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1980s feudsBoogie Down Productions vs. The Juice CrewBoogie Down Productions, led by KRS-One, were involved in a long-running feud with Marley Marl's Juice Crew during the mid-to-late 1980s and early 1990s that was predominantly a dispute over boroughs of New York. The feud began with Queensbridge-based Marley Marl & MC Shan's track "The Bridge" in late 1985, in which they sung the praises of hip hop's early years in Queensbridge. The dispute was over MC Shan's line "You love to hear the story again and again of how it all got started way back then". South Bronx-based KRS-One believed that MC Shan was implying that Queensbridge was where hip hop "all got started". Although proved later to not be the case, KRS-One and Boogie Down Productions (BDP) would misinterpret the line and go on to record the and release the track "South Bronx" starting the rivalry. It was effectively identical in terms of content to Shan and Marl's track except singing the praises of South Bronx rather than Queensbridge, and made the argument for it being the true home and birthplace of hip hop. The Juice Crew soon responded with the track "Kill The Noise" on Shan's album Down By Law which took various shots at KRS-One and mocked his taking offense in the first place: "Yo Shan, I didn't hear you say hip hop started in the Bridge on your record." "I didn't. They wanted to get on the bandwagon." KRS's main response was the Jamaican-influenced "The Bridge Is Over", and lyrics spoofing Billy Joel's "It's Still Rock and Roll to Me":
The feud quickly died down after BDP's Scott La Rock was shot dead in 1987 after attempting to calm down a domestic dispute involving BDP colleague D-Nice. With his new Stop the Violence Movement, KRS-One had his attention elsewhere, and the Juice Crew did not release any further dis records for a long period after La Rock's death out of respect. However, in 1989, MC Shan attempted to restart the rivalry on his song Juice Crew Law which contained several shots at KRS. KRS took more than a year to respond, but eventually did so in 1990 on the song Black Man In Effect from the BDP (which at that point was basically only KRS-One, D-Nice having left earlier the same year) album Edutainment. Fans remember the beef as a classic hip-hop duel. MC Shan and KRS-One themselves acknowledged the beef's important place in hip hop history when they appeared together in a commercial for the Sprite soft drink in the mid-nineties, in which they exchanged battle rhymes inside a boxing ring. However, the respective fortunes of the pair in the nineties were very different: MC Shan, considered the loser of the battle were there one, never really recovered his reputation and effectively retired, while KRS continued a successful solo career and remained an important figure in hip hop. Nevertheless, on the QB's Finest compilation (which showcased the finest Queensbridge hip hop artists) in 2001, MC Shan took one last parting shot at KRS-One: "Hip hop was set out in the dark / The Bridge was never Over, we left our mark." LL Cool J vs. Kool Moe DeeKool Moe Dee was a member of one of the earliest hip hop crew, the Treacherous Three, and claimed that LL Cool J stole his style, starting a long-running feud between them. From different interviews and magazines at the time, Kool Moe Dee felt that LL was actually believing his own hype based on the popularity and success of the Bigger and Deffer album. Supposedly, Moe Dee approached LL and talked to him, and LL either brushed him off, or went back to his old ways after the talk. There also arose rumors that Moe Dee felt that LL was imitating his rhyme style. Kool Moe Dee took the first shots with "How Ya Like Me Now," the title song from his second solo album that featured on the cover Kool Moe Dee leaning against a jeep and a LL trademark Kangol underneath the tire. The album contained the indirect diss track of the same name. While the album cover was a clear shot, "How Ya Like Me Now," was more subtle. Although he did not specifically mention anyone by name, Kool Moe Dee indicated that he felt he was betrayed by an amateur. Taking this as a sign of disrespect, the then teenage LL responded with the energetic "Jack the Ripper." In the song LL playfully taunts Kool Moe Dee by repeatedly asking the rhetorical question "How you like me now?" He then precedes to call Kool Moe Dee a "washed up rapper" and an "old school sucker punk."
The sequence ended with the following:
LL failed to reply to the song for two years, opening himself up to further disses by many other rappers, most notably gangsta rap pioneer Ice-T. LL also abandoned the hard-core image that he had previously popularized, instead moving toward a more commercial fare (which emphasized New Jack Swing-love ballads). Critics scoffed at this new direction with the release of Walking With a Panther (1989). The genre was becoming increasingly socially conscious, abandoning the music's early themes of partying and braggadocio, and adopting more socially aware issues such as drug abuse, poverty, racism, and African American empowerment. These events resulted in the deterioration of LL’s credibility with some members of the hip hop community: in one instance, he was booed off the stage at the Apollo Theater in New York City during a performance. However, in 1990, LL released the highly anticipated Mama Said Knock You Out, reasserting his status and reviving his credibility amongst hip hop purists. LL also re-ignited his feud with Kool Moe Dee (as well as dissing MC Hammer and striking back at Ice-T) with the comical diss track, "To The Break Of Dawn".
In essence, LL became the first emcee beaten in battle to ask for a rematch, and followed up with several subliminal attacks in other records (a battle practice for which he is known), including the title track, as well as "Jingling Baby," and "Murdergram." Moe Dee soon responded to all of the tracks with the single, "Deathblow," which was dismissed as unspectacular due mostly to Teddy Riley’s production use of a dated James Brown sample. 1990s feudsN.W.A. vs. Ice CubeThe original lineup of N.W.A. splintered when Ice Cube left the group and a war of words developed between Ice Cube and the remaining members of N.W.A., particularly Eazy-E. In his battle raps, Ice Cube accused Eazy-E and his partner Jerry Heller of taking the lion's share of the group's profits. Eventually Ice Cube went solo with his album Amerikkka's Most Wanted. N.W.A. dissed Ice Cube on the single "100 Miles and Runnin'" saying "Now it's 4 because the 5th couldn't take it". Ice Cube dissed them back on his album Kill at Will with "Jackin' for Beats" saying "And if I jack ya and you keep coming I'll have you marks 100 miles and runnin". Later the small disses became bigger ones with the diss from N.W.A.'s Efil4zaggin album (also known as Niggaz4Life) in which they called Ice Cube "Benedict Arnold". On Ice Cube's Death Certificate album, he shot back with the infamous diss "No Vaseline" eventually ending the feud but not ending the war. Later, more drama came with another N.W.A. artist. Ruthless vs. Death RowEventually, Dr. Dre and The D.O.C. found that Cube was right about Eazy-E and Jerry Heller that they were in fact skimming money off the top, and the pair left the crew behind. This effectively meant the end of N.W.A; Dre began his solo career, forming the highly influential Death Row Records with former bodyguard Suge Knight. When he released his first solo album The Chronic, he began a well-publicized feud with his ex-band mate by constantly poking fun of Eazy-E on the song and the video for Dre Day, where Eazy was a money hungry character called Sleazy-E who eventually ended up on the Compton freeway with a sign "Will Rap for Food," Bitches Ain't Shit, which includes the lyric "I used to know a bitch named Eric Wright" and on "The Chronic Intro" where Snoop Dogg yells out that they can suck Deeez Nuuuts. Also Dre dissed him on the intro of Puffin On Blunts And Dranken Tanquery. Eazy-E responded directly by releasing the It's On (Dr. Dre) 187um Killa. The single released from this album, Real Muthafuckin G's" say that Dre was only acting like he was from Compton which Ice Cube even said he wasn't from Compton. The album featured lyrics like on his old album cover he was a she thang referring when Dre was with the World Class Wreckin' Cru. Eazy also said Dre Day only meant Eazy's pay day,which meant that even when Dre worked with Deathrow he still was makin money off his label. Dre and Snoop were both heard dissing the label on The Chronic; later, Snoop Doggy Dogg had small disses to Eazy E such as "HIV-Pussy havin ass muthafucka". Tha Dogg Pound would take shots on their own debut, Dogg Food, such as the line "Ain't got no love for no hoes in harmony": a reference to Ruthless Records' successful new act, Bone Thugs-N-Harmony from Cleveland. Bone Thugs-N-Harmony responded back with a minor diss on the last track of the E. 1999 Eternal album entitled "Shotz To Tha Double Glock",with Layzie Bone saying "Cleveland Browns, Dogg Pound hoes it's on". Dogg Pound's What Would You Do included some lines aimed at Ruthless Records and BG Knocc Out: "Oh yeah, Fuck BG Knocc Out and every nigga down with him" and "For instance, let's take these Ruthless fools, these Ruthless fools and the Pound in one room", in response, Knocc Out and Dresta recorded the diss track entitled DPG/K, from their album Real Brothas. More tension between Death Row and Ruthless sprung up when the latter label's act Above the Law accused Dre of stealing their G-Funk sound for his album and taking credit for it. This resulted in Ruthless recording artist Kokane putting a diss called "Don't Bite The Phunk" with Above The Law's Cold 187um, off his album "Funk Upon A Rhyme". There was also an episode on a golf course when Nate Dogg and some other people from Tha Dogg Pound were attacked by Eazy's crew armed with golf-clubs. Eazy E also disses Death Row Records on his next album Str8 off tha streetz of muthaphukkin Compton with the tracks "Ole School Shit" with lyrics explaining the departure of Dre from N.W.A. "I was the captain Dre was my sidekick, everything was cool till he wanted to get what I get" and his own version of "Wut Would You Do". In 1996, prominent Death Row artist 2Pac was featured on the Bone Thugs' third album The Art Of War, essentially ending the feud. East Coast vs. West CoastArguably the most famous rap feud of recent times, the rivalry between the East Coast's Bad Boy Records and the West Coast's Death Row Records consisted of shots from Death Row toward various acts and, more specifically, Bad Boy, although the media billed it as a "rap war" between two coasts. Fans of and from both scenes denounced each other's native artists, engulfing all of rap culture. Hip hop had originated in the streets of New York, and the city remained the undisputed capital of hip hop until the late '80s, when N.W.A. & others put the West on the map. After he co-founded Death Row Records with former bodyguard Marion "Suge" Knight, producer/rapper Dr. Dre's debut The Chronic became one of the biggest-selling hip hop albums in history, going three-times platinum, and was followed shortly by Snoop Doggy Dogg's breakout album Doggystyle in 1993, which went four-times platinum. Suge Knight's Death Row Records had built up a successful roster of stars, most notably Dre, Snoop Doggy Dogg, and Tha Dogg Pound. Following the release of Dre's The Chronic and Snoop's Doggystyle, West Coast hip hop dominated the mainstream. While East Coast albums such as Nas's Illmatic and the Wu-Tang Clan's Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers) received critical accolades, it wouldn't be until the double-platinum success of The Notorious B.I.G.'s (commonly known as "Biggie Smalls" or "Biggie") 1994 release Ready to Die that the region would receive substantial mainstream attention. East Coast hip-hop purists generally disdained the de-emphasized lyricism of West Coast rap, claiming that the G-funk style Dre pioneered on The Chronic and Doggystyle relied heavily on funky, catchy beats and simple gangsta rhymes. The East Coast would be returned to the mainstream when CEO Sean "Puffy" Combs's Bad Boy Records released The Notorious B.I.G.'s double-platinum Ready to Die. The success of Combs and Biggie did not go over well with Suge Knight, who had maintained a near-monopoly on mainstream rap from 1992-94 and now had an East Coast competitor. Bad Boy and Death Row entered conflict with one another after 2Pac was shot five times at a New York recording studio on November 30, 1994, and publicly blamed his former close friend Notorious B.I.G and Bad Boy CEO Sean "Puffy" Combs. Though no hard evidence has ever connected Bad Boy to the shooting or shown that either Biggie or Combs had foreknowledge of it, Tupac claimed that they were acting suspiciously afterwards. The feud further escalated after Suge Knight mocked Combs at the Source Awards in August 1995, announcing to the assembly of artists and industry figures: "If you want to be a star, and don't want the executive producer all up in the video, singing, (and) dancing, come to Death Row," referring to Combs's ad-libbing in the background of certain Biggie songs. Combs attempted to defuse the situation in a later acceptance speech, saying that he respected Suge and Dr. Dre's work and that the East-West feud had to stop. However, a later performance by Death Row's Dr. Dre and Snoop Dogg was booed (to which Snoop infamously and angrily responded, "The East Coast ain't got no love for Dr. Dre and Snoop Dogg, and Death Row?"). The feud intensified with a number of incidents. In September 1995, a close friend of Knight's was gunned down at a birthday party thrown for producer Jermaine Dupri in Atlanta, Georgia, for which Knight publicly blamed Bad Boy Records. Then, in December, while filming the video for the Dogg Pound's song "New York, New York" in Manhattan, Snoop Dogg's trailer was shot at numerous times (though it was empty). The video itself was controversial, featuring Death Row artists knocking over New York skyscrapers and landmarks, to which many East Coast artists and fans took offense. There was also suspicion that the song itself was also targeted at Bad Boy Records and New York in general, though this is unlikely as the song is in fact a remake of a Grandmaster Flash song, features only generic braggadocio/battle rhymes with nothing that could be interpreted as a specific attack on the East, and was written and recorded before the Bad Boy/Death Row feud began. Capone-N-Noreaga responded with "LA, LA" featuring Mobb Deep, which got them involved in the feud. The Boot Camp Clik joined in by recording with 2Pac; they had also called him out on the track "Won On Won" on the "Soul In The Hole" soundtrack right before B.I.G.'s demise. In 1995, The Notorious B.I.G. released the track "Who Shot Ya." While it had been recorded before Tupac's '94 shooting and most fans interpreted it as a generic braggadocio/gangsta track like the aforementioned "New York, New York," 2Pac claimed that it was a subliminal mocking his '95 shooting. In early 1996, 2Pac released the infamous dis track "Hit 'Em Up," in which he claimed to have had sex with the Notorious B.I.G's wife Faith Evans, also rapping "This ain't no freestyle battle, y'all niggas getting killed" in one verse and "Who shot me but you punks didn't finish/Now you 'bout to feel the wrath of a menace, nigga I hit 'em up!" in the hook. Pac also added at the end whilst talking "My fo-fo makes sure all your kids don't grow" which may have been aimed at Jay-Z. "Hit 'Em Up" proved to be the biggest spark in the feud, and some have questioned whether Tupac's claims that he slept with Evans and that Bad Boy set him up were driven by publicity following his signing with Death Row. B.I.G. jokingly responded on Jay-Z's "Brooklyn's Finest," rapping "If Faith had twins she'd probably have two Pacs/Get it? Tu...pac's" in one verse. In March 1996, at the Soul Train Awards in Miami, the respective entourages of Bad Boy and Death Row met in the parking lot and guns were drawn. Although an armed staring contest was all this confrontation eventually amounted to, it was readily apparent to hip hop fans and artists that this rivalry was getting out of hand, and going far beyond the heated, but never violent, lyrical battles for superiority of the past. On September 7, 1996 2Pac was shot several times in Las Vegas, dying a few days later on Friday 13. On March 9, 1997, Notorious B.I.G. was shot and killed in California. Both murders remain unsolved, and numerous theories (some of them conspiracy theories) have sprung up. These include, most notoriously, that 2Pac faked his own death. Later in 1997, several rappers, including Bizzy Bone, Doug E. Fresh and Snoop Dogg met at the request of Louis Farrakhan, leader of the Nation of Islam and pledged to forgive any slights that may be related to the rivalry and deaths of 2Pac and Biggie. Prior to his death, 2Pac had also come into separate disputes with several other East Coast rappers. Mobb Deep proved his greatest adversaries. Some friends of 2Pac had been apparently snubbed by the group at one of their concerts, and when word of the incident reached a then-jailed Tupac he sent out a message to Mobb Deep threatening violence. Mobb Deep immediately responded with the diss track "Drop a Gem on 'Em" which, occurred after 2Pac's "Hit 'Em Up" single which mocked Mobb Deep. This is the only official diss aimed back at 2Pac by another artist in his lifetime. The song features the lines "got the whole of New York state, pointin' at your face.... your days are numbered to low digits". 2Pac then responded with a vicious diss track entitled "When We Ride On Our Enemies", by not only dissing them but also The Fugees. Nas also angered Tupac by appearing to mock 2Pac with the line "Fake thug, no love, you get the slug, CB4 gusto your luck? No..." in the track "The Message," although Nas denied that this line was ever aimed at Pac. Even Chino XL, an underground rapper from New Jersey with no eye on mainstream domination and no ties to Bad Boy Records, Nas or Mobb Deep, incurred 2pac's wrath on "Hit Em Up" by using him in a somewhat ambiguous simile "By this industry, I'm trying not to get fucked like 2Pac in jail" (ironically, the track to which this line belongs is a duet with proud West Coast representative Ras Kass). Chino soon responded with a freestyle on live radio, either ignored or not heard by Tupac. LL Cool J vs. CanibusAfter the large-scale beef between 2Pac and various East Coast artists, and the resulting deaths of 2Pac and Biggie, many MCs and fans began to feel paranoid that any further battles might escalate to the same level. The first high-profile battle since then became the late '90's Canibus/LL rivalry. The battle began when LL brought in Canibus, Method Man, DMX and Redman for the Phenomenon song "4,3,2,1" in 1997. Canibus contributed a verse, which included the line "L, is that a mic on your arm? Let me borrow that" (referring to the tattoo of a microphone LL did indeed have on his arm). LL wrote a response into his own verse, claiming he felt disrespected: "The symbol on my arm is off limits to challengers...You don't wanna borrow that, you wanna idolize", creating a small battle within the song. Before the song was released, Cool J asked Canibus to change the line. Canibus claims that LL also promised to remove his lines as well. LL denies this, claiming that he told Canibus that no one would know who he was talking about if Canibus' verse was changed (There is the phone conversation of the both of them circulating on the internet confirming that LL did indeed say this.) Nevertheless, Canibus complied, and the song was released. However, the original version began surfacing, and people started piecing together what had happened. Canibus began telling fans the full story, saying he was mad that Cool J hadn't removed his response. He went on to diss LL with the single "Second Round K.O.," featuring LL Cool J's one-time friend Mike Tyson cheering Canibus on in the background. LL's response was titled "The Ripper Strikes Back," where he attacks not only Canibus, but Mike Tyson, Canibus' producer Wyclef and the rest of The Fugees. LL then followed with another track titled "Back Where I Belong," where he accused Canibus of biting his rhymes and saying Bis was a Canadian claiming to be from New York City (Canibus is truly a Jamaican.) Canibus responded to both songs with the track "Rip the Jacker," a mix-tape song recorded over LL Cool J's "I'm Bad" instrumental. This would later spawn his alter-ego, an aggressive battle-rapper by the same name. Wyclef responded to LL's initial attacks in "The Ripper Strikes Back" with his own song "What's Clef Got to Do With It", which also included negative vocal comments by Naomi Campbell against LL. The song was retaliated by LL with the underground track "Rasta Impostor", where he mentions Wyclef, Canibus, Mike Tyson and Naomi Campbell. Wyclef and Cool J have ended their own feud; the main beef has since declined to subliminal potshots, with neither directly and openly dissing the other, and seems unlikely to heat back up. 2000s and current feudsNas vs. Jay-ZThe feud between these hip hop legends is widely considered the most captivating of recent times.[citation needed] Tension between the two supposedly dates as far back as 1996, when Nas refused to make a guest appearance on Jay-Z's debut album Reasonable Doubt. However, the relationship between the two rappers remained peaceful (Jay-Z even giving a shoutout to Nas in his album liner notes[1]), and the tension did not escalate to full-blown rivalry until after the death of the Notorious B.I.G. The position of best rapper in New York (also known as the King of New York) seemed vacant after the death of Biggie, and fans were eager to see who would take over. Beef involved many of the rappers, especially the Roc-a-Fella Records crew, who got on all-out war against Nas. However, the feud died down somewhat toward the end of 2002, with no real winner decided (arguments go on to this day in the hip hop community about who came out on top overall, with the results of a Hot 97 radio phone-in revealing a 58% - 42% split in favor of Nas), and both Nas & Jay-Z have since paid tribute to each other in interviews, likening the battle to a world title boxing match that pitched the best against the best, and pleased with the entertainment it provided fans. The rivalry also impacted their careers critically and commercially. The battle was significant in that it revived the trend of using ‘beefs’ as a source for publicity and promotion for hip hop artists, originally unpopular following the tragic deaths of 2Pac and Biggie, now prevalent within the hip hop community. In what may be perhaps a pivotal moment in hip hop history, the feud was formally ended in October 2005 at Jay-Z's I Declare War concert, where Nas made a special guest appearance and performed the hook to "Dead Presidents" and a few of his own tracks such as "NY State of Mind" and "Hate Me Now". In 2005 at another 105.1 concert Jay and Nas reunited on stage and performed a song together. In January 2006, Nas signed with Jay-Z's Def Jam, further emphasizing the truce and raising expectations for a possible collaboration. Nas and Jay-Z are now good friends and released a new single called "Black Republicans" from Hip-Hop is Dead, released December 2006. Benzino vs. EminemFor further information see Benzino article (more information at The Source article). Although it is not clear why Benzino, then co-owner of The Source Magazine, decided to air out his issues with multi-platinum rapper Eminem, he claims that Eminem's success was hurting Black and Latino artists. He started a campaign against the corporations that are controlling and supporting Eminem. Benzino stated that Eminem can talk about emotions, while Black rappers are forced to talk about materialistic things. One possible contributing factor for Eminem's concerns was Benzino's rating of his critically-acclaimed and 9x platinum sophomore album The Marshall Mathers LP. The Source gave him a 2-mic rating (4 mics following protests) for his critically-acclaimed album, while Benzino's Made Men received 4.5 mics. Eminem blasted the magazine on the track "Say What You Say" from his follow-up album The Eminem Show, rapping in the final verse, "Five mics in The Source ?, ain't holdin' my fucking breath/But I'll suffocate for the respect 'fore I breathe to collect a fucking check." Benzino countered with "Pull Ya Skirt Up" and "Die Another Day", the latter of which included the lyrics "You're the rap David Duke/The rap Hitler... I'm the rap Malcolm, the rap Martin". Benzino has explained in interviews that he fears Eminem's fame is the beginning of the end for the Black domination of hip hop; he has also linked Eminem with the consumerism of modern hip hop, and repeated his original statement over the differences in issues in the music Em produces. However, many observers noted that not only is Benzino bi-racial himself, but that Dave Mays, co-owner and founder of The Source, is white. Eminem responded quickly to Benzino's track with the songs "Nail In The Coffin" and "The Sauce", calling him an "83-year-old fake Pacino", and questioning the credibility of both Benzino as a rapper and The Source as a magazine. Most of the hip hop community stood behind Eminem (including most famously Russell Simmons), and many accused Benzino of criticizing and slandering hip hop's biggest star solely to both boost his unsuccessful career as a rapper and to boost the profile of The Source magazine, which unsurprisingly sided unequivocally with Benzino during the feud and ran a series of anti-Eminem and anti-Shady/Aftermath articles and features. The Source coverage no doubt aided Benzino's cause among many, but for many others it further ruined a magazine whose popularity was fading. Despite criticizing Eminem and his label-mates such as Dr Dre and 50 Cent within its pages, The Source continued to put these prolific record-selling artists on the cover of the magazine.The Source released details of two tapes of a young Eminem it had received, featuring the future star rapping about how black women are "only after your money" in romantic relationships (he apparently just suffered an acrimonious split from a black girlfriend) and in another song using the word "nigger". This caused considerable outcry among many rappers, though few said anything more damning than asking for a public apology. Eminem did in fact promptly and publicly apologize, and later elaborated on the incident in the song "Yellow Brick Road" from his Encore album.
The Source were forced to pay Eminem for defamation and copyright infringement, and lost major advertising as a result, most notably from major labels Virgin, Elektra, Interscope, Motown, and more recently Def Jam. It's noted that Benzino has recorded an album from each of the labels before they pulled out of The Source Magazine. The hip hop magazine XXL also became involved in the Eminem/Benzino/Source rivalry. XXL, formerly an enemy of Eminem, decided to join forces with Shady Records to discredit The Source. XXL, launched in 1997, has always been in competition with The Source for readership, and indeed was initially started by former Source employees. Dissing Benzino on "Nail In The Coffin", Eminem tells the Source co-owner "I don't need your little fucking magazine / I got XXL's number anyways...". With the entire Interscope label effectively involved in Eminem's feud with The Source, Interscope artists began to flock to XXL, who happily granted them increased coverage, which in turn boosted sales for the magazine. It has been said that Eminem won the battle and that it was obvious that Benzino had started the feud as nothing more than a publicity stunt to bolster his unsuccessful reputation in Hip-Hop. Dave Mays was recently fired from the staff of The Source, and Benzino has completely sold his shares of stock, claiming "I found the Source not speaking for the little guys (minorities) anymore,"[citation needed] still claiming that he was defending rap music as a racial crusade. (The magazine said on its front page, "Now 100% Benzino free"). The magazine's April 2006 issue said about Benzino and Mays' ouster that they currently are patching up many relationships damaged by the actions of Mays and Benzino, including that with Interscope Records. In late 2006, G-Unit member Lloyd Banks was voluntarily on the cover of the Source, making that a first for Interscope artists since the beef began. Shady/Aftermath/50 Cent/G Unit vs. Murder Inc./Ja RuleBefore even signing to Eminem's and Dr. Dre's labels, 50 Cent was engaged in a well-publicized dispute with rapper Ja Rule and his label Murder Inc. Records. The conflict's origin remains a mystery. However, many believe that Queens drug kingpin Kenneth "Supreme" McGrifth funded and provided the start-up money for Murder, Inc. Ja Rule and Supreme have had beef with 50 Cent and allegedly ordered his attempted murder in 2000. Their feud started when 50 Cent released the song "Ghetto Qu'ran", which dropped the names of McGrifth as well as several of his associates. This has led to 50 being labeled a snitch by many. Other accounts have ranged from an alleged robbery of Ja Rule's jewelry by a friend of 50's, to Ja Rule and Murder Inc. supposedly snubbing a young and star-struck 50 Cent at a video shoot, to 50 Cent's shooter being Ja Rule's bodyguard. It is possible that all or some of these things have led to this beef. Whatever the case, the hostility didn't reach public ears until 50 Cent released his fiery, but subliminal, diss track, "Life's On The Line." This led to two violent confrontations between the rappers. The first was a meeting where 50 Cent punched Ja, which caused a fight. The second confrontation occurred in a New York studio, where rapper Black Child, a member of Murder, Inc. stabbed 50 Cent. Black Child claimed that 50 cent was reaching for a gun during the fight. 50 claimed they turned off the light and that he left with 4 stitches. 50 also claimed he was unarmed, and that everybody knew it was Murder Inc before he knew. Regardless of the physical repercussions, 50 Cent continued to make the rivalry a cornerstone of his music career. G Unit released numerous mixtapes, insulting Ja Rule and Murder Inc, one contained funny Ja Rule Duet skits. Before the release of Get Rich Or Die Tryin', Murder, Inc. began a smear campaign against the rapper. A restraining order document began floating around the Internet stating that 50 Cent had filed an order of protection against label CEO, Irv Gotti and Black Child. This helped forge the belief that 50 Cent is a "snitch" or a police informant. Although 50 Cent dismissed the claims, the bad publicity continues to be a tool used among various rappers who engage in beef with his rap collective G-Unit. In fact, further investigation from New York lawyers found that the document could have been, and was most likely, signed by a judge without 50 Cent's consent or knowledge. The practice is common place in New York for victims of multiple attacks when their assaulter are released from jail. The rivalry reached a boiling point for Murder Inc., which had remained silent for the most part, when 50 Cent released his second album-length battle rap, entitled "Back Down." In the song 50, who was always known for his hold-no-tongue approach to battling, insulted, joked and dissed Ja Rule and his label into action. In response, Black Child, along with fellow Murder Inc. rapper Cadillac Tah, countered with their own mix tape disses. Ja Rule, however, remained quiet. 50 Cent continued his barrage, releasing the Tupac assisted "Realest Killaz" where he addressed Ja Rule's penchant for imitating the slain rapper. This prompted Ja Rule to finally respond with the songs "War is On," "Guess Who Shot Ya" and "Loose Change." This all culminated into Ja Rule releasing Blood in My Eye, which was, in effect, a 50 Cent diss album. Ja Rule eventually tried to squash the beef with 50 Cent by using Minister Louis Farrakhan in a televised interview. However, the attempt at peace lost credibility as the interview was scheduled a day before Blood In My Eye was released. As a result most fans, along with 50 Cent dismissed the interview as a blatant publicity stunt. Ja Rule also had a small rivalry with 50's label-mates Eminem, D12 ,Dr. Dre, and Obie Trice. Ja Rule insulted Eminem's ex-wife and daughter in a song and Eminem responded on a mix tape by DJ Green Lantern with a freestyle collaboration with 50 Cent and Busta Rhymes in a Tupac Parody titled "Hail Mary 2003". Although they exchanged heated words, most fans did not take it seriously in the shadow of 50 vs. Ja Rule. Eminem also dissed him with another underground song with G-unit entitled "Bump Heads" (and various other songs with out the G-Unit). Dr. Dre also fired back with Obie Trice and Eminem on track called Shit Hits The Fan, included in Cheers, which Dr. Dre finally fires back on a beef ten years after Ruthless vs. Death Row beef, claiming Ja Rule's "pussy, you're not Pac, I knew him / Pac was a real nigga, you're a just a fucking insult to him." Since then, 50 Cent's sophomore album, "The Massacre," sold millions, yet has been criticized for not being able to recapture the level of hype "Get Rich or Die Trying'" received. Ja Rule released "R.U.L.E" with the successful single, "New York," featuring Jadakiss and Fat Joe where Ja Rule took subliminal shots at 50. Interestingly enough, this single prompted 50 Cent to enter a feud with the two featured artists (See article on Piggy Bank for details). When Eminem called it quits in his 2004 rap "Like Toy Soldiers," Ja agreed, saying that he was exhausted with feuds and has recently released a greatest hits album entitled, "Exodus." Although it seemed as the feud was over, Ja Rule has returned to the beef with "21 Gunz" which denuted on the Murder Inc. Mix tape: MI:3 Friday, May 12, 2006[1]. It can be heard, along with some of his other new songs on his MySpace site[2]. On the mix tape Mo Money in da Bank Pt 4; Lloyd Banks and 50 Cent replied with "Return of Ja Fool". 50 Cent vs. The GameNot long before this feud began, The Game had been signed to G-Unit Records (while simultaneously signed to Dr. Dre's Aftermath Entertainment), and had subsequently achieved great success with his album The Documentary and the singles "How We Do" and "Hate It Or Love It", both of which featured 50 Cent. Summaries of other known rivalries (not necessarily in chronological order)
Clear is that when 50 got shot, trackmasters dropped him and wanted to replace him with Nas on the Jennifer Lopez remix, and 50 and Nas were friends back then. 50 thought he couldn't trust Nas because the remix was arranged by Irv Gotti, and Nas didn't even made him aware. 50 stated that he was cool with Nas working with Irv, but the fact Nas didn't tell him made 50 irritated. It is also clear that Nas has made disparaging comments about 50 Cent, long before Piggy Bank was released. At a free concert in Central Park, New York, Nas made a statement regarding the quality of 50 Cent's music. "This is that real New York shit, not that fake 50 Cent shit!" This is 50 Cent’s main reason for adding Nas to the song. However, Nas has said that he actually had respect for 50 Cent. 50 responded to this incident by attacking Nas in "Piggy Bank," inciting Nas to reply in his song "MC Burial (Don't Body Ya Self)". 50 Cent responded on a Tim Westwood Freestyle. As of Summer 2006, the beef has settled down with nothing coming from either camp. But nas Has released a dis on hip hop is dead called Carry on the tradition which is a diss to only 50 Cent.
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