It is evident that the loss of Pop Smoke has been hitting 50 Cent hard. One could imagine that 50 Cent saw a younger version of himself in the rapper who passed away last Wednesday (Feb. 19). Not only did Pop also hail from New York City, but he entered the rap game with the same voracity as Fifty had back in the early 2000's. They both broke through with instantly-recognizable and ferocious voices. They both served as harbingers of new eras of New York hip-hop. All these reasons could make sense of why Fif has been repeatedly honoring Pop Smoke on social media since his death.
His latest tribute to the fallen star was wearing a t-shirt with a photo of Pop Smoke with a halo above his head screen-printed onto it. "i’m rocking dat young gangsta drip, New york New york," 50 wrote in the caption of his Instagram post.
This loss is surely made even harder for 50 due to him having developed a personal relationship with Pop Smoke. He shared a photo of the two of them together at a Super Bowl party, writing, "No such thing as success with out jealousy. Treachery comes from those who are close." The television producer's initial reaction to Pop's passing also intimated his belief that Pop was targeted out of envy. "No sympathy for winners," he lamented in another post.
Watch 50 Cent's reaction to Pop Smoke remixing his classic, "Many Men".
