Ever since 50 Cent declared his next target would be one Shawn Carter, fans have been clamoring for the rap beef of the century. Bloggers have speculated that given 50’s ruthless nature in battle mode; its easy to see how Curtis would be one of the most formidable opponents Hov has ever faced.

But since 50 first fired a few shots over Jay’s bow, S. Dot has declined to respond. In fact, all we’ve heard from Jay has been subliminal shots – one on “Thank You” (I was going to 9/11 them, but they did it to themselves”…) and another during his acceptance speech at the American Music Awards (”Women lie, men lie – numbers don’t.”)

But other than that, Hov has given 50 the same attention as Game, Peedi Peedi and other aspiring challengers. So, what’s up? Hova fans (including myself) would welcome the opportunity to see Jay body Curtis on a track – no subliminal shots, no speculation; more like “Takeover 2″. Yet we’ve heard nothing from Jay, save for those light jabs.

I suspect the reason for that is simply because Hova is the only one of them that has anything to lose – and not necessarily on wax, either. Jay has his discography, his #1 albums, his time as label president, his clothing line – his legacy is secure. Not a lot of rappers, deceased or living, have been called “The Greatest Rapper of All Time”, whether or not Mos Def thinks its true. Hova really has nothing to prove.

Of course, 50 Cent would welcome an opportunity to boost his sales and his profile taking on a titan like Jay-Z. 50’s clearly not worried about taking an L; he’s done it before (Kanye, The Game). He knows beef I’d good for business. So its not like Curtis Jackson wouldn’t be a willing and eager participant.

No, the reason I think Jay has stayed far away from Curtis is because Jay has one area where he can lose and lose big – his life out of the booth. And I don’t mean physical violence, but someone peeling back Jay-Z’s layers of secrecy and privacy for all the world to see.

From Beyonce to Rihanna to his tenure as Def Jam President to his business dealing with Dame and Biggs, to his reputation in the streets, 50 has more to work with than any of his previous targets. And we all know 50 has the wherewithal and financial resources to conduct a full investigation in all of these areas.

And 50 Cent has nothing but time to conduct such a campaign: its not like Before I Self Destruct is lighting up the charts. This would undoubtedly be an entertaining diversion for the industry bully.

As we’ve seen with his Rick Ross assault, 50’s style of beef has absolutely no limits. He goes way beyond hip-hop. You can’t risk going at 50 if you have any skeletons in your closet – Boo Boo will find them and put them on YouTube. And 50 Cent has also proven that he won’t let facts stand in the way of a good attack, so speculation and innuendo is on the table as well.

Shawn is a smart businessman. I suspect there is very little chance we’re going to see a 50 Cent vs Jay-Z battle anytime soon. But given that 50 Cent spends more time with his opponents ex-chicks than he does writing devastating punchlines, I don’t think its a big loss for hip-hop fans.

***Yep. Once again we jack another great article from B-Double. As always, you can get more of this great stuff at yourfavoritewhiteboy.com

If you was one of the 160,000+ people who purchased 50 Cent’s 4th album Before I Self Destruct last week, you probably already watched the DVD of the same name that came with it. Honestly, I did neither. But if you still wanna check out the directorial debut of Curtis Jackson, here it is:

A coming of age story about an inner-city youth raised by a hardworking single mother. When his dream of becoming a basketball player fails to materialize, he finds himself employed in a supermarket. After his mother is tragically gunned down, Clarence (50 Cent) is consumed by revenge and takes up a life of crime in order to support his younger brother.

I thought they already did this kind of thing for the Get Rich Or Die Tryin’ movie? Enjoy.

Who’s to blame for Before I Self Destruct’s low sales (Well, low for 50 at least)? Is it the music market (Albums from Jay-Z & Eminem still did numbers earlier this year)? Did the fans just grow tired of 50 Cent? Was it the album leak almost a month before the official release? It’s might be a mix of all these but since Curtis has a history of constantly going around quoting sales figures from his previous albums, you bet people are happy to point the finger and call Before I Self Destruct a flop (We applauded Jadakiss earlier this year for moving less albums). One question is that if most people respected 50 for his numbers and commercial success, does the respect go away now? 50 Cent’s Before I Self Destruct debuts at #5 and sells 160,000 album (Sidenote: Around 3,000 more than Rick Ross’ Deeper Than Rap). [Check out H20's review here]

Rakim Allah returns to the charts after basically 10 years with The Seventh Seal. For somebody whole first album came out in 1987, around 12,000 in sales ain’t bad. Respect. It almost made the Top 50 at #61. [Check out SBK's review here]

At #111 comes Felt with their third outing Felt 3: A Tribute To Rosie Perez. That it even made the charts is a win here because I honestly didn’t think they would. Not because it is a bad album (One that’s starting to grow on me), I just didn’t think many was checking for this. At least 7,000 people did last week. [Check out Arkitekt's review here]

In non-Hip-Hop chart news, Leona Lewis’s sophomore album Echo comes in at #13 and Janet Jackson’s second greatest hits collection Number Ones comes in at #20. I have no desire to listen to either of these albums.

That’s it.

#5 50 Cent/Before I Self Destruct (Last Week: NA) – 161,200; Total: NA [Debut]
#7 Michael Jackson/This Is It [OST] (Last Week: #4) – 95,700; Total: 782,300 (Gold) [4 Weeks]
#13 Leona Lewis/Echo (Last Week: NA) – 67,300; Total: NA [Debut]
#20 Janet Jackson/Number Ones (Last Week: NA) – 37,600; Total: NA [Debut]
#25 Black Eyed Peas/The E.N.D. (Last Week: #20) – 31,200; Total: 1,387,400 (Platinum) [24 Weeks]
#30 Jay-Z/The Blueprint 3 (Last Week: #16) – 29,100; Total: 1,300,000 (Platinum) [11 Weeks]
#46 Beyonce/I Am…Sasha Fierce (Last Week: #37) – 15,000; Total: 2,507,000 (2X Platinum) [53 Weeks]
#61 Rakim/The Seventh Seal (Last Week: NA) – 11,700; Total: NA [Debut]
#111 Felt/Felt 3: A Tribute To Rosie Perez (Last Week: NA) – 7,000; Total: NA [Debut]

I hope it doesn’t count as hating if I say that ever since 2003’s Get Rich Or Die Tryin’, 50 has gotten worse with time. I hope it doesn’t, because the truth in that statement is fact; Get Rich Or Die Tryin’ has sold over 10 million copies worldwide to date. 50 Cent recently struggled to move units after an album leak and competition from Kanye. He’s also been charged with getting soft, making a lot more commercial songs than he used to. In response, 50 replied that he’d really been waiting for Curtis to come out so he could release his “real” album, Before I Self Destruct. Claiming it to be his hardest album since his debut, we finally get to hear the album that everyone has been waiting for. Does 50 exceed expectations with BISD?

The Invitation
Produced by Ty Fyffe
Now THIS is how you start an album. 50 sounds REAL hungry on this one, jumping on with little hesitation: “You want some? Come get some!/Nigga it’s Murder One when you see my gun/I just squeeze and squeeze ’till the whole clip done!/You just bleed and bleed ’till the Police come!/Huh? You want some??” If this first song is any indication of the entire album, then 50 may have been right about his promise (thank you!!). Ty Fyffe definitely brought the fire with the beat, and 50 flowed on it like a proven vet: “I’m far from a centric, I’m so psychotic/I don’t need you to shoot for me, nigga I got it!” Great song.

Then Days Went By
Produced by Lab Ox
The sampling here is flawless. This beat is hot as hell courtesy of Lab Ox. 50 sounds good flowing on this track, rapping about his younger days in the hood. While his flow over the track sounds really good, he doesn’t really spit anything notable lyrically. He makes up for it with the hook, which is crack: “I seen niggas gettin’ rich, then days went by/Then days went by, then days went by…” The hook make the track much more appealing. Good song.

Death To My Enemies
Produced by Dr. Dre & Mark Batson
Dre’s first appearance on the album, and it’s BLAZING!!!!!! “Dre, niggas think we bullshitin’!” The the beat drops and it’s fire!! “I bring money to my niggas that bring death to my enemies”. 50 keeps up the pace as with the first few tracks and keeps it truly gutta over a Dre (& Batson) production. Did anyone else catch the Wayne diss? (“This ain’t Tha Carter/Nigga this is Sparta/It’s harder I die I be a matar/Respect me like your father”)

So Disrespectful
Produced by Tha Bizzness
I think this song is more popular for it’s disses to Jay, Game, and others than it’s actual quality. Not saying that the quality is bad, the beat is pretty good, and the repeated “So disrespectful” was a good choice to use for the hook: simple, yet effective. Anyway, the disses in question are: “Jay’s a big man, he’s too big to respond/I’m a big dick, you know the one everybody on” and “Come on Game, you’ll never be my equal/Your homies shoot doors, my niggas shoot people!” The disses aren’t bad, but c’mon we all know Fif can do better than this. He almost sounds asleep on this track. Not bad, could have been better.

Psycho
Featuring Eminem; Produced by Dr. Dre
The Three-Headed Monster reunites on one track for the best effort I’ve heard from Fif in a very long time. Fuck best song on the album, this is one of the best songs of the YEAR!! The beat is perfect, sounding just like those old fashioned 1950’s horror movies plus 50 and Em both showed up for the track. Well, you know Em murked the track and it’d be hard for 50 to even match him on this considering its Em’s style of subject matter. But 50 did a very good job:

“Look look, I come from a different crew, you fuck with me, I’ll get to you/A clip or two’ll cripple you, just ’cause I ain’t got shit to do”.

Wow. Don’t think Em slouched either:

“You pop off the top it’s like opening vats of acid/Beat the Octamom to death with a Cabbage Patch Kid/Attack a snatch, yeah there’s something to jack a batch in/Impregnate her then shoot up the embryo sack with Mac 10s/Triplets, quadruplets and a couple of back to back twins/Dead fetuses fallin out all over, Jack is back again”

Damn. What more can I say? Excellent song.

Hold Me Down
Produced by Team Ready & J. Kevs
What a transition. We went from killing everything in sight to a song for the girls guns. This is the usual 50 throwaway female song; ABC style beat, with 50 using a couple clever metaphors to get by. I will give him props for doing the whole my gun is my girl (See 2Pac’s “Me And My Girlfriend”). The hook ain’t bad, but this song gets kind of boring and is pretty short anyway. I’m not skipping this one, but it’s pretty blah. Not really feeling it.

Crime Wave
Produced by Team Demo
This is what I’m talking about. I heard this on the local radio and this was crazy. The hook is perfect, the beat is hot, and 50 is spittin’ crazy shit on this one too:

“I’m not tellin you to shoot somebody, but if somebody try to shoot you shoot ‘em/Don’t waste time, lil’ nigga just do it/Any nigga out of order, must be serviced/See now now you hesitatin boy you makin me nervous/The Feds know I clap heat felonies on my rap sheet/Front on me try to run from me hollows be up your back B!

After the last song, this was the perfect recovery! BANG THIS ONE!!!

Stretch
Produced by Rick Rock
The pianos on this one are ridiculous, and make the beat sound really hard. The hook fits, but the “stretch…” is a lil suspect. 50’s flow on this one is pretty good: “Your favorite bad guys gone!/The Joker’s dead!/So for now till forever your stuck with the kid./I ain’t supposed to be a boss, I’m supposed to be a enforcer!/I’m supposed to hold a gun, not be stuck in the office!” The lyrics probably won’t wow you, but at the same time, it’s a serviceable song.

Strong Enough
Produced Nascent & OB Da Problem
DAMN!! This song is hard as hell!! The sample is: “Your life is over…” again and again. Damn. 50 didn’t play around on this one either: “These niggas ain’t strong enough/They money ain’t long enough/When they bump heads with me, they find out the guns do bust/We gettin’ money in god we trust/Suck on this nigga!” You gotta hear this one to believe it. Great song.

Get It Hot
Produced by Black Key
Can’t believe this wasn’t one of the first singles. It sounds like “Get Up” and “I Get It In” combined with a much hotter beat. This would have blazed the charts! Fif came correct with lines like: “I’m a made man, a Don Corleone/No matter where I’m at, I’m doin what the fuck I want!” This one was obviously made for the club, but that’s not exactly a bad thing since it works well on this song. Good song.

Gangsta’s Delight
Produced by Havoc
This is a gangsta play on the classic song “Rapper’s Delight”. While I appreciate 50’s creativity, I wasn’t really feeling it myself. It could have been executed much better. The way it is now, it’s actually pretty skippable. However, I’m sure some people will like it. The beat isn’t too bad, it’s just something that you can tell was meant to be filler.

I Got Swag
Produced by Dual Output
The beat on this is really hot; Fif chose great production on this album. This is basically what the title looks like: 50 flossing to the max. The hook is kind of hot though and this definitely could have been a single. Lyrically, 50 is aiight, nothing too shocking: “Me, I’m into me/I destroy my enemies, even if they kin to me.” Good song, but again, you can tell this was meant to be filler.

Baby By Me
Featuring Ne-Yo; Produced by Polow Da Don
This was the first official single off this album, steadily getting more and more airplay. Compared to the other first singles from 50 Cent, this definitely underwhelming, even compared to “Straight To The Bank”. It’s grown on me though; the sample was perfect for this song. 50 was definitely asleep on this one: “I need you to be what I need/More than liquor or weed/I need you to maybe give me a seed/I need you to give me reason to breathe, I need you/I’m tellin’ you so now you know what I need.” Damn. Even 50 fans have to admit that sucks. Ne-Yo definitely controlled the song here. Overall, it’s a fun little song but 50’s parts bring it down. Sadly.

Do You Think About Me
Featuring Governor; Produced by Rockwilder
What was 50 THINKING!?!? This is the exact same song as the previous one without the awesome sample and Ne-Yo. Instead, you get 50’s same lackluster rhymes and some no-name singer on the hook. The beat is aiight, but it could have been used a lot better if 50 woke up and chose a really singer to do the hook. Sadly, this is the second single…
SKIP!!!

OK, You’re Right
Produced by Dr. Dre
The street single off the album. Dre was on point here, this beat bangs and has that classic eerie sound to it. Sadly, 50 barely showed up for this one. It’s like he realized even being on a Dre beat would make him sound good so he didn’t need to come correct with the lyrics. I mean, he comes with two verses, each 12 bars long, and with the same sounding monotone delivery. Disappointing. The song still sounds good without 50’s help and proof that Dre can make any rapper sound good flowing on his beats.

Could’ve Been You
Produced by DJ Khalil
Why would anyone end their album like this? SKIP!!

*Bonus Tracks*
I fucks with “Flight 187″ and “Man’s World”, but the new original version of “Baby By Me” could definitely have been left off. And by the way, why are “Man’s World” and “Flight 187″ not on the official album?? Damn!

Bottom Line:
Did 50 live up to his promise? Well, yes, I think he did. He’s got some ridiculous songs on here that definitely live up to the Get Rich Or Die Tryin’ pedigree. But at the same time, he’s got some shit songs on here that are some of the worse he’s ever done (read: “Do You Think About Me” and “Could’ve Been You”). I was actually a little surprised there weren’t any shots thrown at Rick Ross seeing as that was pretty much the biggest Hip-Hop beef of the year. Speaking of Rick Ross, I think that this was the better album between the two of them because some of the good songs on this album are better than the best songs on Deeper Than Rap. 50 did a prettty good job here all things considered, but at the same time, I think we all know he can do much better than this. After all the hype surrounding this album, some people might feel he under-delivered.

However, just because King Jerm gave Deeper Than Rap a 4.5 and I think 50’s album is better doesn’t mean I’m gonna give 50 a 4.5. Ross’ album deserves a 3.5 in my humble opinion, shit, maybe even a 3 flat in my book. So I’m rating 50 based on that.

nappyPicks: “Stretch”, “Crime Wave”, “Psycho”, “The Invasion”, “Death to Enemies”, “Strong Enough”

Download: 50 Cent – “Flight 187″

Download: 50 Cent feat. Jovan Dais – “Baby By Me” (Original Version)

Download: 50 Cent – “Man’s World”

Download: 50 Cent feat. Gucci Mane – “Crime Wave (remix)”

For some reason I honestly thought Beanie Sigel wouldn’t throw any major shots at Jay-Z here. Well, actually he didn’t. 50 Cent (Who was just on the hook) did it for him: “You changed man! You let the money change you Jay! You used to be from Marcy nigga! Now you’se a pass the Grey Poupon ass nigga! You don’t want the shooter? I’ll take him.” I’ll need more listens to the actual song before I give my opinion.

Hey, when is 50’s album dropping again? Pretty soon right? Okay.

Sidenote: This is a radio rip. CDQ will be added when available. Added CDQ

Download: Beanie Sigel feat. 50 Cent – “I Go Off”

“When I throw the motherfuckin’ death blow… they don’t die right there. You expect them to die right there and they die six months later.” – 50 Cent from Gomez Bros. interview.

I’ll be the first one to admit it. I honestly thought Rick Ross had overcome 50 Cent’s full-scale assault to end his career that had claimed the lives of a few rappers in the past. Ricky had a #1 album with Deeper Than Rap, is definitely one of the hardest working men in Hip-Hop as of late (How many music videos has this guy put out this year?), and even got voted the #5 “Hottest MC’s In The Game” by MTV.

But then I heard the audio from the other day when 50 called in to the Gomez Brothers’ show on Shade45 and he made reference to his “death blow” (Around the 10:47 mark in the interview).

And then I thought about it: Did 50 Cent’s stream of baby momma interviews porno activities, cartoons, & financial records take too much out of Ricky’s career? Although Deeper Than Rap did debut at #1, right now the sales sit at 380,000 copies (It definitely should have did more with what was put into it). Triple C’s album did get released last Tuesday to almost no fanfare (Except 50’s trivia jabs, Rick Ross’s promotion & poorly received clips). Hell, we even late on the review for Custom Cars & Cycles and we haven’t gotten any comments or e-mails cursing us out about it.

To keep it all in perspective though: Honestly, this could be due to the economy. Or, did 50 Cent possibly fatally cripple another rapper? You waiting on Rick Ross’ next album?

Just thinking….

Listen: 50 Cent Interview With Gomez Bros.

It’s that time again. More music is coming out and once again it’s up to your old friend B-Easy to round ‘em up. And thankfully this time it does not include Lil’ Wayne or Gucci Mane (Hey, just to change things up a bit). In this edition we have 50 Cent getting Norman Bates-like with Marshall, DJ Khaled calls some friends and gets fed up, and we get one foot out with Mike Posner. (*clicking through iPod and setting it to Hustle) Let’s get it.

Download: 50 Cent feat. Eminem – “Psycho”
Produced by Dr. Dre
Well, looks like Curtis’ Before I Self Destruct has sprung a leak almost a month before it’s scheduled release. And of course the first song I pick is the one that features Eminem with Dr. Dre on the boards.

Download: DJ Khaled feat. Usher, Young Jeezy, Rick Ross, & Drake – “Fed Up”
Produced by The Runners
By now you should know what a DJ Khaled posse cuts sounds like: Runners on the beat; Akon Usher, Weezy Drake, Ricky Ross, & Jeezy on the track. Hey, if it ain’t broke don’t fix it. Khaled’s Victory drops in 2010.

Download: Mike Posner feat. Big Sean & Freddie Gibbs – “Bring Me Down”
Produced by Block Beattaz
I just recently go into Mike Posner and what a good time since his second mixtape One Foot Out The Door just got released. Why did I picked this track? I fucks with Gibbs and Big Sean (Uh, you know what I mean). I ‘ll tell you what I think of Mike “Senior at Duke University” Posner another time.

I honestly don’t do iPod Hustle this frequently. But we kinda got some open space while we getting some reviews ready (Plus, this one is gonna be a quick one). In this edition we got Timbaland featuring Jigga & Miss Keri Baby, Gucci Mane jumps on 50’s remix, and Weezy gives us a glimpse of his No Ceilings mixtape. By now you know you should have you iPod set to Hustle right? Well…

Download: Timbaland feat. Keri Hilson & Jay-Z – “Rumors”
Don’t get too excited Jigga stans fans, it’s mostly a Keri Hilson R&B track featuring Jay-Z (A quick verse too). That’s not a bad thing but it’s what you’d expect from Timbo and Keri at this point. It’s supposedly gonna be on Tim’s Shock Value 2. Sidenote: Miley Cyrus is gonna on Shock Value 2?

Download: 50 Cent feat. Gucci Mane – “Crime Wave (remix)”
The beat on this one goes hard and the original version of “Crime Wave” quickly made it to my iPod (Check out the music video here). And then 50 had to add Gucci Mane to the remix. I honestly don’t have a problem with Gucci but let’s be real; What does his add to the track? Sidenote: What’s the name of the sample used on “Crime Wave”? The same one was used on Jay-Z’s “Public Service Announcement (9th Wonder Remix)” and on Fabolous’ “This Is Family”. Update: Okay, Gucci’s verse wasn’t that bad.

Download: Lil’ Wayne – “Wasted” & “Swag Surfin’”
Of course the big news in Hip-Hop at the moment is Weezy pleading guilty to gun charges in New York and possibly getting a year in prison (NY don’t play about guns. Word to Plaxico & Shyne!). This track are from his soon to be released mixtape No Ceilings (Which is suppose to contain no Auto-Tune or features and drops Oct. 31st). By now by the titles I’m sure you guess what instrumentals he goes over but if this is a return to the Dedication 1-2/Squad Up days…I don’t know if this is that. Either way, shout out the Lil’ Wayne. I’m sure we’ll have enough music to hold us over for 10 years (If need be).

Even though MTV dropped the full list on Sunday, I’m still playing catch up (As you can tell from the lack of posts I been kinda busy). Of course Eminem not making the list jumps out at most people; Relapse sold 600,000 in it’s first week, I think that probably should be considered hot (Em is definitely hotter that Raekwon). Here’s the full list and the videos. What do you think? Sidenote: I told you idiots Jay-Z would top the list!

1. Jay-Z

2. Lil’ Wayne

3. Drake

4. Kanye West

5. Rick Ross

6. Gucci Mane

7. Young Jeezy

8. Fabolous

9. 50 Cent

10. Raekwon

Damn it’s been a while since I last dropped something for The ‘Fro (almost a month ago with Alchemist’s Chemical Warfare album review), I guess Hip-Hop music ain’t the only one that’s been in a drought for the month of August. But nonetheless in my absence I’ve been listening to a lot of music both old and new, and it got me to thinking about the current state of Hip-Hop and the music industry in general as it relates to artists. As you most likely have noticed over the last few years, the genre of Hip-Hop has probably been one of the most expansive in the music industry with new artists, producers, and DJs seemingly starting careers everyday. But in light of all of these new additions to the game, very few of them ever see the success that they strive and dream of when starting their careers.

Success in the realm of Hip-Hop has come in a different styles and forms, whether it’s viral video rise to fame (Soulja Boy Tell ‘Em) or mixtape industry domination (50 Cent), with every new artist and producer searching for the formula to their own success. But for every one success story there are often hundreds more that never reach that plateau and those that never reach that level often wonder why. While it can be said that many different elements apply when describing success and what’s needed to be successful, the one major aspect that many artists and producers overlook when it comes to their own careers is Originality.

Think of all of the Hip-Hop artists, producers, and DJs that have achieved and are achieving success in their careers over the years: Jay-Z, Nas, The Notorious B.I.G., 2Pac, Snoop Dogg, Marley Marl, DJ Premier, Pete Rock, J Dilla, Dr. Dre, 50 Cent, Soulja Boy Tell ‘Em, Drake, DMX, Big Pun, Lil Wayne, T.I., Jam Master Jay, Kid Capri, DJ Jazzy Jeff, Twista, Bone Thugs-N-Harmony, Run-DMC, N.W.A., Wu-Tang Clan, Outkast, Mobb Deep, UGK, Little Brother… The strengths and weaknesses for these various individuals can differ but the one thing that remains the same is originality. Out of all of the names listed they can all be stated as being different and having an identity and not being the same or a copy of somebody else.

With the unparalleled amount of artists, producers, and DJs that are trying to make a name for themselves in the music industry, the one thing that I can attest as to why a majority of them aren’t seeing the same success as their peers is because originality isn’t present. When it comes to an artist like Soulja Boy, it’s a fact that his love/hate ratio with listeners greatly favors the latter, but it can’t be argued that he lacks originality when compared to other artists that might be more skilled on the microphone. I remember a couple years ago back in a music business course I was taking I was asked the question of in a given scenario of having my own record label if I would sign an artist like Soulja Boy or an artist with better skills and ability, and of course I selected the better skilled artist almost instantly. I made this selection based off my knowledge of Soulja Boy’s music and being the kind of listener I am who favors lyricism over lucrative, but failed to see the real deciding factor between the two being originality. Sure Soulja Boy’s lyrics are mediocre and lack substance, but his originality stand atop his characteristics. Given a rapper that’s lyrical and better skilled, how much different would he be from the 25 other lyrical emcees in the same position trying to get signed for a record deal compared to an artist like Soulja Boy Tell ‘Em.

Soulja Boy’s career took off based on an instructional video for his song “Crank Dat”, which led to him signing a deal with Mr. Collipark and Collipark Records. Soulja Boy saw his success from the creation of a viral video that was uploaded on YouTube and that’s where his originality comes into play. Ever since then, countless artists have been uploading videos hoping to be the next artist discovered this but unfortunately it won’t happen. 50 Cent’s career took off after the release of three mixtapes in 2002 (50 Cent Is The Future, No Mercy, No Fear, God’s Plan) that led to him signing a deal with Aftermath and Shady. 50 Cent saw his success from dominating the mixtape industry with multiple mixtape releases when nobody else was really controlling it. You already know how many mixtapes artists release nowadays on the Internet for free download and/or purchase, but the same results that 50 had with it won’t be seen with them.

Just using the examples provided in the cases of Soulja Boy and 50 Cent’s careers they defined their careers by venturing into areas that were previously uncharted and doing something different that everybody else wasn’t doing at the time.

As an artist sure you could upload a video of you freestyling or a low-budget video of your latest “hit” single, but who hasn’t already done that before you. You could release a new mixtape every other month for listeners to be able to download for free, but who hasn’t already done that before you. Following trends and doing the same thing that every other artist is doing won’t portray you as original or different, it will just place you in the category of being the same as everybody else and not bringing anything new to the table. This has been Jay-Z’s key to success for his entire career and it’s no wonder as to why he has been so successful with his music. From putting away throwback jersey and donning more appropriate “grown folk” attire to soul sampled beats on Blueprint to “D.O.A. (Death of Auto-Tune)”, it’s all examples of originality and going against the grain of what’s popular and what everybody else is doing. So while skill, passion, and dedication are some of the necessary aspects to becoming successful in what you do, the biggest one of all is originality.