When they first arrived in the game, no one crew was hotter than G-Unit. Led by 50 Cent, they quickly took over the rap game. Some of their success was credited to the promotion of their distributor, Interscope Records. But, later 50 Cent revealed that Interscope did nothing besides ride the wave like the fans.
In 2006, the miraculous ride for G-Unit was coming to an abrupt end. Albums from Lloyd Banks and Young Buck flopped and 50 Cent’s album did not fare much better, either. Critics point to many reasons for the decline in G-Unit’s popularity, but it all boils down to Interscope Records not putting forth an effort. When Roc-A-Fella was on its run, Def Jam did everything in their power to make sure Jay-Z went platinum each time. But, Interscope did not do that for 50 Cent.
Due to the constant delays of Curtis, 50 Cent openly stated that he would begin searching for a new label home. Following the release of his next album, 50 Cent did just that. G-Unit went from being on top of the game, hitting a peak in the 2004-2005 period, but after Game left, so did the support of Interscope Records. Tony Yayo noticed this, just like the rest of the crew. That is the main reason that he left, over two years ago.
When Tony Yayo released his debut album, Interscope did all that they could to promote it, but when it was time for his next album, they put him on the backburner. In between his album releases, G-Unit went from being on top to being an after thought. But, Yayo feels that if Interscope Records had continued to promote the G-Unit brand that it would still be recognizable. But, the fact that they quit on G-Unit led to G-Unit quitting on them.
50 Cent, the G-Unit group, and G-Unit Records are off of Interscope Records entirely and 50 is searching for distribution with an independent service. The first album to be released when a new deal is established will be the long-awaited sophomore album from Tony Yayo.
