Fif tells MTV News his labelmates' singles 'go to top 40 and crossover radio immediately.'
50 Cent knows what it takes to make a hit record. The first step for him is the groundwork, usually in the form of a street single. Before "In Da Club," the G-Unit General set the streets on fire with "Wanksta," and before he took fans to the candy shop in 2005, Fif started off with "Disco Inferno."
For his fifth, yet-untitled LP — which he tweeted will now come out in November — things are no different. After blasting his label on Twitter last week, 50 decided to heat up the streets by dropping "Outlaw," his new Cardiak-produced street single.
When asked how his tried-and-true formula differs from that of Interscope labelmate Lady Gaga, Fif said their respective circumstances are incomparable.
"When you say Lady Gaga, a pop artist, they want them to just deliver a song," 50 said. "They don't have the mixshow radio platform to go through before they would actually go for adds on an actual record."
As opposed to mainstream pop artists, rappers who are viewed as more niche, for the most part, usually have to service a record that caters to late-night urban-radio formats where DJs blend records together in a continuous stream. The mixshows serve as a proving ground of sorts for edgier hip-hop music.
"Her records go to top 40 and crossover radio immediately. You can't really compare it to any artist that would be considered a pop artist or a white artist," 50 said of his circumstance in relation to Gaga's. "And I say that openly, because what we consider urban radio or rhythmic radio was referred to as black radio at one point. That right there is something that I am conscious of."
Still, 50 said he doesn't place any blame; instead, he simply points out the differences. He even talked about his method of landing records on the charts in relation to Eminem. Like Gaga, 50 points out that Slim Shady bypasses urban radio as well.
"You can't compare Eminem and 50 Cent's career on any level," he said. "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."
Last Thursday, before leaking "Outlaw," 50 tweeted that he wouldn't drop his new album in 2011 unless Interscope got "on the same page." 50 clarified to MTV News what many perceived as a serious rift between him and his label. "They're behind it, but to get everybody moving at the same beat and moving at the same pace is the object. That was what the goal was even writing that statement and releasing the song," he said.
