Whether sales are through the roof or below average, one thing that remains constant at all times with G-Unit is drama. Minus the infamous awards show melee, Young Buck usually plays it cool, staying below the gossip radar.
Now with recent allegations of members of the crew assaulting a minor, unsanctioned truces with enemies, and spicy hotel shootouts, the Cashville wildcard sits a top the rap headlines right where his boss, 50 Cent proudly held for so long. AllHipHop’s Streets is Talking interview series gets the story behind the story, beginning with one of 2007’s stars.
AllHipHop.com: So let’s bring it back to when you first got down with G-Unit. What was your first impression of 50 when you met dude?
Young Buck: The same impression I got right now, [he’s] a real n***a. The s**t in life that you go through makes you who you are; he’s been through a lot of s**t and it’s reflected through his swagger. You know [that] I have always respected 50 as an individual who came from what I came from, and made it out. He put me in the position to win.
AllHipHop.com: The G-Unit Beg For Mercy album came out while Yayo was serving his bid. Did you ever feel like they just let you slide in the crew for that album because Yayo got booked? Did you ever feel it wasn’t genuine?
Young Buck: Nah, I never felt like that. A lot of the world felt like that. My career came right around Tony Yayo’s incarceration. So in reality, I have been around 50 and Yayo way before Yayo’s incarceration came. The world never knew that. When I was on stage, people had me mixed up with Yayo. N***as would be like, “Yayo!” and I would be like “Nah, n***a, it’s Buck!” I dealt with all that. At the end of the day, my talent established Young Buck.
AllHipHop.com: What was it like when Yayo got home? Did he show any hate on you?
Young Buck: Nah, me and Yayo were good from the beginning, before he had his incarceration. In fact, Yayo was one of the first muthaf**kers telling 50, “Yo, you better make that things happen for Buck.” My s**t got sped up because of Yayo.
AllHipHop.com: You were rocking 50’s G-Unit spinner at the time, you lent it to your boy D-Tay and he got stuck for the chain in Chicago. There were some rumblings that 50 made you distance yourself from D-Tay ever since then.
Young Buck: Nah, not at all. D-Tay signed to my label [Ca$hville Records]; he's on my tour bus right now. That’s been my homeboy before rap. D-Tay is not a muthaf**ker that just came around me. He’s been put in situations where my life was on the line and he showed up and protected my life in real n***a situations. His situation was just one incident, something that happened. I have never experienced anything being taken from me. My chain got returned to me in a matter of a week. So shout out to Chicago, they really respected Young Buck.
AllHipHop.com: Did that incident put you in an awkward situation with 50?
Young Buck: That didn’t put me in no awkward position with 50, because I never have had anything taken from me, but I felt f**ked up about going to 50 and letting know about the situation that happened. The chain got taken, but at the end of the day, material s**t don’t really matter to 50. The fact of why it went down and how it went down is what means the most. And when the situation went down how it went down, I put the weight of the problem on him [D-Tay]. You know there’s certain rules just being from the streets that you can’t do. Like walking around other n***as’ surroundings with a gang of ice like that and not really knowing who’s with you and s**t, don’t make you in a good position. I really weighed it out on both ends, but at the end of the day, I had nothing taken from me. So I put forth a real street effort on getting it back and whenever you're a real n***a, you get real results for anything you do, and my s**t came back.
AllHipHop.com: Okay around, this time Game joins G-Unit, what your first impression of dude?
Young Buck: Well honestly, I never met Game before I spoke on Game, so that’s a lesson I learned as handling myself with individuals for the future. I mean Game was brought to my knowledge through 50 and he was like “Dre got an artist he’s excited about,” and wanted 50 to work on his project. 50 was saying he was probably going to make him a part of what we had going, which is G-Unit - like it would pop a little bit quicker if 50 got behind it. So just on that strength, and all the momentum we had, I showed some love without meeting Game. I threw out that line, “You ain’t a Crip like Snoop, you ain’t a Blood like Game.” I never even met Game when I said that.
AllHipHop.com: So when you met Game face to face did you feel you spoke too soon?
Young Buck: I mean everything seemed real, like any other n***a. He seemed cool, so you couldn’t really get what you see right now. None of that stuff Game portrays right now, there wasn’t really none of that when he first came to G-Unit. He never carried that swagger of being this bad ass Blood or no s**t like that. He was just a n***a who claimed his affiliation. You never really seen him throwing up any gang signs and no s**t like that, but he kept his rag on. So out of my respect for California, a lot of people can’t just wear that red or blue rag, so just off of that and just seeing him keep swanging it like he was, that pretty much solidified to me that homeboy was a Blood. And it wasn’t a whole lot of respect from the streets, it was a lot of questions, really. Like “Why you say that about Game? This n***a ain’t no Blood.”
AllHipHop.com: So there weren’t people in Compton cosigning him?
Young Buck: Nah, there weren’t a lot of n***as cosigning him during time of me speaking on him.
AllHipHop.com: What really went down from your point of view when Game was kicked out of the Unit? How did you feel about how everything went down?
Young Buck: Honestly, I don’t know his full situation on what and how it went down. I just know his situation was voiced from a media standpoint. Whatever problems he had, he voiced them through radio and just that alone right there, I think was the beginning of the problem. Whatever problem dealing with 50 [he had], you could have had the conversation that you had on radio with 50. So I think his plans were already made before he got in the middle of that and pushing for his own thing and moving towards Black Wallstreet.
But even that was stolen from JT The Bigga Figga. The whole name Black Wall Street, that’s been something of JT’s for years. I’m 26 years old, I’ve recorded records with JT back when I was 16, 17 and that was his company's name. I think that was some cold-hearted s**t. At the end of the day, it’s a lot of different things that reflect Game that real street n***as don’t do. Not even to get the money, there’s certain moves you can’t justify at the end. A street n***a’s going to make the right moves to get his bread so he’ll leave cool in the streets, once he gets to the money.
AllHipHop.com: Like blood money?
Young Buck: Straight up.
AllHipHop.com: Let’s fast forward a little, you were attending the Vibe Awards where they were honoring Dr. Dre. Allegedly Suge Knight paid someone to attack Dre causing a brawl were you poked someone up. Did you ever fear on retaliation from Suge after that incident?
Young Buck: Man, at this point, the thought of that doesn’t really matter. The thought is always in your mind that someone may approach me, with that on his mind, just in general.
This is the first time I even heard it was one of Suge’s homies. There’s a lot of different things coming from you that are just different from what I’ve heard. At the end of the day, Suge knows me and how I get down, period. In a situation like that, I’ll just sum it up and tell you: put a n***a like me in anywhere where I feel like my life or my loved ones are in danger, and I’ll do whatever it takes to protect them.
AllHipHop.com: What were Dre’s feelings in regards to what you did to the dude?
Young Buck: Dre was pretty much focused on his money, he don’t really give a f**k about none of this s**t. At the end of the day, I don’t think he appreciated what went down. He was being presented an award and his wife was there. So I think Dre been through realer things in his life, so it was nothing that affected Dre. It was a brush off the shoulder thing for him.
AllHipHop.com: Around that time everyone is questioning 50’s street credibility. A lot of people were calling him a snitch. Do you think what he did with that song “Ghetto Quaran” was a form of dry snitching? He was putting all these OG’s from Queens business on wax without any consent.
Young Buck: I don’t classify it as dry-snitching, especially [when these issues were] already known in the city. I just think it’s just pretty much 50 bringing those situations to light, using a talent that was God-given, which is rap. I mean, if it was situations that n***as didn’t know about it and a n***a talk on, then that’s what you consider dry-snitching, but the situations he spoke on are New York legendry street s**t. So n***as getting this dry-snitching s**t all twisted up. 50’s situation is already wrote, my n***a.
AllHipHop.com: So the second round of the G-Unit artist albums come around. Mobb and Banks didn’t sell as much as everyone expected. How was the vibe then knowing you were coming up next?
Young Buck: Man, I never really thought about a record sale in my life, so I’m not going to start to now because that’s how everyone in the media looks at the game. I’ve always been in this music for the classic material that’s going to live on for years. If you follow Young Buck, my first album Straight Out Of Cashville was a classic, and this one, Buck The World is getting considered pretty much as another one.
If you’re smart enough to budget your albums and stay under that one word that all of these rappers forget about which is “recoup,”…you’ll be able to succeed through any type of record sales that you may have. I’m the type of n***a that recouped from the first project where I didn’t owe Interscope or G-Unit a dime. So going into this project, I was fresh not owing nobody nothing. It’s about the knowledge the artist has to feel in order that I feel. It’s about making classic material period, the whole low record sales are due to n***as making un-classic material. If you don’t make an album that’s worth someone buying your CD for 15 dollars, then that’s on you.
My first week was 140,000, somewhere around there. It was enough to make me have the number one rap album in the country. I came out amongst MIMS, and Lil’ Flip and all these other dudes. Speaking of MIMS, he had 14,000 spins at radio and I had 1,400 and I was able to come out and double his sales. From his sales to mine, I doubled up on MIMS, I should say. So I know in this industry, it ain’t about how many spins you got at radio or all that s**t; it’s about delivering classic material. So holla at me six months later when I’m at a million sold, n***a. [Laughs]
AllHipHop.com: How did you come out about speaking to Game to dead the beef?
Young Buck: I was on a promotional tour for radio. I was making sure that all my records get played around, being I got a hit record “Get Buck.” Once I got to L.A., the politics of the music had people kind of f**ked up due to the drama [from] G-Unit and Game. My spins wasn’t powerful out there, so I had go to see why. I had number one spins everywhere else, but in L.A., Felli Fel was pretty much explaining to me how a lot of DJs were looking at it and he asked me if I would be up to speaking to Game on the phone. If that's what it takes to get some understanding to make sure my music can be played everywhere, then let's do it. That’s pretty much what it was.
It was scheduled when dude was supposed to come up to the station and sit down and be face-to-face, but they didn’t want it to go down like that. So we did it over the phone. Yo, when I spoke to Game, I’m going to be real, it wasn’t no f**ked up conversation, [there was] no disrespect from his end or my end. Honestly, he was speaking on suggestions of what it would be like if we were to rock on tour together, and how much would we be making and all this good stuff. And at this point, he just wanted to make records and he was telling me some of the reasons why he had said some of things towards me - because he had a record coming out. He didn’t really have reasons to diss 50, but he wanted to make sure his album could come out, just a lot of different things. We left the conversation on a note where you do you, without mentioning us and we do us, without mentioning you.
But s**t, bro, not even a couple of days later, he was right back to dissing a n***a, doing mixtape records, which for me, was a slap in the face. It was like, “Oh s**t, man, I just had this conversation [with] you and made an effort at least not do nothing because the beef ain’t with me, it started my homeboy 50, who I’m down with to the end.” And I just made an effort to try to get an understanding out of the s**t and [he] agreed with it, [so to] then going against it, [just] shows the bi-polar in him. The world starts to understand the G-Unit aren’t so much the aggressors in the situation. I think he feels that’s the way to keep [The Doctor’s Advocate] alive. We were just talking about selling a record; I’ve never been a n***a to fall in that position. [The Game] thinks he can go out there and diss a female like Vida Guerra and gain some attention, when in reality, a real n***a is looking [at it] like, “Nah, what are you doing? A female that can’t rap or got nothing do with anything at that!”
AllHipHop.com: You actually went to 50 to dead the beef with Game?
Young Buck: In the beginning, I was the first one to ever speak to 50 about the whole the s**t. Back then, when the situation first started, I was dealing with hearing Game’s whole conversation with Spider Loc off the phone, and Spider was like, “Listen and put the phone on speaker.” I would hear Game saying, “I’m ready to wave the white towel before s**t get crazy, I’m through with this s**t.” So I would hear enough coming from Game’s mouth on Spider Loc’s phone and that I went to 50 and told him this dude didn’t want any problems. I told him Game wanted to wave the white towel, and you know what 50 told me, bro?
AllHipHop.com: Go ahead.
Young Buck: He looked me right in my eye and said, “I’m not f**king with it.” I was looking at 50 the first time like, “Damn bro, this n***a talking about waving the white towel, so why you ain’t f**king with it, maybe you tripping a little bit?” 50 said, “I’ll give him a week before he's on the radio doing something else.” It wasn’t even two days later, your man Game was on the radio back at it already.
AllHipHop.com: Do you think Game was leaning on DJs out in the West Coast so they wouldn’t play your record?
Young Buck: I don’t think Game got enough power to make the West Coast just stop any G-Unit record. I think the fact of them not knowing how the situation is makes them hesitant going into a situation where they have to live out there. It’s like you coming into my city and you a DJ from Cashville supporting everything that Game is doing knowing how real s**t is. I just wanted the DJs to see for themselves that it’s not us and I think they see that now, by him showing his bi-polar side. He didn’t only burn me by going back two days later dissing me after our conversation on the phone, I think he burned n***as like Felli Fel and all the DJs that help that situation [too].
AllHipHop.com: What about that interview where 50 said he puts you in the same vein as a Game after you made up with his enemies.
Young Buck: That came from two different conversations, bro. 50 spoke and said what he said on the radio pretty much on Yayo putting his hands on the kid. I just did an interview on the radio and a lot of people took it as I was saying Yayo was guilty. I said I don’t agree with no man putting his hands on a kid, and at the time, there was so much tension with Yayo putting his hands on a child. I know that Yayo had no involvement on putting his hands on that man’s son.
So 50 came back and pretty much said what [he] had to say, he put a little bit on it, but respect it because that’s my boss. I could never walk away or disconnect that I help create as far as G-Unit. So for me, bro, I’m going to make it real clear for you before we get into all of that s**t. The minute you see me away from G-Unit will be death or jail, and God forbid them both. This is something more than music for Buck. I put my life on the line for this s**t, so it ain’t a walk away thing. 50, Yayo, Banks, Buck will be together until this muthaf**ker blows up. So that pretty much ice-waters everything you may have to say.
AllHipHop.com: Did you hear back from Yayo since the incident?
Young Buck: Yeah, we done spoke and now we speaking a little bit closer now. Because I think that’s what created a lot of the s**t, like our communication got off a little bit. We all got our own s**t going on we don’t get to communicate like we always done. Situations like that only make you closer especially when you're not the one involved in it and actions is being taken out on you. And you looking at s**t like, “Hold up, my n***a.”
AllHipHop.com: Did Sha leaving G-Unit records have anything to do with all that’s been happening?
Young Buck: Sha Money didn’t get fired from G-Unit, Sha Money left behind 50 and Sha choosing to make his move to where it’s at. Sha thinks he is more hands on being out in the field and working with me. Sha Money is my manager, rather than being at the office, being president of a company. Management is where he enjoys it more, that’s the direction 50 allowed for Sha Money to take. It ain’t no beef between Sha and 50, none of that s**t.
AllHipHop.com: You just put that “Teach Them About Playing” featuring C-Bo. In the first verse, it seems like you going in hard at 50 but then you say “You know I die for this G Unit s**t, so what you saying 50?”
Young Buck: I’m just letting the world know and I’m letting 50 know where my heart is invested at, and I’ll die for this s**t. I was pretty much asking 50 what you want me to do, what’s the direction? Like tell me when to go, not in the sense of what you are saying. Because when I punch the button, homeboy…
AllHipHop.com: Did 50 hear the record?
Young Buck: Yeah, he enjoyed the record.
AllHipHop.com: You had a brief stint at Cash Money Records when you were riding with Juvenile. I remember last year you commented on the infamous Lil’ Wayne and Baby incident. Can you elaborate?
Young Buck: I never seen Juvenile or B.G. or even Turk push that line of kissing, I’ve only seen Wayne. Yeah, I seen Wayne personally do it a few times. I seen him do it from the perspective of being on 106th and Park, when they did it on the couch and one time on the tour bus. The first time I ever seen that s**t, they did it on the bus when I was traveling amongst them. Honestly, I’m not going to sit here and lie to you, it f**ked me up, bro! Like it was a game going on or something between them. The n***a was like, “Give me a kiss, n***a,” and I was like, “What the f**k?”
[After that], I went on the other bus - the shark bus with all the goons. I was a broke n***a, so I stayed in my atmosphere at the time, you feel me? [Laughs] Wayne stayed on Baby’s bus. But at the end of the day, to each his own, in a situation like that, a real n***a like me, I ain’t with it. I spoke on it to say what it is, but there’s no beef between me and Lil’ Wayne, I have no problems with him. I actually just spoke with Lil’ Wayne about doing the remix to my “Get Buck” record and he agreed to [do it].
AllHipHop.com: Have you spoken to Baby?
Young Buck: I haven’t spoken to Baby at all. Even when I spoke to Wayne, I told him let Baby know I said what up and he said he would.
AllHipHop.com: What was like meeting up with Jadakiss?
Young Buck: At the end of the day, it was nothing f**ked up about it. We paid tribute to Bob Marley and put a couple up in the air, and kept it moving. It is what it is, it wasn’t no disrespectful s**t.
AllHiphop.com: So you just bumped into him at the V.I.P.?
Young Buck: I don’t want to say actually whose room he was at, because that would get that NBA player in trouble since we were all smoking and s**t. ‘Kiss was in that room and I had knowledge he was over there so I swung through.
AllHipHop.com: So when you walked in the door, was it tense?
Young Buck: It wasn’t tense, it was just a quiet moment though. [Laughs]
AllHipHop.com: You could hear a pin drop?
Young Buck: Yeah definitely a quiet moment where you can hear a pin drop and everything went back to what it was. It wasn’t any extra s**t. I just sat in front of him and pretty much asked him how he was looking at it. He said he wasn’t tripping and just wanted to get to the money.
http://www.chroniccentral.net/overfiend/index.php
Now with recent allegations of members of the crew assaulting a minor, unsanctioned truces with enemies, and spicy hotel shootouts, the Cashville wildcard sits a top the rap headlines right where his boss, 50 Cent proudly held for so long. AllHipHop’s Streets is Talking interview series gets the story behind the story, beginning with one of 2007’s stars.
AllHipHop.com: So let’s bring it back to when you first got down with G-Unit. What was your first impression of 50 when you met dude?
Young Buck: The same impression I got right now, [he’s] a real n***a. The s**t in life that you go through makes you who you are; he’s been through a lot of s**t and it’s reflected through his swagger. You know [that] I have always respected 50 as an individual who came from what I came from, and made it out. He put me in the position to win.
AllHipHop.com: The G-Unit Beg For Mercy album came out while Yayo was serving his bid. Did you ever feel like they just let you slide in the crew for that album because Yayo got booked? Did you ever feel it wasn’t genuine?
Young Buck: Nah, I never felt like that. A lot of the world felt like that. My career came right around Tony Yayo’s incarceration. So in reality, I have been around 50 and Yayo way before Yayo’s incarceration came. The world never knew that. When I was on stage, people had me mixed up with Yayo. N***as would be like, “Yayo!” and I would be like “Nah, n***a, it’s Buck!” I dealt with all that. At the end of the day, my talent established Young Buck.
AllHipHop.com: What was it like when Yayo got home? Did he show any hate on you?
Young Buck: Nah, me and Yayo were good from the beginning, before he had his incarceration. In fact, Yayo was one of the first muthaf**kers telling 50, “Yo, you better make that things happen for Buck.” My s**t got sped up because of Yayo.
AllHipHop.com: You were rocking 50’s G-Unit spinner at the time, you lent it to your boy D-Tay and he got stuck for the chain in Chicago. There were some rumblings that 50 made you distance yourself from D-Tay ever since then.
Young Buck: Nah, not at all. D-Tay signed to my label [Ca$hville Records]; he's on my tour bus right now. That’s been my homeboy before rap. D-Tay is not a muthaf**ker that just came around me. He’s been put in situations where my life was on the line and he showed up and protected my life in real n***a situations. His situation was just one incident, something that happened. I have never experienced anything being taken from me. My chain got returned to me in a matter of a week. So shout out to Chicago, they really respected Young Buck.
AllHipHop.com: Did that incident put you in an awkward situation with 50?
Young Buck: That didn’t put me in no awkward position with 50, because I never have had anything taken from me, but I felt f**ked up about going to 50 and letting know about the situation that happened. The chain got taken, but at the end of the day, material s**t don’t really matter to 50. The fact of why it went down and how it went down is what means the most. And when the situation went down how it went down, I put the weight of the problem on him [D-Tay]. You know there’s certain rules just being from the streets that you can’t do. Like walking around other n***as’ surroundings with a gang of ice like that and not really knowing who’s with you and s**t, don’t make you in a good position. I really weighed it out on both ends, but at the end of the day, I had nothing taken from me. So I put forth a real street effort on getting it back and whenever you're a real n***a, you get real results for anything you do, and my s**t came back.
AllHipHop.com: Okay around, this time Game joins G-Unit, what your first impression of dude?
Young Buck: Well honestly, I never met Game before I spoke on Game, so that’s a lesson I learned as handling myself with individuals for the future. I mean Game was brought to my knowledge through 50 and he was like “Dre got an artist he’s excited about,” and wanted 50 to work on his project. 50 was saying he was probably going to make him a part of what we had going, which is G-Unit - like it would pop a little bit quicker if 50 got behind it. So just on that strength, and all the momentum we had, I showed some love without meeting Game. I threw out that line, “You ain’t a Crip like Snoop, you ain’t a Blood like Game.” I never even met Game when I said that.
AllHipHop.com: So when you met Game face to face did you feel you spoke too soon?
Young Buck: I mean everything seemed real, like any other n***a. He seemed cool, so you couldn’t really get what you see right now. None of that stuff Game portrays right now, there wasn’t really none of that when he first came to G-Unit. He never carried that swagger of being this bad ass Blood or no s**t like that. He was just a n***a who claimed his affiliation. You never really seen him throwing up any gang signs and no s**t like that, but he kept his rag on. So out of my respect for California, a lot of people can’t just wear that red or blue rag, so just off of that and just seeing him keep swanging it like he was, that pretty much solidified to me that homeboy was a Blood. And it wasn’t a whole lot of respect from the streets, it was a lot of questions, really. Like “Why you say that about Game? This n***a ain’t no Blood.”
AllHipHop.com: So there weren’t people in Compton cosigning him?
Young Buck: Nah, there weren’t a lot of n***as cosigning him during time of me speaking on him.
AllHipHop.com: What really went down from your point of view when Game was kicked out of the Unit? How did you feel about how everything went down?
Young Buck: Honestly, I don’t know his full situation on what and how it went down. I just know his situation was voiced from a media standpoint. Whatever problems he had, he voiced them through radio and just that alone right there, I think was the beginning of the problem. Whatever problem dealing with 50 [he had], you could have had the conversation that you had on radio with 50. So I think his plans were already made before he got in the middle of that and pushing for his own thing and moving towards Black Wallstreet.
But even that was stolen from JT The Bigga Figga. The whole name Black Wall Street, that’s been something of JT’s for years. I’m 26 years old, I’ve recorded records with JT back when I was 16, 17 and that was his company's name. I think that was some cold-hearted s**t. At the end of the day, it’s a lot of different things that reflect Game that real street n***as don’t do. Not even to get the money, there’s certain moves you can’t justify at the end. A street n***a’s going to make the right moves to get his bread so he’ll leave cool in the streets, once he gets to the money.
AllHipHop.com: Like blood money?
Young Buck: Straight up.
AllHipHop.com: Let’s fast forward a little, you were attending the Vibe Awards where they were honoring Dr. Dre. Allegedly Suge Knight paid someone to attack Dre causing a brawl were you poked someone up. Did you ever fear on retaliation from Suge after that incident?
Young Buck: Man, at this point, the thought of that doesn’t really matter. The thought is always in your mind that someone may approach me, with that on his mind, just in general.
This is the first time I even heard it was one of Suge’s homies. There’s a lot of different things coming from you that are just different from what I’ve heard. At the end of the day, Suge knows me and how I get down, period. In a situation like that, I’ll just sum it up and tell you: put a n***a like me in anywhere where I feel like my life or my loved ones are in danger, and I’ll do whatever it takes to protect them.
AllHipHop.com: What were Dre’s feelings in regards to what you did to the dude?
Young Buck: Dre was pretty much focused on his money, he don’t really give a f**k about none of this s**t. At the end of the day, I don’t think he appreciated what went down. He was being presented an award and his wife was there. So I think Dre been through realer things in his life, so it was nothing that affected Dre. It was a brush off the shoulder thing for him.
AllHipHop.com: Around that time everyone is questioning 50’s street credibility. A lot of people were calling him a snitch. Do you think what he did with that song “Ghetto Quaran” was a form of dry snitching? He was putting all these OG’s from Queens business on wax without any consent.
Young Buck: I don’t classify it as dry-snitching, especially [when these issues were] already known in the city. I just think it’s just pretty much 50 bringing those situations to light, using a talent that was God-given, which is rap. I mean, if it was situations that n***as didn’t know about it and a n***a talk on, then that’s what you consider dry-snitching, but the situations he spoke on are New York legendry street s**t. So n***as getting this dry-snitching s**t all twisted up. 50’s situation is already wrote, my n***a.
AllHipHop.com: So the second round of the G-Unit artist albums come around. Mobb and Banks didn’t sell as much as everyone expected. How was the vibe then knowing you were coming up next?
Young Buck: Man, I never really thought about a record sale in my life, so I’m not going to start to now because that’s how everyone in the media looks at the game. I’ve always been in this music for the classic material that’s going to live on for years. If you follow Young Buck, my first album Straight Out Of Cashville was a classic, and this one, Buck The World is getting considered pretty much as another one.
If you’re smart enough to budget your albums and stay under that one word that all of these rappers forget about which is “recoup,”…you’ll be able to succeed through any type of record sales that you may have. I’m the type of n***a that recouped from the first project where I didn’t owe Interscope or G-Unit a dime. So going into this project, I was fresh not owing nobody nothing. It’s about the knowledge the artist has to feel in order that I feel. It’s about making classic material period, the whole low record sales are due to n***as making un-classic material. If you don’t make an album that’s worth someone buying your CD for 15 dollars, then that’s on you.
My first week was 140,000, somewhere around there. It was enough to make me have the number one rap album in the country. I came out amongst MIMS, and Lil’ Flip and all these other dudes. Speaking of MIMS, he had 14,000 spins at radio and I had 1,400 and I was able to come out and double his sales. From his sales to mine, I doubled up on MIMS, I should say. So I know in this industry, it ain’t about how many spins you got at radio or all that s**t; it’s about delivering classic material. So holla at me six months later when I’m at a million sold, n***a. [Laughs]
AllHipHop.com: How did you come out about speaking to Game to dead the beef?
Young Buck: I was on a promotional tour for radio. I was making sure that all my records get played around, being I got a hit record “Get Buck.” Once I got to L.A., the politics of the music had people kind of f**ked up due to the drama [from] G-Unit and Game. My spins wasn’t powerful out there, so I had go to see why. I had number one spins everywhere else, but in L.A., Felli Fel was pretty much explaining to me how a lot of DJs were looking at it and he asked me if I would be up to speaking to Game on the phone. If that's what it takes to get some understanding to make sure my music can be played everywhere, then let's do it. That’s pretty much what it was.
It was scheduled when dude was supposed to come up to the station and sit down and be face-to-face, but they didn’t want it to go down like that. So we did it over the phone. Yo, when I spoke to Game, I’m going to be real, it wasn’t no f**ked up conversation, [there was] no disrespect from his end or my end. Honestly, he was speaking on suggestions of what it would be like if we were to rock on tour together, and how much would we be making and all this good stuff. And at this point, he just wanted to make records and he was telling me some of the reasons why he had said some of things towards me - because he had a record coming out. He didn’t really have reasons to diss 50, but he wanted to make sure his album could come out, just a lot of different things. We left the conversation on a note where you do you, without mentioning us and we do us, without mentioning you.
But s**t, bro, not even a couple of days later, he was right back to dissing a n***a, doing mixtape records, which for me, was a slap in the face. It was like, “Oh s**t, man, I just had this conversation [with] you and made an effort at least not do nothing because the beef ain’t with me, it started my homeboy 50, who I’m down with to the end.” And I just made an effort to try to get an understanding out of the s**t and [he] agreed with it, [so to] then going against it, [just] shows the bi-polar in him. The world starts to understand the G-Unit aren’t so much the aggressors in the situation. I think he feels that’s the way to keep [The Doctor’s Advocate] alive. We were just talking about selling a record; I’ve never been a n***a to fall in that position. [The Game] thinks he can go out there and diss a female like Vida Guerra and gain some attention, when in reality, a real n***a is looking [at it] like, “Nah, what are you doing? A female that can’t rap or got nothing do with anything at that!”
AllHipHop.com: You actually went to 50 to dead the beef with Game?
Young Buck: In the beginning, I was the first one to ever speak to 50 about the whole the s**t. Back then, when the situation first started, I was dealing with hearing Game’s whole conversation with Spider Loc off the phone, and Spider was like, “Listen and put the phone on speaker.” I would hear Game saying, “I’m ready to wave the white towel before s**t get crazy, I’m through with this s**t.” So I would hear enough coming from Game’s mouth on Spider Loc’s phone and that I went to 50 and told him this dude didn’t want any problems. I told him Game wanted to wave the white towel, and you know what 50 told me, bro?
AllHipHop.com: Go ahead.
Young Buck: He looked me right in my eye and said, “I’m not f**king with it.” I was looking at 50 the first time like, “Damn bro, this n***a talking about waving the white towel, so why you ain’t f**king with it, maybe you tripping a little bit?” 50 said, “I’ll give him a week before he's on the radio doing something else.” It wasn’t even two days later, your man Game was on the radio back at it already.
AllHipHop.com: Do you think Game was leaning on DJs out in the West Coast so they wouldn’t play your record?
Young Buck: I don’t think Game got enough power to make the West Coast just stop any G-Unit record. I think the fact of them not knowing how the situation is makes them hesitant going into a situation where they have to live out there. It’s like you coming into my city and you a DJ from Cashville supporting everything that Game is doing knowing how real s**t is. I just wanted the DJs to see for themselves that it’s not us and I think they see that now, by him showing his bi-polar side. He didn’t only burn me by going back two days later dissing me after our conversation on the phone, I think he burned n***as like Felli Fel and all the DJs that help that situation [too].
AllHipHop.com: What about that interview where 50 said he puts you in the same vein as a Game after you made up with his enemies.
Young Buck: That came from two different conversations, bro. 50 spoke and said what he said on the radio pretty much on Yayo putting his hands on the kid. I just did an interview on the radio and a lot of people took it as I was saying Yayo was guilty. I said I don’t agree with no man putting his hands on a kid, and at the time, there was so much tension with Yayo putting his hands on a child. I know that Yayo had no involvement on putting his hands on that man’s son.
So 50 came back and pretty much said what [he] had to say, he put a little bit on it, but respect it because that’s my boss. I could never walk away or disconnect that I help create as far as G-Unit. So for me, bro, I’m going to make it real clear for you before we get into all of that s**t. The minute you see me away from G-Unit will be death or jail, and God forbid them both. This is something more than music for Buck. I put my life on the line for this s**t, so it ain’t a walk away thing. 50, Yayo, Banks, Buck will be together until this muthaf**ker blows up. So that pretty much ice-waters everything you may have to say.
AllHipHop.com: Did you hear back from Yayo since the incident?
Young Buck: Yeah, we done spoke and now we speaking a little bit closer now. Because I think that’s what created a lot of the s**t, like our communication got off a little bit. We all got our own s**t going on we don’t get to communicate like we always done. Situations like that only make you closer especially when you're not the one involved in it and actions is being taken out on you. And you looking at s**t like, “Hold up, my n***a.”
AllHipHop.com: Did Sha leaving G-Unit records have anything to do with all that’s been happening?
Young Buck: Sha Money didn’t get fired from G-Unit, Sha Money left behind 50 and Sha choosing to make his move to where it’s at. Sha thinks he is more hands on being out in the field and working with me. Sha Money is my manager, rather than being at the office, being president of a company. Management is where he enjoys it more, that’s the direction 50 allowed for Sha Money to take. It ain’t no beef between Sha and 50, none of that s**t.
AllHipHop.com: You just put that “Teach Them About Playing” featuring C-Bo. In the first verse, it seems like you going in hard at 50 but then you say “You know I die for this G Unit s**t, so what you saying 50?”
Young Buck: I’m just letting the world know and I’m letting 50 know where my heart is invested at, and I’ll die for this s**t. I was pretty much asking 50 what you want me to do, what’s the direction? Like tell me when to go, not in the sense of what you are saying. Because when I punch the button, homeboy…
AllHipHop.com: Did 50 hear the record?
Young Buck: Yeah, he enjoyed the record.
AllHipHop.com: You had a brief stint at Cash Money Records when you were riding with Juvenile. I remember last year you commented on the infamous Lil’ Wayne and Baby incident. Can you elaborate?
Young Buck: I never seen Juvenile or B.G. or even Turk push that line of kissing, I’ve only seen Wayne. Yeah, I seen Wayne personally do it a few times. I seen him do it from the perspective of being on 106th and Park, when they did it on the couch and one time on the tour bus. The first time I ever seen that s**t, they did it on the bus when I was traveling amongst them. Honestly, I’m not going to sit here and lie to you, it f**ked me up, bro! Like it was a game going on or something between them. The n***a was like, “Give me a kiss, n***a,” and I was like, “What the f**k?”
[After that], I went on the other bus - the shark bus with all the goons. I was a broke n***a, so I stayed in my atmosphere at the time, you feel me? [Laughs] Wayne stayed on Baby’s bus. But at the end of the day, to each his own, in a situation like that, a real n***a like me, I ain’t with it. I spoke on it to say what it is, but there’s no beef between me and Lil’ Wayne, I have no problems with him. I actually just spoke with Lil’ Wayne about doing the remix to my “Get Buck” record and he agreed to [do it].
AllHipHop.com: Have you spoken to Baby?
Young Buck: I haven’t spoken to Baby at all. Even when I spoke to Wayne, I told him let Baby know I said what up and he said he would.
AllHipHop.com: What was like meeting up with Jadakiss?
Young Buck: At the end of the day, it was nothing f**ked up about it. We paid tribute to Bob Marley and put a couple up in the air, and kept it moving. It is what it is, it wasn’t no disrespectful s**t.
AllHiphop.com: So you just bumped into him at the V.I.P.?
Young Buck: I don’t want to say actually whose room he was at, because that would get that NBA player in trouble since we were all smoking and s**t. ‘Kiss was in that room and I had knowledge he was over there so I swung through.
AllHipHop.com: So when you walked in the door, was it tense?
Young Buck: It wasn’t tense, it was just a quiet moment though. [Laughs]
AllHipHop.com: You could hear a pin drop?
Young Buck: Yeah definitely a quiet moment where you can hear a pin drop and everything went back to what it was. It wasn’t any extra s**t. I just sat in front of him and pretty much asked him how he was looking at it. He said he wasn’t tripping and just wanted to get to the money.
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