Legendary hip-hop artist 50 Cent, known for his monumental first-week album sales with "Get Rich or Die Tryin'" (872,000 units in 2003) and "The Massacre" (1.15 million units in 2005), recently shared his thoughts on Taylor Swift's record-breaking success. In an interview with Complex on October 17, 50 Cent discussed Swift's album, "The Life of a Showgirl," which achieved just over 4 million album-equivalent units in its debut week.

Expressing his excitement, 50 Cent remarked, "It’s exciting to see for artists to create material that resonates that strong." He also pondered the challenge of catering to such a massive fanbase, asking, "How do you make the right music for an audience that large?"

A notable aspect of the conversation was Swift's unexpected shout-out to 50 Cent in her song "Ruin the Friendship." The lyric, "And it was not an invitation/ But as the 50 Cent song played/ Should’ve kissed you anyway," references his music. 50 Cent interpreted this as a nod to his dominance in the early 2000s, a period when Swift was developing her artistry. "That was cool," he stated. "I think the shout-out is about that period in music. The Get Rich or Die Tryin’ is coming and you can’t miss me." He added, "I’m a part of what transpired in that period for her. It’s magic, actually… People disagree on so many things, but they’ll agree to have a good time when the right music comes on."

Following the album's release, 50 Cent celebrated the shout-out on social media, reposting Swift’s album and humorously writing, "@taylorswift s–t is popping right now. she shout me out, she don’t shout you out. LOL. THIS IS FOR BIG TIMERS ONLY. I’m the only shout out on the whole album."

Taylor Swift’s "The Life of a Showgirl," released on October 3, not only topped the Billboard 200 but also set new single-week records for a modern-era album (since 1991), earning a total of 4.002 million units in its debut week, with 3,479,500 units coming directly from sales.