DJ Premier recalled landing a 50 Cent feature as the first single off a compilation project before getting shut down by Dr. Dre, who, at the time, wanted his latest Aftermath signee to focus entirely on what would become the rapper’s groundbreaking 2003 debut album Get Rich Or Die Tryin’.
Premier dropped by The Breakfast Club to promote the recently-released five-track EP Hip Hop 50: Volume 1, featuring Lil Wayne, Nas, Remy Ma and more, when he discussed the 50 feature that got away. Preemo explained that after Fat Joe signed him to Terror Squad, he planned on putting together an album similar to DJ Khaled and turned to Fif for the first single, even though he was on many people’s bad side following the release of “How to Rob.”
“This was when everybody wasn’t really messing with 50 to the fullest because he was having too much drama after doing ‘How To Rob,’ and me and Fif hit it off right away and clicked when I got on the phone with him,” he said. “He said he would do the record, and right when it’s about time to do the record, we get a call that Fif can’t do it.”
Premier continued, “I’m like, ‘Why not?’ and they like he’s about to sign to Eminem and Dr. Dre, and I’m like, ‘Noooo,’ because we already committed to us and I talked to Dre and Dre was like ‘Preem, I love you, but he’s not doing any more recording until he does his debut album.”
The two eventually worked together on the 2011 song “Shut Ur Bloodclot Mouth,” but that moment in time doesn’t compare to what would have been a DJ Premier and 50 Cent collab just before his meteoric rise in hip hop. “I always tell 50, you still owe me that track,” Preemo concluded.
Check out Premier’s interview up top, with the 50 Cent discussion starting around the 17:50 mark.
