While gracing the cover of VIBE, 50 Cent offered his opinion on one of rap’s latest trends: face tattoos.
Always the astute businessman, 50 opined that face tattoos only serve to limit a rapper’s brand. “That’s the craziest thing. Not necessarily Gucci, but to tattoo your face says that there’s not a possibility that you can actually walk into a legitimate establishment without makeup covering your face every day.”
“That does not work,” continued Fif. “It creates a separation. It says, ‘I’m an artist.’ That’s it. That’s the statement you make when you go and tattoo your face…But know that the public will not have interest in you as an artist for life. You have to be phenomenal. Talk to the best that do it and they will tell you that it will take more than you being an artist. It takes marketing, maneuvering to generate for that long. When you got 40-year-old rappers in the game, those guys have maneuvered and survived.”
In recent months, Gucci Mane and Yung LA each got face tattoos. Not to be ignored is the fact that 50’s longtime nemesis, The Game, notably, got a tattoo of a butterfly on his face, which he later covered with an LA Dodgers symbol and a red star. Conversely, Forty-year-old rappers, such as Jay-Z, have somehow avoided the urge thus far.
Let’s see how many people will look past the fact that 50 Cent is the one talking and see how much sense he makes.
agreed
You already know. These ignorant ass niggas can’t see truth in front of their face because they’re so caught up in “who’s saying it” and not “what’s being said”.
They’re like emotional little bitches.
In all honesty, most of the people on this site are hip-hop fans exclusively. They don’t have a very broad view on music as a whole. Usually people with such close-mindedness are kind of ignorant. Plus when you factor in what messages this genre brings to the table(vulgar lyrics, degradation of women, glamorization of destructive sub-cultures, etc), it’s easy to see how hiphop fans make STUPID ASS COMMENTS.
It’s refreshing to see 50 cent make mature comments. Shows his growth.
Now that I’ve read your comment I can say that most people could not look past “who” spoke it. They completely ignore the fact that what he said made a whole lot of sense.
hes even removed alot of his tats for this reason
Exactly, he sees the bigger picture.. fuck doing just music when you can land movie and tv roles and get that Will Smith money. 12 million a movie vs. a couple of grand for an album.
Gucci and Yung LA need to get in, get their money and get the fuck out of here. I dont really like 50 but he is a legit business man who has made alot of money and he is right, you need to look and act the part to make major business moves, getting ice cream cones and whatever the fuck Young LA has decided to get tattooed on his face today isnt smart, but whatever, fuck it, they have money to spend on shit like that so why not. All I know is that the most progressive move Young LA has ever made is putting his surup in a Snapple bottle so it doesnt eat through the foam cups, good job buddy….
50 Cent didn’t sale the water to coca-cola and that is all the money that he has made.
Thats all the money he has made? You’re kidding right? The man has sold over 20 million records. Thats millions of dollars in royalty alone. Start using your brain young man.
Games LA tattoo was fuckin tight, shouldnt have got the star though
“Conversely, Forty-year-old rappers, such as Jay-Z, have somehow avoided the urge thus far.”
Somehow? Like it’s such a popular trend that everybody and their mama are doing it? I beg to differ. If I’m not mistaken, Jay doesn’t even have a tattoo period. So why even bring this up like it’s a scenario that everybody is drawn towards? 50 has a point, but there are numerous 40 plus rappers that don’t have one at all. Poor choice of words on the articles part…
It’s called irony my friend. Irony.
@Seriously1:
I agree. I was thinking the samething. Jay Z not even the type to get a tat on his face. He got more class than that. Not to mention the sh-t looks ridiculous. God help the dumb a– fans who follow this bullsh-t. Who in the hell would destroy their face for a fuk-n country rap trend that you will hav’t to live with for life. Most of these bullsh-t rappers will need to get a job eventally, then what? This generation of a rappers and fans are the dumbest yet.
the one time the writers on this site actually make their writing a bit interesting and funny some dumbass cant take the joke. wtf u wonder why their so many spelling errors and shit and heres the problem why write well when the readers dont fuckin understand it
hahaha game fraud ass nigga.. 50 we no u a business man n all but shut up who really cares
shut the fuck up.
50 cents opinion = Irelevant
Your spelling = remedial.
Fuck 50 he don’t matter no more
Wow, there really are a lot of dummies on here today. Whether or not you feel 50 is irrelevant, he is correct. I suspect some of you to just be young or plain ignorant. Hopefully both, and you will grow out of your stupidity phase.
You can always count on idiots making comments on HipHopDx. That’s one thing that never fails. Whether you like 50 or not he speaks the truth. You’re not always going to be an artists and you’re not always gonna be in your 20s. That shit may look cool if you’re a young boy (shit not even then) but not for a grown man. You limit yourself. How many movie roles etc are you gonna be able to land with a big ass tattoo on your face??? As always with this site.. ignorant ass niggas making ignorant ass comments. No wonder our people stay losing. SMH
i didnt even need 2 read the other comments,what u said is what any1 with a normal fully functional brain would think…this generation of niggaz is so dumb,seriously…
Straight up truth. You young clowns better start listening.
tit touching butt fucking righteous losers
Whether you love or hate 50, you can’t argue with his logic here. Facial ink is bad for business.
Work @ Home Sales Agents Needed
Totally Legit Company Now Hiring
SALES AGENT
(Commissions will range from $4.00 to $15.00 per sale)
Sales include outbound clubs.
Computer Requirements
PC running Windows XP, Windows Vista or Windows 7
Minimum 2 GB free hard drive disk space
Minimum 1 GB RAM (2 GB recommended for Vista or Windows 7)
1 GHz to 1.5 GHz Processor or higher (Multi-Core Recommended)
Monitor with minimum screen resolution of 1024×768 (1280×1024 recommended)
Current anti-virus software with updated definitions
Current anti-spyware software
Internet Access Requirements
Subscription to a reliable, high-speed, hard-wired, bi-directional Internet connection. DSL or Cable with bi-directional speeds of 128K or more
No satellite or wireless Internet service (A wireless connection within the confines of your home is acceptable as long as your DSL or Cable connection is hard-wired.)
Internet Explorer 6.xSP1 or later
Headset Requirements
USB headset for your online training and Sales Calls. Prior to your first day of training you will need a USB headset that plugs into your computer.* These USB headsets range in price from $20-$50, and can be purchased at most stores that sell computer equipment or office supplies. The USB headset must meet these minimum requirements:
Analog Headsets, although not as clear, are also acceptable but not preferred.
Features a microphone
Hands-free
Connects to your computer via a USB port.
Features a mute button
Available Schedules:
There are several shift schedules to choose from to fit every lifestyle of a work at home agent. The center is open from 9am EST to 9pm EST. The following shifts will be available.
9am to 1pm
9am to 5pm
1pm to 5pm
1pm to 9pm
5pm to 9pm
PLEASE EMAIL ALL RESUMES TO: CJDiversities@gmail.com
This is a sales campaign where you sell clubs. So if you close well, you can make a lot of money.
I’m going to flood this email address with porn
Just like with any open forum, visceral attacks of said subject is about as common as the sun coming up. I am no fan of the guy’s music, but I’m a fan of his business acumen. The guy makes a very educated point about this trend of rappers with tattooed faces. I’m open to tattoos as long as they’re done conservatively and hidden in a professional environment. As a hiring manager, I will not hire anyone with a tattooed face. Tattooed faces screams nothing more than head bagger at the local grocer.
Aside from the entertainment side of things, Gucci Mane and Yung LA have really depreciated their name value from the asinine tattoos, the legal problems, and the entourage they hang around with. As many people continue to hop on the Anti-50 bandwagon, at the end of the day, 50 has and will always continue to make sound business choices.
I’m gaining more respect for 50 as a businessman and person. He gets the big picture.
Fif spoke some truth in this interview. He speaks on a business level but I’ll break it down to average middle class person level. Say you have some silly tattoo on your face and you go on a job interview. No decent employer is going to hire you if you have ANY tats on your face. Even Mcdonalds would pick someone over you just cause they dont want you to represent their brand. This face tattoo will guarantee you have a hard life. You would not even be able to join the military because you cant have any tats that can be seen while in uniform. Face tat equals no job making more than minimum wage for you entire life.
Oh, I can’t believe people are actually dissing Fif for saying this!! He is giving you dumb fucks some valuable advice!
Because the ignorant would rather remain ignorant!
Which is worse a face tatatoo or all that negativity 50 brings to music in general,his subject matter is so limited he is a joke at this point.This is guy is like a prostitute his decisions are made only in monetary terms.He had his tatatoos removed to further his acting career thats a fools errand due to that fact that he is a terrible actor.It seems rap has gone corporate no more rebels who are the voice of the unheard just a bunch of capitalist yes men
read closely and you’ll realize what he says is true. tattoo your face a see how far you will go. not far at all
it not an opinion its common sense
Word!
These young dudes buy into these crapy methods used by artist’s who have no wizdom to give, and nothing real to say in their music but rely on controversial gimicks to sell. His music ain’t saying nothing so he tatoos his face up and dumbs down everbody
one of the things i’ve loved most from fifty cent is how much of a cultured man has he become,he has cultured himself,he quite knows what to say and what to deny talking about.according to me the only thing gucci could endorse is an ice cream company which would sound gay.hate him or love him right he spits the realest truth.yet those who say dre is richer than fifty please check out the forbes lists for the past for years you will see.
fifty cent 210 millions.
2007 32
2008 150
2009 20
2010 8 howcome dre is richer than him? forbes is trash now,i don’t give credit to this trash anymore.as fifty is not letting his money sleep on a bank account ,he’s been investing in so many things lately,but still none of these is richer than him besides jay.over the last for years forbes list.
jay 215 million.
2007 36
2008 81
2009 35
2010 63.
number don’t lie.fuck forbes.fif is back on top he’s now running the hood again,the realest niggas will buy his album,he will easily score 500-600 k first week.
I do not hold much stock in Forbes and their ratings (remember Scott Storch) but if you seriously believe 50 Cent has as much money as you think he has, then you are deluded. Cultured, really? I bet you still believe he made hundreds of millions of dollars from Vitamin Water. And yet this has not been confirmed by any credible financial media sources. And he can still sell records in 2011. Right.
500-600k first week???? HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!! 50’s last album did 150k first wk….look it up…dude has money outside of rap but he doesn’t sell records like he used to…and ‘runnin the hood’ or ‘realest niggas wil buy his album’…u are an idiot, “the hood” does not buy cd’s, never have, never will…
i swear some folks just write whatever on here…
by the way i agree w/ 50 about the tatoos…doesn’t matter if ur a millionaire, u tat ur face u just lost some potential money u could have gotten somewhere in the future…u might be just fine but its still money lost…
Keep getting those face/full body tattoos young ones…It only makes it easier for the rest of us to get jobs and determines who will be doing the hard manual labor the rest of their lives. Dont listen to 50, cover your entire body in tats. I will go ahead and say thank you for the 6 figure job I get later on because no good company is gonna hire yalls asses.
Not a big fan of Fif, but this nigga is right. Once you tat up ur facee, especially with stupid shit like Gucci and Yung LA, you’re fucked. Most corporate business men aint gon fuck wit you and you just lost the potential to get a lot of paper. Wish these young niggas in the game would realize that.
It depends on what they are trying to do. If they are trying to do something the need to be in front of a camera or their image is being used yea he’s right, but if they have a legitamate business idea and a group of business men think it is a viable and potentially profitable business plan or if they can use that face tatoo image to their advantage they will do business with them. They are already in boardrooms, it’s their lawyers faces that are seen.
he makes a good point, but let’s be real here. gucci mane & yung LA were never going to be taken seriously in a corporate boardroom with or without facial tattoos. just watch the video of yung LA getting his duck tattoo covered up and try to tell me that this guy has anything to offer the world, other than terrible music. and let’s not forget that gucci is “mentally incompetent” to stand trial, so i highly doubt that he has the competence to be an entrepreneur on the level of fif or jay
Not a fan of Fif, but he is so right on this one. you can limit yourself by doing something to yourself that will limit you only as a rapper, you got to get in mind to find ways to exspand
50 your music has sucked for a good 3 albums but you do speak the truth.
Two words…he’s right.
50 cent is nothing we need to get rid off his ass 50 I KNOW YOU ARE READING THIS MR INTERNET GANGSTA, KILL UR SELF
WATCH THIS PICTURE ITS 50 CENT IN A FUCKING BIEBER WIG
http://plixi.com/p/86274197
HAHAHAH LOOOL 50 cent is gay
Listen of course a face tattoo is a stupid thing to do but so is making dumb music like fifty does i cant relate to this retard i actually think
All 50 is about is money, and he’ll tell you that. Dude went from broke 8 years ago to the richest rapper out there right now… And that aside, does Gucci make good music? .. No. Does Yung LA, make good music? .. No. These idiots with face tattoos haven’t made any good music, nor the money 50 had…
Why didn’t anyone bring up Baby & Wayne’s tattoos on the face. Baby is 42 years old with face tattoos and a red star on top of his head
Mike Tyson is truly the only dude with a face tat that could likely get away with it for the rest of his life
cuz that’s mike tyson man! gucci mane ain’t gonna whip your ass for making fun of his shit. mike tyson will skin you alive for talkin bout his face.
You just mentioned 2 people out of 300+ million people that live in the United States. And those two people have made countless millions of dollars so they really dont need to worry about finding a “real job”.
50 cent dont wanna be a rapper he wants to be like diddy but bigger than diddy movies,drinks,headphones,he knows its alllll about the $$DOLLAR$$ and he dont ever wanna have to be broke and hussle again cuz shits not fun…
It’s simple : rappers with face tattoos are in the abyss of humanity. they wear a sort of mark of the beast. fuck those without-soul niggas who fuck their millions in beasty bullshits. How can the world be good when some idiots spend thousands of dollars on foolish tattoos while many people break their back for nothing ? it smells apocalypse…
yeah u gotta point but nigguz get sick with all that money you go on that run where you do everything you can in that first year you get famous,after that it becomes like a sickness and lots of these artists run of ideas ,become crazy and forget whats happening in the real world,turn to drugs and alcohol and from there its a downhill road.look at gucci they send him in a coo coo place,police chases,kicking down his door.all that is for the trill game is fucked up and nigguz think its all money and bitches
@Lankh:Exactly, Its the mark of the beast. The mentality of rap fans and rappers today is exactly the reason we need hip hop with substance to talk about whats really happening in the world. As I heard someone say, “rappers making song’s about poppin bottles when we are in a recession”. Hip hop originaly wasn’t built on this bullsh-t. It spoke to the ill’s of the world and the everyday struggle. Since real music has been blocked from rotation on the radio stations fans of this generation don’t know real rap and are left with ignorant rappers with ice cream cones on their face. Hip hop music went from teaching,uplifiting and soothing people, to beinging DUMBED DOWN. You can tell by some of the DUMB comments that are made on this site. How did todays rap take away the ability of people to listen objectively. Every time theres an opinion, a statement, or a veiw on something, people that disagree with it’s always say oh, he’s a hater, he got money, he don’t got no money, he’s not relevent, ex. How dumb can you be? None of that sh-t has anything to do with common sense or a valid point. Most people are not rappers or atheletes. Truth is unless your DIDDY, JayZ or someone who has had along career you can do pretty much what you want. Most of these fly by night rappers with a few hits could easily fall off. So the moral to the story is getting tats on your face may not be a good idea. If your a fan and your and following this shi-t you have made a life decision over a trend that scars you for life.
Gucci- doesnt count….regardless as to what u hip hop nerds think, Gucci is very smart and a great business man, not to mention the fact that he owns all of his music. the man is very wealthy right now. Yung LA on the other hand is constantly under the influence of “syrup” and that reflects his decision making….. he’s not even signed to that duck label or whatever and those dudes (who are real goons i might add) dont fuck wit him and thats the reason why he’s gotten it covered up…..niggas like gucci and wayne is set for life tho they can put a pile of shit on their face…..i still dont know about Game cus he’s always owned by his label
no one is “set for life”
Whatever happened to DO YOU ? Aint no way in hell Im gettin a tattoo anywhere on my body, but I could give a fuck what another man do! Im so tired of this ALL ABOUT THE MONEY ass generation anyway. If money determines your worth then you aint worth shit in the actuality of existence. Besides:
“…flashing money, jewelry and cars/
like them white folks can’t decide that they gon take tomorrow/…”
WHY IS 50 ALWAYS IN THE NEWS FOR OTHER FOLKS BUSINESS????
THAT IS HOW HE CAME IN THE GAME AND THAT IS HOW HE WILL LEAVE IT.
ALWAYS TALKING ABOUT OTHER PEOPLE LIKE YOU DON’T HAVE A LIFE OR $100 MILLION.
so if someone asks him a question he is supposed to just ignore it i guess? look, the man was asked a question, he answered it, end of story.
he’s only saying this to piss off the game and his envy of lil wayne being eminem’s new favorite
All this shit doesn’t change one fact. This niggas music isn’t relevant anymore. G-Unit is so 2005. GTFO and produce more straight to dvd garbage movies with your poor acting skills.
What about tear tattoos. DUMB. Every time you look in the mirror you are reminded of someone who is dead
tell me about it..
50 is right. But hes not saying anything i didnt know. Face tats are retarded. Its not timeles. When the rap shit is over how these cats gonna get good jobs? Removing that shit would suck as well. Trust
Tell that to the Mahwri people (sp?)
If $WonDough$ ever fall from grace, on the way down Imma tattoo a bullet with your name on it to your face
Uhm, Lil Wayne, Baby, Rick Ross all have face tattoos. P Diddy has a neck one. All of them are successful and continue to be. I think the argument only applies to people trying to get on. I am sorry but Gucci Mane and Yung LA will never sell a million records so they can do whatever they want without causing harm to their respective brands. It does look retarded, but it does not limit their potential to earn.
you’re an idiot for that comment
You completely failed to comprehend 50’s point, in fact you basically confirmed his argument without knowing it.
He was saying that only a select number of rappers can make it in the rap game long term. Those are the ones that could get away with tatting up their faces. It’s all the others, that will eventually need to find another way to market themselves. Whether it’s acting, a clothing line, business man or even a job at Mcdonald’s, a face tattoo is only going to make it harder for them. So like you said, Gucci Mane and Young LA will never sell a million records, so they need to be thinking about their lives beyond rapping.
yes but they will never accepted as business men like 50,jay,master p.aside from diddy(no face tat) he would never be accepted in to top dog society with a lets say a homer simpson on his cheek.lil wayne rick ross gucci these guys will only live as artists and never be more that that,look at birdman with all them tatts he cant go and start a deal with white fellaz cuz when they see him they will be like fuck out of here gangbangin crackhead
For once I actually agree with fifty on this one, and a face tattoo in my opinion is dumb as fuck and only really works for some people
why won’t he give his opinion on rappers with dick heads? then he can talk about himself boss thug
Lsn22s:
“500-600k first week???? HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!! 50’s last album did 150k first wk….look it up…dude has money outside of rap but he doesn’t sell records like he used”
YEAH YOU ARE CORRECT GOING DIAMOND ON HIS FIRST 2 ALBUMS HOW CAN HE LMAOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO DIVIDE THAT UP ITS LIKE GOING PLAT FOR 20 YEARS STRAIGHT HHAHA….bawse
it doesnt take a genius to know that gettin your face tatted is dumb as fuck. it dont matter who much money that person got.
^^ that.
nothin realer than a face tat
i have 3 myself
when i see “50 cent gives his opinion” for a headline..
i pretty much lose interest right then and there. but like an idiot i read the article anyways.. yup! life should come with a rewind button
Face tattoos are retarded. You know it and everyone knows it. Only a pin head would get one.