50 Cent chimed in on the Kendrick Lamar/Lil Wayne Super Bowl LIX Halftime Show conversation in a TV interview with The Talk on September 13.
He is asked about Kendrick Lamar being named the upcoming Halftime Show performer over Lil Wayne, a New Orleans native while promoting his new book, The Accomplice. A previous Super Bowl performer, 50 replied to the question during a segment created for him, titled 50 Cent’s 2 Cents.
At the 2:00 mark, 50 Cent says this about Kendrick performing at the Super Bowl in New Orleans in the segment: “I mean, it was a choice. Kendrick deserves … as a solo artist right now, he’s the guy. But having the game be in New Orleans, having it – be played in New Orleans, I could see why they got – I think the last show was put together with me, Eminem, Dr. Dre, Mary J. Blige, Kendrick was there then.”
After 50’s answer, the show’s host Sheryl Underwood would suggest that Kendrick collaborate with New Orleans legends in performance such as Master P and Juvenile. Fif would reply with, “He (Kendrick) should bring out the people he featured on big records with – like it depends on the record.”
Fif performed at the 2022 Super Bowl upon the demand of his mentor Eminem. While scheduled to perform since it was announced, 50 appeared as a surprise to fans as he was not shown in the advertisements leading up to the Halftime Show. Fif would perform his debut single “In Da Club,” along with a recreation of the music video.
Master P, a man who took 50 on his first tour and a New Orleans native, shared his thoughts on Kendrick Lamar being the Halftime Show performer, agreeing with the fans. In a statement, he wrote, “I have to agree with the fans—Lil Wayne should be a part of this celebration. He’s one of the greatest hip-hop artists alive, still relevant, and he’s a New Orleans native. Let’s not miss this cultural moment in the South. Life is too short. We have to give our legends their flowers while they’re here.”
Lil Wayne broke his silence last week regarding the snub, claiming the news “broke him” and he felt like he had “let his city down.”
Thanking fans for their support, Weezy said: “That hurt. It hurt a lot. You know what I’m talking about. It hurt a whole lot. I blame myself for not being mentally prepared for a letdown, and for automatically mentally putting myself in that position like somebody told me that was my position. So I blame myself for that.
“But I thought that was nothing better than that spot and that stage and that platform in my city, so it hurt. It hurt a whole lot. But y’all are fucking amazing. It made me feel like shit not getting this opportunity and when I felt like shit, you guys reminded me that I ain’t shit without y’all… and that’s an amazing reality.”
Others to release statements about Lil Wayne’s snub include Jay-Z, Birdman, and Nicki Minaj.