It looks like 50 Cent’s hijinks are actually the reason T.I. issued his Verzuz battle challenge. In a remote interview with All Def’s Roast This, T.I. explained why he really wanted to go at 50, saying, “It ain’t that many multimedia global moguls that can really see me. Everybody keep trying to put me with somebody else from Atlanta. Then they go kick some sh*t in New York City… Just to be honest with you man, I want Jay!”
However, he said, the probability of Jay doing a Verzuz battle with anyone seems low. He’s a billionaire. He’s married to Beyonce. That man is not worried about people on the internet. It’s been years since he last logged into Twitter — a rare enough occurrence that it caused a media frenzy as outlets scrambled to cover his list of lyrical inspirations for like a week after.
Which is why T.I. sees himself and 50 Cent as “neck and neck.” He also credits 50 for having the right disposition to handle his own energy. After all, T.I.’s initial challenge contained a number of goads that some might have seen as over-the-top, while 50 just laughed it up and took it back the memes. “I need somebody who I can talk to who ain’t gone feel like I’m pickin’ on him. I need somebody who ain’t gone be timid, who ain’t gone be shy. He’s the biggest bully y’all got up there.” And as he says, “How can you pick on a bully?”
And while T.I. doesn’t know “the analytics” on who has the most, biggest hits, he believes, “I’m doper.” He asserts that “I don’t care who sold how many records… I think my catalog is doper. That sh*t gone stretch all the way from 2001 to now. Which gives you a more multifaceted, diversified appetite for music.”
50 has yet to accept T.I.’s challenge, but he will most assuredly have some kind of response whenever he sees this interview. If the battle ever does happen, one thing is for sure — it’ll be one of Verzuz‘s most-watched events yet.
Watch T.I.’s interview with All Def’s Roast This above.