50 Cent has never held back on saying Jay Z isn’t a great musician, hinting that his wealth doesn’t come from his music.
It’s pretty clear there’s a big rivalry in the music industry, especially between Death Row and Bad Boy Records. Things have only escalated with Diddy’s criminal case going on. A lot has come out, but 50 Cent has been talking about Diddy and Jay Z for a while now. As a vocal rival of both, he’s not shy about sharing his opinions on music producers.
While the rapper has taken shots at Diddy almost a hundred times, what’s slipped under the radar over the years is his take on Jay Z. He thinks Beyoncé’s husband, who’s seen as just as powerful as Diddy, is actually pretty overrated. He might be a good producer, but when it comes to being a musician, 50 Cent feels it’s a whole different ball game.
50 Cent Claims Jay Z Is Overrated
50 Cent has always been straight with his words and doesn’t hold back, especially when it comes to his rivals in the music scene. Recently, a ton of stuff has come out about Diddy, and a lot of it is his own doing. But Jay Z — who’s the convicted rapper’s best friend — hasn’t dodged the spotlight either.
In a 2014 interview on Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen, 50 Cent took part in the “Plead the Fifth” Q&A segment. When asked which rapper he thought was overrated, he wasted no time with his answer:
“Overrated? I mean, Jay Z. He would say he was overrated. Rather be overrated than underpaid”
The ironic comment was a nod to Kanye West‘s song So Appalled, pointing out that even with a fortune of $2 billion, Jay Z isn’t exactly killing it with his own music. After the interview aired, the producer didn’t say a word about it.
Most people seem to be on the same page about this:
@bb_morenike I grew up in the Western part of Africa and I never heard of JayZ when we were kids but 50 Cent was a household name.
@kevinadamyap I only know Jay Z because of Numb Encore by Linkin Park lol
@vegasrebecca We still dance in europe on “in the club” how many jay z song play until now in the radio?or in clubs and disco? Jay z practicality does not exist. 😂
@gonzaa.ferre I’m from Argentina, if you put Jay in the most famous avenue in Argentina, he would be invisible
@danvincistein Facts… 50 is bigger internationally
Even so, a lot of people still don’t really know how this whole rivalry got started or how Diddy fits into the picture. Since the rapper’s arrest, 50 Cent has become a go-to source for bringing up everything that everyone else is just now finding out about.
What Were 50 Cent’s Allegations Against Diddy?
In a recent interview with People, 50 Cent shared some thoughts on the whole situation with the rapper who’s currently behind bars:
Look, it seems like I’m doing some extremely outrageous things, but I haven’t. It’s really me just saying what I’ve been saying for 10 years.
In 2006, 50 Cent dropped the track Hip Hop (P. Diddy Diss), where he accused the producer of being involved in the murder of The Notorious B.I.G. Diddy shot that down right away. Since then, the feud has only escalated. (via People)
Funny enough, the two met back in the ’90s and were pushed by a lot of folks in the industry to collaborate. While they did end up working together, it seemed like 50 Cent and Diddy just didn’t vibe. He said he never partied with Diddy and always viewed him as a “businessperson” who sometimes took credit for songs he didn’t really produce.
Up until that point, it wasn’t really a rivalry, but things heated up when it came to the vodka brands they were both involved with. 50 Cent teamed up with Effen Vodka, while Diddy went with Ciroc. Eventually, 50 took a jab at Diddy in a statement by comparing the two drinks.
Later on, 50 Cent revealed that he felt really uncomfortable when Diddy once said he wanted to take him shopping. After that, he started to see the producer as kinda strange, and that view of him has stuck ever since.
Diddy claimed they had never had any issues, but 50 Cent kept throwing shade at him. Jay Z got pulled into the rapper’s jabs over the years too, mainly because he’d been best friends with Diddy since 1990 and probably knew all the dirt on him.
