Hot 97’s radio host, Ebro Darden sparked a debate last month after he claimed 50 Cent would ‘wash’ Lil Wayne in a Verzuz. His comments didn’t sit well with most hip hop fans, and naturally a debate followed with the likes of Young Guru joining the conversation.
While Verzuz co-founder Swizz Beatz said there’s no chance of the two ever going up against each other, Kevin Durant is keeping the discussion alive. In a recent episode of ETC’s Boardroom series, the Phoenix Suns forward detailed why he believes 50 Cent would have the upper hand in a hits battle against Lil Wayne.
“50 is… he’s one of the greatest,” he bagan. “That five- or six-year period for G-Unit, and 50 was incredible. It’s like one of the best runs of all time in hip-hop… A lot of people said that Wayne would just wash 50. And we definitely disagreed on that.”
He goes on to note 50’s insane run with G-Unit, which sparked massive creations such as the G-Unit sneakers, Tank-tops and video games.
“I wouldn’t say 50 is going to flat-out wash Wayne. I won’t say that out of respect for Wayne. But it’s not going to be a clear-cut win for Wayne against 50 Cent, and these records that he has from ’02 to, let’s say, ’07, and I know Wayne went on an insane run after that, but that five or six-year period for G-Unit and 50 was incredible. It was like one of the best runs of all time in hip-hop.”
He continued, “It was a movement that I think everybody sit back and watched 50 do his thing for that time period and fit in around that and the way 50 has transitioned from being an artist to what he’s doing now a lot of people may forget about that run that he went on and a lot of people also think that it’s only ‘Get Rich or Die Tryin.’
“And his catalog is way deeper than that with hits … and he’s still a monster. And he’s had a 20-year run based off of what he created back then. It has so many avenues that he built off of that run. And he had so many pivots in his career.”
As mentioned above, conversations of a hypothetical verzuz between 50 Cent and Lil Wayne were rife last month after Ebro Darden claimed 50 would annihilate Wayne in a song-for-song battle.
‘What Jadakiss did to Dipset…Is what 50 will do to Wayne… @yourboyeddie wasn’t outside in the mid-2000s,’ Ebro tweeted in response to a clip from Rap Life Review co-host Eddie Francis vehemently disagreeing with him.
“I seen that and I was like, ‘What?!’ In what world?’” Francis said in the clip above. “I’m not even here to say 50 could beat Lil Wayne, but to say that 50 would wash Lil Wayne? In no dimension, in no world … just no! That would not happen.”
While Francis’ co-host Lowkey wasn’t entirely in agreement with Ebro, he maintained Wayne would have to make sure his song sequence was in top form.
“I’ma say something and I’ma stand on it: Wayne don’t have a Get Rich or Die Tryin,‘” Low said. “We’re talking about a Verzuz battle, right? We’re not talking about what we like. We’re not talking about what we grew up on. We’re not talking about what we listen to when we’re in the kitchen cooking or driving down whatever highway in L.A. that you drive down. We’re talking about in a crowd. We’re talking about 50 Cent.
This man is a mainstream monster; Wayne is a cultural mainstream monster. But when we talk about these hits? When we talk about these bodies of work? When we talk about these smashes?” He continued, “I ain’t saying 50’s gonna wash Wayne, but if Wayne is not sequenced right and is not positioned correctly, that could be a very long fucking night for Dwayne Carter.”
Swizz Beatz weighed in on the debate and ruled out the possibility of it happening.
“Me personally, I wouldn’t even do 50 vs. Wayne. They’re two different dynamics and two different artists,” Swizz Beatz said while at a screening event in Los Angeles for the last episode of the “Godfather of Harlem.” Although, unlike 50, Swizzy is not against seeing the G-Unit and Young Money head honchos duke it out with other artists.
“I would do a different Verzuz for both of them, but we’ll see, as we have a lot of things lined up for Verzuz,” added the nine-time Grammy nominee. “Hopefully, they are involved,” he teased about the impending return of the popular concert/battle event. “While I can’t give up who I would choose to go against them, just wait and see.”
