HHDX: There’s a rumor that you’re planning on dropping two albums in 2008, in hopes of getting off of Interscope. Is that true?
50 Cent: As everyone knows, I have a five album deal. Curtis is album number three. I started recording Before I Self Destruct, I have completed about twelve songs. Then there is a ‘Greatest Hits’ clause in the contract that I can use as my last album requirement with Shady/Aftermath/Interscope. That’s the plan for the next few albums, after that, that’ll be the end of my contract. The plan for it afterwards is to do what any and everyone else would do – renegotiate. If it works out for the best, you’ll see me there. If not, then I’ll move on…

HHDX: In the last few months, you’ve really enforced your business muscle with G-Unit on a corporate level. With the changes made with the artists being dropped and all that – do you see G-Unit’s stock rising after Curtis’s release?
50 Cent: Man, absolutely… G-Unit is so closely associated with 50. When I have the people’s ear, they have it, as well. It’s like people will say, “50’s back… G-Unit’s back!” And it’s all based on a record! The hip-hop fan and public are a fickle bunch. We, as artists, have to hold ourselves to a higher consistency. I mean, you have cats like Dre, but he is so talented, he’ll have a hundred beats made in a week. What’s ill is if you don’t know which beat you sound right on, you’ll write to the wrong Dre beat.

HHDX: How’s Detox coming?
50 Cent: He’s working on it. I’ve recorded two songs for him. He’s such a perfectionist. But sometimes that can be a bad thing. You create new pressure when you wait that long. When you put a new album against the last two classics, people will scrutinize it if they become impatient. It happened with this album for me. They’d compare it to the last two by saying that it’s better than the Massacre, but they’re not sure if it’s better than Get Rich Or Die Tryin’. The impression is so deep. This is why Jay-Z’s albums get compared to Reasonable Doubt.

HHDX: A while back, Young Buck was quoted at Starpulse.com saying that the beef between you and The Game needed to end. Do you think that that could be possible?
50 Cent: Buck has his moments, but you have to know that he gets high! He fuckin’ says shit that can’t be fixed. If I never worked with him [Game], there wouldn’t be a beef. If I didn’t like him early on in the career, I wouldn’t have had to do so much for him to create what he had. I came on as part of a business decision. I came up with six songs for his album; three of them were his singles! He [Game] wants to be 50 Cent; in his head, he wants to be me! He wants to do what I did to Ja Rule. But for me, it’s all business… If the people out there like 50 Cent, then buy Game’s album, so I can make more money [laughs]! Continued on page 3 »