50 Cent Opens Up About His Beef With Oprah
Written by SOURCE on May 5, 2020
50 Cent has had longstanding feuds with several rappers. Yet, not all of his issues are confined to the world of hip-hop. During an interview with The Guardian, Fif explained why he was at odd with Oprah Winfrey.
During his rise to stardom, 50 Cent wanted to solidify himself as a success by making an appearance on Oprah. Not only would this mean a lot for an ex-drug dealer from Jamaica, Queens, but it would’ve also proved to his grandmother—who was a huge Oprah fan—that he’s doing something productive with his life. But when the idea was pitched to Oprah, she made it clear that she wasn’t interested in what 50 Cent had to offer.
“She was completely against everything that was in my music,” 50 said. “So she ain’t never going to have me on that show. I’m never going to reach that platform, which is confirmation of you being a huge success. So I just said: OK, if we can’t be friends, then at least let’s be enemies.”
After realizing Oprah wouldn’t invite him, 50 Cent went full 50 on the talk show host. The rapper berated her fanbase and even named one of his dogs “Oprah.” Eventually, the two settled their differences and were able to become friends. Yet, 50 didn’t concede to the notion of his lyrics being overly violent and misogynistic.
“Well, no,” 50 said when asked if he ever agreed with Oprah’s views. “Did you hear what I said? They are misogynistic, but the world is not under the same circumstances. Are you going to tell a painter what to paint? I’m an artist. Why am I limited to what you feel should be said? In film and television, they will show art imitates life. Are you not aware of those situations taking place?”
50 then went on to explain that Oprah never tried to look at things from his perspective which resulted in him taking offense and refusing to look from her vantage point.
“The truth is, all things come from your experience,” he continued. “Like, I got shot nine times and I wrote music about it. Everyone writes something that can connect in a big way based on a painful moment, so you’re saying we’re not supposed to articulate or write it the way we experienced?”
50 Cent also touched on his beef with Oprah in his new book Hustle Harder, Hustle Smarter. In the book that was released in late April, Fif uses situations—like his rift with Oprah—to explain how he outsmarted his environment to become the person he is today.
