Anyone following the trajectory of 50 Cent's musical career knows that his fourth album, still untitled, has been a long time coming. Speaking on his recording process, Fif explained that slowing things down has been a conscious decision.
"This is the first time that I've recorded and I haven't put pressure to release at a specific day," he said in an interview with MTV News. "I've been on the shot clock the entire time. Dre and Em — I mean Dre's record hasn't been out in 11 years, so when you talk about perfection, it's gotta be crazy, right?"
50 said he had been observing how Dr. Dre and Eminem approach making their albums.
"I think that provides additional pressure for him that it's taken this long," he said of Dre. "And in Em's case he has high standards too. You wouldn't believe how many times he records the records that you hear. He's done it over and over and over and over to make it sound like the way that he feels it's supposed to sound."
On previous albums, Fif had no problem knocking out even hit records in half an hour. But these days, he's taking his time and being more deliberate about things.
"In the beginning, it was like 30 minutes, 'In Da Club' was 30 minutes, to write it, have the vocals laid," he said. "Now it's a process where I'm recording it, listening to it and saying, 'I can do that better than that.' "
50 said he's been thinking about posterity and wants to be sure that his music lives up to the test of time.
"I understand it now because all the material that I put out is gonna be here longer than I am," he said. "So I'll be dead, I'll be gone, and the material will still be here to influence new artists moving forward."

 (Photo: Frank Micelotta/Getty Images)