Would you rather have longevity or a fiery, unprecedented peak? People typically laud Jay-Z because he’s maintained his spot as one of the best rappers in the world for a sustained period. Since 1996, there has rarely been a moment where you could say his music was flatly bad. Mix his share of classic albums and songs in the mix, how could you not want that kind of career? Alternatively, though, there’s 50 Cent, who peaked so unbelievably high, it’s hard to reach anywhere near those heights again. Of course, he’s maintained his success over the years, but there’s an unquestionable pinnacle in his arc.
While it might be hard to deliberate between the two kinds of careers, Tony Yayo found it appalling to favor anyone not named 50. During a conversation on the Flagrant podcast, cohost Alexx Media argued he’d rather have the kind of music career Jay-Z had. Yayo frankly couldn’t believe what he was hearing. “You’re f***ing on drugs,” he snapped, causing plenty of laughter. “I’m not gonna say you a Jay-Z glazer.”
While the podcaster insisted they loved 50 Cent too, there was a key difference in the G-Unit member’s eyes. “He had a good presentation,” he said of Jay. “But when 50 Cent dropped, it felt like Tupac came back from the dead. Jay is smart enough to stand…next to the fire.”
Which Career Would Be The Best? 50 Cent or Jay-Z?
As far as music, the preference is up in the air. But even 50 will admit that he doesn’t quite measure up to Hov on the business side. In an interview, Brian J. Roberts explained that Jay-Z thrives on the business side because there’s no line between artistry and money. The artists he signs need to grow on their own before he ever decides to give his big cosign.
Meanwhile, 50 Cent stressed that he would “beat myself up looking out for them.” “He’s positioning it as business, and working with you when it’s good for business,” he said. “I’m positioning it as they’re my people. I have to get them into the right space, so I work them into a good space regardless.”
Still, that never stopped some of his old artists from giving him strife in how he handled them. “I’ve had guys be angry with me because it felt like you made them a star, you didn’t make me a star,” 50 Cent recalled. “And I’m like, ‘What?’ I’m like, ‘They had talent, and it was the timing of it, made it happen like that.’”
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