Tony Yayo On "Drink Champs": Eminem & G-Unit, Rap Beef, Street Life & More

The New York rapper is a ridiculously entertaining storyteller with a lot to tell.

BYGabriel Bras Nevares
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Tony Yayo has a lot of stories to tell within hip-hop, whether from his own career, his work with G-Unit, or the wealth of knowledge he gained since then. Of course, given that he's such an entertaining storyteller, an episode of Drink Champs with him as the special guest is bound to hold some highlights. In it, he tackles those topics plus studio sessions with Eminem, the East Coast and West Coast beef, ghost producers, and a whole lot else. Moreover, the New York rapper also went over some "this or that" debates at the behest of show hosts N.O.R.E. and DJ EFN. Some of the debates included Paid In Full versus Criminal Minded, A Tr*be Called Quest versus Brand Nubian, and loyalty versus respect.

In addition, Tony Yayo also revealed some interesting insights into 50 Cent's career. Apparently, Fif didn't even like "Many Men" when he and his team first started working on it. Furthermore, that song went on to become one of the Queens legend's biggest hits of all time. Still, it's quite odd to hear about how such a beloved song might've just been a throwaway at some point in time.

Read More: Tony Yayo Reveals G-Unit’s “Realest” Beef

Tony Yayo's Drink Champs Episode

Previously, the 45-year-old spoke on how working with Eminem caused a lot of controversy for G-Unit, which he readdresses here. "We even got called house n***as for f***ing with Eminem,” Tony Yayo had shared to DJ Vlad. “The Source, they would take it to a whole ‘nother level. That’s when the disrespect for me was like, well damn, what does color have to do with anything with music? What does color have to do with anything with people? I don’t care what color or religion you are. That’s just me. We from New York. It’s a melting pot of people. We grew up around all kinds of people, so I don’t give a f**k what color you are. I don’t look at you as a culture vulture ’cause you white. That could be somebody else’s opinion. It’s not mine."

Meanwhile, Tony made sure to contextualize his success with an incredible amount of gratitude. He recalled just being a kid from the block who loved hip-hop and eventually made it to some of its highest highs in the 2000s. If you want your dose of hip-hop history and culture discussion, don't miss out on this conversation. Also, keep checking in with HNHH for more news and the latest updates on Tony Yayo.

Read More: Tony Yayo Blasts DJ Vlad For Question About 50 Cent & Ja Rule Beef

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About The Author
Gabriel Bras Nevares is a music and pop culture news writer for HotNewHipHop. He started in 2022 as a weekend writer and, since joining the team full-time, has developed a strong knowledge in hip-hop news and releases. Whether it’s regular coverage or occasional interviews and album reviews, he continues to search for the most relevant news for his audience and find the best new releases in the genre. What excites him the most is finding pop culture stories of interest, as well as a deeper passion for the art form of hip-hop and its contemporary output. Specifically, Gabriel enjoys the fringes of rap music: the experimental, boundary-pushing, and raw alternatives to the mainstream sound. As a proud native of San Juan, Puerto Rico, he also stays up-to-date with the archipelago’s local scene and its biggest musical exponents in reggaetón, salsa, indie, and beyond. Before working at HotNewHipHop, Gabriel produced multiple short documentaries, artist interviews, venue spotlights, and audio podcasts on a variety of genres and musical figures. Hardcore punk and Go-go music defined much of his coverage during his time at the George Washington University in D.C. His favorite hip-hop artists working today are Tyler, The Creator, Boldy James, JPEGMAFIA, and Earl Sweatshirt.