Music Interview: 50 Cent Talks Dr. Dre, Jay-Z & Before I Self Destruct

So by now you’re aware that the 50 Cent of today isn’t the 50 Cent of 2003. Or is he? The “aggressive content” is still there, the issues with other rappers are still there, and the hunger to get rich or die tryin’ is definitely still there. But while there’s a the-more-things-change-the-more-they-stay-the-same feel to it all, there are notable differences between Curtis Jacksons past and present.

He just did a New York reunion show at Governor’s Island where he embraced Jadakiss (whom he’s had problems with in the past), he hasn’t flown off the handle about his placement on the MTV list like he two years ago—and yesterday, as we sat down with 50 Cent in his unfinished new office, his answers to our questions seemed more methodical than ever. While he preps to release his oft-delayed album Before I Self Destruct on November 23, we spoke to 50 about possible tension with Dre, Fat Joe’s first-week sales, pulling a gun on Diddy, and how he really feels about Jay-Z’s “no one is scared of 50 Cent” comment. Yup, some things will never change…

Music Live at the BBQ: 10 Hip-Hop Cookout Videos

In the minds of most Americans, Labor Day weekend marks the end of the summer. Schools start back up, summer Fridays come to an end, you supposedly can’t wear white anymore and all the beaches begin to empty out. It sucks, we know. But at least you can go out with a bang by running through a bunch of BBQ’s this weekend. If you haven’t been to a BBQ this summer, you either need some new friends or you need to buy yourself a grill. We don’t see why you would, but If you need any incentive to scarf down free food and beer this weekend, check out our 10 favorite BBQ-themed rap videos…

Music 5 O’Clock Shuffle: Dr. Dre, Washed Out, Donnis & More

Each day Complex scours the music blogs for 5 fresh songs that you should listen to in our 5 O’Clock Shuffle post. Instead of going crazy trying to keep up with your RSS feeds everyday, just head over to Complex.com to stay up-to-date on important leaks and releases.

Today we have some vintage G-Funk, instrumentals from the next indie star, and a few other bangers. Listen to today’s selections and download the MP3s below…

Music Twitter Fight! Nick Cannon vs. Eminem

Oh, but the internet was on fire last week. First Eminem’s Relapse leaked, then Nick Carey Cannon caught feelings about some of Em’s lyrics about Mariah Carey. On the track “Bagpipes from Baghdad,” Marshall goes in on his alleged ex-jumpoff and her present husband:

…Mariah whatever happened to us? Why did we have to break up?/All I asked for was a glass of punch!/You see I never really asked for much/I can’t imagine what’s going through your mind after such/A nasty break-up with that Latin hunk/Luis Miguel—Nick Cannon better back the fuck/Up, I’m not playin’, I want her back, you punk/This is Hello Kitty bedspread satin funk/Mixed with egyptian with a little rap and punk/Zapp and Eric Clapton, Shaft, Frank Zappa, crunk/And yeah baby i want another crack at ya/You can beat me with any spatula that you want/I mean I really want you bad, you c*nt/Nick you had your fun, i’ve come to kick you in your sack of junk/Man I could use a fresh batch of blood/So prepare your vernacular for Dracula acupunct…

Not even that harsh, especially in comparison to the psychosexual gorefest that is much of Relapse. Regardless, though, Nick blacked out on his blog, coming out of pocket with all kinds of threats (physical and otherwise) toward Em, even going so far as to compare Mariah to Michelle Obama and Oprah. (Even though he pulled the post in a matter of hours, you can still read it plenty of places, including here.) And that’s all we’ve heard of it so far…UNTIL NOW! See, when you have two celebrities on Twitter, chances are shit’s gonna boil over. And boil over it did. Thankfully, we follow all the parties involved, so we were able to record the whole confrontation as it went down.* Don’t say we never did anything for you…

Music Complex Casts The N.W.A. Biopic

Now that Notorious was considered a commercial success, it looks like we’re about to see a lot more hip hop movies coming to theaters over the next couple years. News came last week that a screenplay Tupac made while in prison is finally getting greenlighted and now we hear that Ice Cube, Dr. Dre and Eazy E’s widow, Tomica Wright, will be producing a N.W.A. biopic called Straight Outta Compton (what else would it be called?).

Could this be better than Notorious? Possibly. There’s a lot more story to tell with all the members each being involved in some sort of drama even after they left the group, and they also have the chance to learn from Notorious’ mistakes. But the real decider here will be the cast. We took it upon ourselves to offer up some suggestions, coming straight outta Complex!

Music The Game: “Jay-Z Would Be A Piece Of Cake”

There's really no sense in trying to figure out what goes on in Jayceon Taylor's mind. As he puts it, there's good days and bad days. The good days consist of traveling the world and racking up positive reviews of his new album L.A.X., thanks to his current single “My Life” with Lil Wayne. The bad comes from those pesky suicidal thoughts, dealing with tragedies like Sean Bell’s murder, and figuring out how he fits in to this fickle hip-hop world.

When we spoke with Game yesterday, he seemed more outspoken and at ease than ever. In this exclusive interview with Complex, he welcomes a battle with Jay-Z (relax, there's no diss record coming…yet), explains why Dr. Dre can’t finish Detox without him, and confesses that Young Buck is one of his best friends…

Music When Rappers Break Up With Their Producers

Clipse can still rap their asses off, but there is something noticeably missing from the new Clipse Presents: The Re-Up Gang album, which dropped today. That something? Good beats. You see, we fucking love Pusha T and Malice over Neptunes production. But over Sleepwalkers (very apt name, btw) tracks? Eh…not so much.

Which got us thinking: this isn’t the first time a rap act has carved out a dope sound with a certain producer and then parted ways to dismal effect. After the jump, check out our compilation of those rappers and their respective before/after track records.

Music Rap Sheet: Lil Wayne Gets indicted

• Shocker: An Arizona jury indicted Weezy on felony drug and weapon charges. As you may recall, the Cash Money mogul’s tour bus was stopped and search back in January of this year, yielding “four ounces of marijuana, just over an ounce of cocaine, 41 grams of Ecstasy and miscellaneous drug paraphernalia.” His tour will continue but he’s gotta be back in court on March 7.

• Vindication?: Remy Ma claims that prosecutors screwed up her case by failing to link her crime with DNA evidence. She’s accused of assault, criminal possession of a weapon, gang assault, and even witness intimidation.

• Delving: Dr. Dre began an investigation into the now defunct Death Row Records, hoping to find documents that will settle a dispute over unpaid royalties since the label filed for bankruptcy protection in April 2006. Dre is also trying to reclaim right to his 1992 solo hit album, The Chronic.

• Covered: Here’s the cover for rap duo Kidz in the Hall’s The In Crowd.

• Recognize: Hip Hop inspired art is all the rage. We already pointed you towards the Holy Hip Hop! exhibit in Detroit, now check out Recognize at The National Portrait Gallery.