. So he means that much to the culture. A lot of the kids who hear the radio don't hear him the same way. I've played my albums for Mister Cee. Every album before it came out to see what he thought. When this type of stuff happens, you keep pushing...They can say what they want about it, how about if you say, 'I'm Rick James, b*tch.' [laughs] How about if you say I don't care?"

"Who is to judge you other when there is an audience that's probably one of the strongest audiences if you look at Lady Gaga's career that says that that's fine," 50 added. "If you say it's not fine, then you're gonna get attacked. You're gonna write apology notes."

50 Cent Wanted To Help Jeremih

50 Cent has revealed his motivation for collaborating with R&B singer Jeremih on the hit single "Down On Me." According to 50, the track came out of a sense of almost-charity. 50 was a fan of Jeremih's music and didn't want the singer to be dropped form his label for poor album sales.

"They was counting Jeremih out completely. He was already gonna be dropped from Def Jam before ['Down on Me']," 50 said. "He was definitely gonna be in a position where he was getting dropped because the first week sales was really low on the record...We did the song, I didn't care. I was just looking at him as an artist and I said he sounds good, and I thought he was a dope artist, so I said I'ma do it. And we did the song, and then it took off. It's been number one for what, five weeks now? It made sense to me from an artist's perspective. What I have now, the luxury of being in a secure space financially, is me having the ability to make decisions based on just the art."

50 Cent On Face Tats

50 Cent recently shared his views on the current face tattoo fad that seems to be catching fire in hip hop. Gucci Mane, Yung LA and Diamond of Crime Mob have all gotten face art in recent months. To 50, it seems to be a poor long-term decision when considering what many artists aspire to accomplish outside of music.

“That’s the craziest thing," 50 told VIBE. "Not necessarily Gucci, but to tattoo your face says that there’s not a possibility that you can actually walk into a legitimate establishment without makeup covering your face every day. That does not work. It creates a separation. It says, “I’m an artist.” That’s it. That’s the statement you make when you go and tattoo your face…But know that the public will not have interest in you as an artist for life. You have to be phenomenal."

"Talk to the best that do it and they will tell you that it will take more than you being an artist," he continued. "It takes marketing, maneuvering to generate for that long. When you got 40-year-old rappers in the game, those guys have maneuvered and survived.”

50 Cent Is Hungry

50 Cent continues to talk...and talk...and talk about how hard he's working on his upcoming album. The rapper says that he's hungry like he was before he had platinum plaques and multimillion dollar business deals under his belt.

"I'm starting my rap carrier over. I'm gonna work like I need a record deal again. Now the world will see how good I am. im a true artist," 50 tweeted.

All of this talking is wonderful, but let's see if 50 Cent's music is any more inspired this time than it was on his last LP.

Pusha T Praises @50Cent

Pusha T recently shared his admiration for G-Unit frontman 50 Cent. The former Clipse frontman said that he liked 50's 'principles' and the two collaborated on the track "Rain" with Pharrell Williams.

"50 is one of my favorite rappers in this whole Hip-Hop sh*t," Pusha explained in an interview. "I like his principles. [50 Cent] is amazing," Pusha continues about the G-Unit forefather turned multi-millionaire. "Nobody's done what he's done in such a short period of time."

''I Don't Believe I've Ever Made Wack Music...'' @50Cent Is Focused

50 Cent continues to update fans on the progress of his forthcoming album. The as-yet-untitled project has been the rapper's singular focus lately--you know, aside from movies, Twitter feuds, possibly shooting reality shows with his world championship boxer friend, any other media endeavor that falls into his lap.

50 is focused.

"I'm so into my new album I'm going to make it hater proof. Undeniable music I don't believe iv ever made wack music.," 50 tweeted. "I think people only want to hear certain things from me. Don't get mad at me cause I'm a artist I'm gonna do all kinda a music."

Nope, 50 has never made wack music. Except for that second album...oh, and the third one...that fourth one was also kinda wack...