50 Cent Says He Feels The Same Pressure As Britney Spears

50 Cent
Photo: MTV News

50 Cent says Before I Self Destruct is no different from his other three solo LPs; he feels like his back is against the wall every time he releases a new album.

"Absolutely, every project is the same for me," he told MTV News. "It feels like I'm back in the underdog space because I feel that doubt from the public where they go, 'Do you think he can do it again?' [They doubt you can] return to that space where you're generating that interest as before. Not the actual sales, not how people feel about you generally, but overall does it feel the way it felt in 2003? ... But I told them ahead of time, actually getting a chance to hear the record, is that this album was arguably better than Get Rich or Die Tryin'."

Fif says he's more conscious of himself in the studio now, as opposed to when he was debuting. Now that he's tasted the kind of success that most in his peer group will never see, he says that some want to see his downfall. It's only natural.

"Well, the title itself is a representation of the cycle of success from an artist perspective," he said. "I feel like the general public turns you into a favorite by consuming your material. We all start from an underdog space. And after they consume it, they begin to resent you for not bearing the same pressures. Because you're in this financial space where they know you're not under the same circumstances they are. ... This is why they like nothing more than to see Britney Spears when she's shaving her head and swinging at the cameras. We should be covering her more now. They covered it during the confusion, but the intensity, that's less than when she made the comeback."