| G-Unit | |
|---|---|
 | |
|
Origin |
Queens, New York, U.S. |
|
Genres |
|
|
Years active |
2002 present |
|
Labels |
G-Unit, Caroline, Interscope |
|
Associated acts |
|
|
Members |
|
|
Past members |
|
G-Unit (short for Guerilla Unit) is an American hip hop group from South Jamaica, Queens, New York, formed in 1999 by longtime friends 50 Cent, Tony Yayo and Lloyd Banks. When Tony Yayo was sentenced to a year in jail in 2003, the group recruited Tennessee-based rapper Young Buck to take his place. The group released their debut album Beg for Mercy in 2003, which went on to sell over 4,000,000 copies in the United States and was certified double platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America in only a month. The album, which followed the success of 50 Cent's major-label debut Get Rich or Die Tryin', served as platinum for Banks, Buck and Yayo to release their respective debut solo albums, The Hunger for More in 2004, Straight Outta Cashville in 2004, and Thoughts of a Predicate Felon in 2005.
In late 2004, California-based rapper The Game was also added to the group, a proposition made by Dr. Dre and Jimmy Iovine, to promote the Aftermath/Interscope newcomer. However, due to The Game's "disloyalty" in the eyes of 50 Cent, he was soon removed from the group. In April 2008, 50 Cent revealed that Young Buck was no longer a part of the group due to his "excessive spending" and "inconsistent behavior". Later that year, the group released its second album T·O·S (Terminate on Sight).
In early 2014, after Yayo and 50 Cent separately stated G-Unit was no more, the original members of the group reconciled and reunited at Summer Jam 2014, along with Young Buck after his six-year departure from the group. G-Unit Records rapper Kidd Kidd was also added to the group upon its reformation. In April 2018, Kidd Kidd announced he was leaving both the group and G-Unit Records to become independent. In June of that same year, 50 Cent announced that Lloyd Banks had left the group, leaving him and Tony Yayo as the remaining two members.
Discography[]
- 2003: Beg for Mercy 4,400,000
- 2008: T·O·S (Terminate on Sight) 800,000
- 2014: The Beauty of Independence 35,000