Five Reasons Before I Self Destruct Flopped

Posted 11/26/2009 at 12:19 PM by VIBE  |  comment/s  |  Category: Music

Still scratching your heads over 50 Cent's underwhelming sales figures for Before I Self Destruct? We had a hunch all along

The numbers are in and they are not pretty. 50 Cent's much-delayed and hyped Before I Self Destruct sold a shocking 159,700 copies, a stunning figure from a man who once moved 1.15 million albums in one week (2005's The Massacre). But while no one should ever bet against 50 for a future return to the top of the rap food chain (the best-selling author, clothing peddler, cologne and Vitamin Water-shilling pop culture icon didn't make close to $400 million during his career just on sheer dumb luck), VIBE saw it coming. Read on. --Keith Murphy


① Because John Lennon Put Us On
The "smart Beatle" foreshadowed things to come when he wrote "Instant karma's gonna get you / Gonna knock you right in the head." Okay, so maybe 50 never heard the stinging 1970 slap of sobriety that is "Instant Karma!" But to paraphrase Tupac, it's the realest shit Lennon ever wrote. The Queens, NY rap behemoth has sold over 30 million albums worldwide since 2003's Get Rich Or Die Tryin' and was all too happy to clown Fat Joe, Jadakiss, and Rick Ross for going triple plastic. And yeah, Officer Ricky may be an easy target, but how's this for irony--the Bawse's Deeper Than Rap outsold Fiddy's first-week sales by about 1,000 units and some change without the help of an iTunes hook-up (competing labels balked at the two weeks worth of online sales that were strangely added on to 50 Cent's Before I Self Destruct's first week sales). Damn, homie.


② Beef Was Over-Cooked
50's mastery of utilizing confrontation to fuel SoundScan numbers throughout his career has been nothing short of brilliant. But there's a thin line between being the lovable bad guy and a straight up bully of Gouch proportions. The lovable bad guy ethers Ja Rule's annoying career with a devastating sense of humor, dropping truth-soaked cracks like, "You sing for hoes and sound like the cookie monster." The Gouch films a video posing with rival Rick Ross' baby mother and children. Kinda lame.



③ 50 Makes Jay-Z Come Off Like... Nas
You know you are a certifiable asshole when you can make a rap mogul with the gall to name himself after God (Jay Hova) look like hip-hop's favorite underdog Nasir Jones. We don't know what's worse, the fact that 50's string of transparent disses aimed at Jay-Z have been met with smirking, pat-on-the-head silence (a tactic also used by Lil Wayne) or his teaming up with former disgruntled Roc-A-Fella soldier Beanie Sigel in a surprisingly tepid attempt to take down the Jigga man--who is currently enjoying his job title as the Biggest Rapper On the Planet.



④ Curtis Was All The Proof We Needed
Truth be told, 2007's relentlessly infectious "I Get Money" was 50's biggest and best single in some years. But when you depend on disingenuous collaborations to help your commercial bottom line (Akon, Justin Timberlake, the Pussycat Dolls' Nicole Scherzinger, Robin Thicke and Mary J. Blige), you end up with the kind of pandering sing-songy release that made 50's former nemesis Ja Rule such an omnipresent punchline. It makes you wonder if Curtis would have sold it's first-week tally of 691,000 if not for his savvy, manufactured, and at times baiting beef with Kanye West, whose Graduation sold nearly one million units.



⑤ He's A Better Showman Than A Rapper
With all respect to Mo'Nique, George Lopez, and Wanda Sykes, Curtis Jackson should have his own talk show. Seriously, the man gives some of the most hilarious, oh-shit-he-really-didn't-say-that interviews since Christopher Walken. We're still waiting for 50 to expand his laugh-inducing Pimpin' Curly webisodes to the big screen in the mold of Borat. Hey, it can happen.


Comments

  • bhikku
    5 Reasons BISD's Sales Don't Matter

    1. 50 still makes hip-hop interesting in a way that most rappers can't. There's maybe 10 rappers that anyone pays attention to, and 50's one of them. Why can't sites like this, which clearly have some axe to grind with Curtis, just ignore him? Because he's one of the main drivers of the culture.

    2. No one sells records anymore. Slaughterhouse anyone?

    3. BISD is a dope record. Stretch, Death to My Enemies, and Strong Enough are some of the hood-est records since GRODT's Heat. Rather than delighting in 50's fictitious misery, isn't it better to just thank the man for putting out some street records?

    4. Kanye, Lil Wayne, and Jay-Z have all perfected the art of ignoring 50. You write about him, you drive interest in him, you give him leverage for better business deals, you make him richer. He's like the Hulk, the hate only makes him stronger.

    5. Whether for his own manipulative agenda or not, the dude has done more for East Coast rappers on the low than anyone else in NY. Ask Fab, ask Maino, ask Cory Gunz, ask Freeway, ask Saigon, ask LL Cool J. The Thisis50 fest alone keeps him relevant in the culture. You think these numbers are going to stop 50? You're kidding yourself.
  • demetairsbell
    This was some funny ish! 50 doesn't have to sell records anymore, he broke the rap game until it said out of order. Music fans of today are so fickle, the same stuff that cats love you for they end up hating you for. What has changed about his music? But now that he has $400 plus in the bank he's no longer a good rapper? What's wrong with us? We don't know what we want from our entertainers. 50 I'm happy you made it out of the rat race in the jungle! Just try to pull a few more of us out if you can.
  • larmarmaddox
    Nah,,,u have it wrong demetairsbell.....The question isn't what changed about 50's music.....It's about the act itself getting tired....Like the piece says, there's only so much of 50's "bully" persona the public can take....And 50 has to understand this....When part of being an entertainer is threatening a rival's mother by visiting her work place (50 getting at DJ Khaild's mother in such a ignorant way was despicable; and that's just one of many instances of 50 using beef to get attention) then something is wrong......

    Bottom line...50 will be OK...He has other business ventures that he can continue...He made his money...But on the music tip, he has to learn how to show some humility....And that part of the game may be over....
  • demetairsbell
    My ?uestion remains what has changed about his music?  The "disrespectful" tactics that he's showing now he's always shown so what's the problem now? That same behavior sold 10 million copies of "Get Rich Or Die Tryin" did it not?  50 doesn't need the rap game anymore.  He should focus on his other endeavors and make an album every now and then if the desire still burns to make music sort of like Will Smith and LL Cool J did.  Those are 2 rappers whose formula for hit making never changed over the duration of their rap careers and their fan base didn't abort them.  That's my only point, the buyers of music these days  blow with the wind that's why you have to (and I hate to use this cheap cliche) "ball til you fall" because music buyers of today only like you if you're new.  Once the newness wears off, they're done with you.  Very few rappers were able to maintain a fanbase(2Pac, Biggie, and Jay Z immediately come to mind).  I love the debate
    though, thanks for responding, Peace, with 2 fingers.
  • larmarmaddox
    My ?uestion remains what has changed about his music?


    Answer: besides this album release, 50's subsequent studio albums (and I'm including his G Unit efforts) after the Massacre have pretty much sucked....And even the Massacre, which had some decent stuff on it contained possibly the worst rap single of this decade.."Candy Shop.."...You are asking me what changed about his music?....He basically became Ja Rule 2.0....


    The "disrespectful" tactics that he's showing now he's always shown so what's the problem now?

    Answer: People finally got sick of it....And on the real, I think the list said it best....It was cool when he was doing it to Ja Rule because people were getting sick of that sing-songy thug shit dude was trying to pull......And people even gave 50 a pass when he was going at Jada and Fat Joe because for the most part, 50 stuck to the lyrics in attacking those dudes (Although Jada killed him...)...But really, people got tired of 50 by the time Curtis was released...Don't be fooled by that album's number...His "beef" with Kanye had a lot to do with his pushing first week numbers...Because that album had no life after that first week..It sunk like a stone...

    That same behavior sold 10 million copies of "Get Rich Or Die Tryin" did it not?

    Answer: .Actually it wasn't...Unless 50 was stalking Jada's or Fat Joe's mother....see the above comment,,,


    50 doesn't need the rap game anymore.

    Answer: Bravo...Great excuse.....But I guess the rap game doesn't need 50 anymore, right?


    He should focus on his other endeavors and make an album every now and then if the desire still burns to make music sort of like Will Smith and LL Cool J did.

    Answer: Un huh...


    Those are 2 rappers whose formula for hit making never changed over the duration of their rap careers and their fan base didn't abort them.

    Answer: Again...Uh huh...


    That's my only point, the buyers of music these days blow with the wind that's why you have to (and I hate to use this cheap cliche) "ball til you fall" because music buyers of today only like you if you're new.

    Answer: You are making some sense my friend...The problem is If any other rapper were to give that same reasonable excuse to 50 a year ago for their low first week sales, he would laugh at their face and call them a bum....

    Once the newness wears off, they're done with you. Very few rappers were able to maintain a fanbase(2Pac, Biggie, and Jay Z immediately come to mind). I love the debate
    though, thanks for responding, Peace, with 2 fingers.

    Answer: Hey u seem cool....So here's some advice...Understand that most folks are joking on 50 because of this: It has little to do with record sales....It's human nature homie....There's only so many times people can root for the "bad guy"....50 went to the well too many times...And it finally caught up with him....There was a reason he kept pushing this album back...It has nothing to do with the quality of music....It has everything to do with the public just saying "enough"...

    Just as the piece says, 50 will be OK....He has other business ventures...But he will never go down as one of hip hop's true greats...And I think that stings him a little...Because in the end Pac, Ice Cube, Scarface, Nas, Jay-Z, MC Lyte, Rakim, Snoop, Eminem, KRS-One, Biggie, Slick Rick,Lauryn Hill, Big Daddy Kane, Big Pun, OutKast, Tribe, De La and the like are not named among the best to ever do it because of the sizes of their bank accounts...

    I think 50 is finally understanding that....
  • ashley101
    when someone raps about street life and has 400 mili in the bank it just doesnt hit as hard.
  • bamaswag
    fuck 50cent he needed this shit 2 happen for he could see he need 2 pull hisself together.Gucci Mane will sell more n da first week then shitycent.
  • mosthated
    50 sold 167,700 not what you guys said,,,talk about everybodys fail lp not just 50,,he was putting out a street lp thats why he failed 1st week, but i bet you he will move more units than fab,jada,and ricky,,,,keep it real!!! cause all 3 of them had radio and failed,,50 is a great rapper he comes from the best,,lets talk about how em is better than jay z,and sold more 1st week???? no you dont want to do that!!! or how 50 last lp did 5 mill world wide ,,,speak the truth or close down this site
  • top2bottom
    Did u listen to Jay's album? 10 number 1 albums. It should be 11 now. Longevity. Speak on that. Anyone can be hot for a year or two. Jay's been hott for over a decade.
  • I think 50's struggling to be hot because he thinks we like the raw gritty street songs but I think 50's best image is a street sound but with some sort of musical appeal. His most successful songs were "catchy". They had hooks and lines you wanted to repeat and beats you could dance, bob, or bounce to. Now his songs sound like he's dressed in all black riding around about to do a drive-by. He forgot that he's in the entertainment business.
  • incilin
    Wowwww son, I wrote the exact same type of post. Although my reasons where totally different. But dam, I even had the same lead in line.
  • smh....poor 50...
  • letsplayfair
    smh this article fail the 3 highest first week hiphop album of the year but its still a flop you mofo need too stop it how come i didnt see a article bout triple c or jadkiss sain the same or fabulous,rae n the other 15 hip hop album that drop this year if u bought the shit from the store ofr bottleger and u like the shit its all good no need for all the sale shit

    yall wonder why hip hop is dying caue mofo like yall i wonder yall gonna same some bout birdman album n that young money album
  • bewitness
    The article is about 50 for two reasons 1. we expect 50 to put up good numbers when it comes to album sales 2. 50 is the first one to always judge someone by how well their album sold. Do you remember 50 cent staging a funeral for Fat Joe's career when his last album flopped? That's why you never see these same type of article for an artist like Nas who comes out with solid albums but never puts a lot of stock into how well an album sales as a determining factor of the quality of his work. You can't be upset with websites running articles like this when 50 choose to be judged and to judge others by the same factors. 50 has chose to alienate those who could help keep him relevant ie Kanye West, Lil Wayne, Drake, Jay-z, Nas and the list goes on. When you have Lil Wayne saying Jay-z is his favorite rapper when you have Drake giving Jay so much respect it makes younger listeners who may not have a deep appreciation for Jay take notice to who he is. 50 may have "Dame Dashed" the game...he had his run but he may have pissed off so many people in doing so that he is now in a position where he is by himself and Believe me Banks, Yayo and Whoo Kid aren't going to help him get out of it
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