50 Cent has shared the origin story of why he decided to start wearing baby oil early on in his career, admitting that it had a lot to do with Juvenile.
The G-Unit mogul sat down for a quick interview with The New York Times as part of its “50 Rappers 50 Stories” segment in honor of Hip Hop’s upcoming 50th anniversary.
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In a bonus segment of his initial Hip Hop 50 comments, 50 Cent spoke about initially clowning Juvenile when his second Cash Money Records album 400 Degreez– which has since been certified 4x platinum by the RIAA – was released in December 1998.
“When there’s no plan B, you looking at everything and saying, ‘I gotta figure out what’s gonna work or what’s not gonna work,'” Fif recalled of his early rap career strategies. “There’s points where you’re laughing at a guy and then you look and it’s not funny no more.”
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He continued: “Like Juvenile. We would laugh at him on 400 Degreez. He was standing in front of the yellow Corvette and he had like a little bit too much baby oil on. He was shiny. We’re laughing like, this [expletive] is country. And when them numbers came back, listen, I said, ‘Get me some baby oil!”
400 Degreez was a huge moment for Hip Hop upon its release. Thanks to hit singles such as “Ha” and “Back That Azz Up” — which peaked at No. 68 and No. 19 on the Billboard Hot 100 respectively — the album earned the No. 2 spot on Billboard’s Top R&B/Hip Hop Albums Chart and No. 9 on the Billboard 200.
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As the project approaches its 25th birthday this year, Juvenile said back in June he was contemplating doing a show in honor of his iconic third album.
“New York City!!! If me and my band popped up to do a 25th Anniversary of 400 Degreez celebration and officially launch Juvie Juice in the big Apple … y’all coming? And where should it be?” he asked, referencing his new single “Juvie Juice.”
While no word yet on when or if that show would go down, Juvenile and Mannie Fresh recently brought some New Orleans bounce to NPR’s Tiny Desk, running through a few of their biggest hits last month, including “Set It Off,” “Slow Motion,” “Rodeo” and “I Need a Hot Girl.”
As for 50 Cent, he’s currently gearing up for his massive international tour in celebration of the 20th anniversary of his debut Get Rich or Die Tryin’.
The Final Lap Tour will be a sprawling, 64-date trek that kicks off July 21 in Salt Lake City, Utah. From there, the Power mogul will journey across North America until September 17, making stops in cities such as Toronto, Atlanta, Houston, Los Angeles, Chicago, Detroit and 50’s hometown of New York City.
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The European leg begins shortly after on September 28, and includes shows in the Netherlands, Germany, France, Italy and the U.K., where it comes to a close on November 12.
50 Cent also revealed that “special guest and longtime friend” Busta Rhymes will be joining him for the ride, along with Jeremih for the North American dates.
