It’s been on the charts for almost two months and G-Unit’s Terminate On Sight STILL hasn’t sold 200,000 copies. It’s no surprise that we haven’t heard any statements from 50 Cent on the matter, but I'm sure Lloyd Banks is pissed. I think it should be a wake up call for him that he needs to get from behind 50’s (and now Tony Yayo’s) shadow for good. We all know about 50 Cent’s business ventures and with Yayo stepping into the acting world that leaves Banks as the only real lyricist left in the group.
He was the only "real" MC in the group to begin with but now he’s really going to have to put the pen to paper and firmly establish himself as a Hip-Hop heavyweight. He showed promise on his debut album, The Hunger For More but went way too formulaic on Rotten Apple and cost him a lot of credibility. His calm demeanor took the backseat to Young Buck’s brash personality once he was down with G-Unit and with The Game (aka G-Unit Killer)'s lyrical improvement he might challenge Banks as the best MC G-Unit ever had.
Hopefully on his next album, currently titled “Gang Green”, Lloyd Banks will be able to find that lyrical promise he still may possess. It was His witty punchlines, metaphors, similies, and interesting stories are what caught the public’s attention 4 years ago. If he can stray away from the redundant topics that mainstream rappers are known for (or at least do it in a real creative way) then he will be the one to bring G-Unit back to a relevant status again. His next challenge would be to wrestle the “King of NY” crown from Jay-Z… that is, if the Jiggaman doesn’t pass the torch to Nas first.
- Steve Tyson Jr.