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Sales Verzuz Substance
The T.I. and 50 Verzuz is a battle we need to see, but probably won’t.
“Sell a lot of records, I respect it and salute that,
But spitting real life on hot beats, I’m the truth at!!!”
Clifford T.I. Harris, Swagga Like Us
The year is 2009. T.I. released his comeback album, Paper Trail, to rave reviews. He’s on stage at the Grammys with Jay-Z, Kanye West, and Lil Wayne and on the same project collaborating with Rihanna and Justin Timberlake for chart-topping singles. T.I. was almost ten years into his career and still relevant. Criminal cases hurt the momentum he had gained two years prior, but in 09 he was climbing the mountaintop again.
Meanwhile, 50 Cent’s career was cooling off. He fought to keep the momentum he had generated with a massive debut album Get Rich or Die Trying in 2003, but found it almost impossible to do that. His first two albums alone already put him in rare air with almost 20 million in sales, but after losing the friendly battle with Kanye in 2007, he found his musical career at a standstill.
Still, in the eyes of many, 50 was considered the bigger artist of the two. Sure, his lucrative business deals and success with his record label G-Unit kept him relevant musically. But more than anything, his ability to…
