G-Unit: Terminate On Sight Interview
June 2008
MVRemix: Going on from that, you're scheduled to play KRS One in an upcoming BDP (Boogie Down Productions) film. How did that come about?
Tony Yayo: Well people, I guess they see my hypeness on the stage and whatever into G-Unit is the energy. Banks, he's the punch line king hands down. He's like the ultimate songwriter hands down and I'm like the energy out of the group. When you look at KRS one, you see energy. Only a couple of people can play his part jumping around stage like that. But I'm actually headed towards the city to see about the film right now. I'm ready to see what's going on with that.
MVRemix: You lot are very famous for the mixtape grind and what you've done now is converted mixtapes into a video form with ThisIs50. Most songs are now coming out with a video. What inspired the push to go to videos more than just mixtapes?
Lloyd Banks: A lot of the ways is it's new. It just keeps people from being able to admire the music just through their ears to actually get a visual to it also, like right now if I had a camera man recording me while I'm talkin' to you and the website. There would be thousands of people that's payin' attention every other minute. The computer is on demand, you can demand to see anything you wanna see at any time you wanna see it. From TV to records. Whatever you wanna hear. I just feel like you have to find new ways to market yourselves as an artist 'cause you can't leave it all up to the label, when the label is tryin' to find what the next way is. So as an artist you've got to go out there, and that's what ThisIs50 does, ThisIs50.com. Instead of just hearin' us talkin' about our world tour and how the experiences are; you can actually see it. We've got interactive live feed capabilities, you can see what we doin' at the exact time. It's interesting and we definitely trying to dominate that side of the market.
MVRemix: How many songs in total were recorded for "Terminate On Sight"?
Lloyd Banks: Too many to even place 'em. To be honest with you, when we put out the first mixtape, "Return Of The Bodysnatchers," I thought we were workin' on "T.O.S." And that's just because 50 does things like that man, to keep you on your toes. At any given time he can call us out and we'll be in the studio for two days recording 16 songs. It wasn't really... We didn't go in the studio like that thinkin', "We're gonna make records for the mixtapes and records for the album." Every record we make we know it could be the quality of bein' on an album and that's how it happened. Some records went to the mixtapes. Some went to the album. Some records that went to the mixtapes turned into singles. We always try to think it big recording every record.
MVRemix: What are you currently listening to outside of G-Unit?
Lloyd Banks: Outside of G-Unit? [Groans] I'm not really listening to anything. I just bought a whole bunch of CDs. I'm one of them dudes that kind of stays stuck on CDs, so of course I've got the Makaveli album in my car, I've got "Life After Death" in my car. I got "The Chronic," the first one. I got Snoop "Doggystyle" in my car, I got "Illmatic" in my car. I got Prodigy's album in my car, both of them. It depends with the day, what I'm feelin' like. But I listen to the radio also.
Tony Yayo: What I've got in my car. It's crazy. I got Mavado in my car, I got Michael Jackson in my car. I got Alicia Keys in my car... I got "The Chronic," I got a whole bunch of shit. I listen to all different kinds of music. Like I said, I got some Jamaican with Mavado, I like Michael Jackson's "P.Y.T." You know what I mean? "Pretty Young Thing."
MVRemix: How is "Blood In The Sand" (G-Unit video game) coming along?
Tony Yayo: "Blood In The Sand," that video game is gonna be so sick... If you could see the graphics for it. It's gonna be compared to like "Grand Theft Auto IV" You know the way everyone looks at that, that's the ultimate game to play - "Grand Theft Auto IV." "Blood In The Sand" is crazy.
MVRemix: What about solo records - I know you're both working on those as well, do you have any developments on your individual records?
Tony Yayo: Oh of course. You know Banks, we've all had solo projects before. Mine was "Thoughts Of A Predicate Felon" - I did 800,000 went on tour. I
was happy about that. I didn't really get a chance to promote, and you know I'm happy about the forth going project that we got forthcoming and the projects
we got comin'. I got over 60 records, I know Banks has probably over 100. Banks writes like Eminem, I say I write like 50. I have spurts. Banks and Eminem
stay in the studio everyday. That's why Em will call Banks' home. Banks is Eminem's favourite, 'cause their writing capabilities are astronomical. How they
write and how they ride the beat.
MVRemix: What are your thoughts on [Barack] Obama being the democratic nominee?
Tony Yayo: I think it's cool. I mean everybody wants a change. I think it doesn't matter what colour or race if you can change, get somethin' different. It's cool to see a black man in there, you know? It's cool to see a man of ethnic origin run for candidacy, I can't call it. I can't vote 'cause I have felonies. So I don't know. I'm really not into the politics.
MVRemix: What do you feel is the biggest mis-conception people have of G-Unit?
Tony Yayo: I know what I'mna say. I'ma let Banks handle it.
Lloyd Banks: I mean, the biggest mis-conception to me is that we ain't hungry. For some reason I think people seem to feel like we're content and at the end of day you control your destiny. I just feel like that's the biggest mis-conception that fits the business savy. I feel it overshadows the actual talent. People are sadly mistaken, like all the haters are sadly mistaken if they feel like "This is it." Or "What else can you do?" Or "Are they still hungry?" I don't always go off of the positive - look at all the positive things or how many people are un-informed or... Those things motivate me. But how many people go to the gravesite motivates me too 'cause it reminds me I'm living. I gotta live to the fullest 'cause I got friends in jail that I ain't never gonna see again and in the grave also. I just think G-Unit is more appreciative and I don't think a lot of people out there understand that. It's not all about the cars, the houses and the diamonds. We actually were fans of music since we were little kids.
Tony Yayo: I think the biggest mis-conception is that niggaz is trouble-makers. And so niggaz be like a lot of dramas with Fat Joe, The Game, Buck... All those things that you see they really be startin' and so we finish it. So I think that's the biggest mis-conception - that we start the trouble. In rap it is competition, so some people get carried away. That's what "Terminate On Sight" means. Everybody's competition. Everybody.
MVRemix: A la "Fight Club," if you could fight any celebrity, who would you fight?
Lloyd Banks: I'd fight Bill O'Reilly.
Tony Yayo: You'd fight Bill O'Reilly? That's a good one. You know who I'd fight?
MVRemix: Who would you fight?
Tony Yayo: That's a good one, who would I fight... [ponders]
[Lloyd Banks chuckles]
Tony Yayo: That's a good one. I think I would like to fight Fat Joe.
MVRemix: And why's that?
Tony Yayo: He's slow man, I think I could take that guy. He's slow. See Suge [Knight] just got knocked out. Anybody can get it.
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