G-Unit

Hip-hop group G-Unit, aka Guerilla Unit, formed in 1999 out of a collaboration between artists 50 Cent, Tony Yayo and Lloyd Banks. The longtime friends pooled their talent after rapping together in the same neighborhood in Queens, N.Y. After several years producing mix tapes, they released their first album as G-Unit in 2003 under their new, eponymous record label. By this time, a rapper from Tennessee named Young Buck had joined the group. The album, "Beg for Mercy," was a commercial success, selling over 5 million copies worldwide. Its release garnered more attention for Yayo, Banks and Buck, who each released their first solo albums in its wake. In 2004, rapper The Game joined the group. Tensions between members began to brew as they headed into production on their second album, "T.O.S. (Terminate on Sight)" (2008), which embodied a self-described aggressive style. It debuted at No. 4 on the Billboard 200; however it did not sell as well as "Beg for Mercy." After this, G-Unit entered a state of flux, with disagreements between various members putting the future of the group in doubt. G-Unit would not produce new material until 2014, when several new songs and remixes emerged featuring the members, now without The Game but with newcomer Kidd Kidd, an artist from New Orleans. They released two EPs, said to comprise a two-part album, titled "The Beauty of Independence" (2014) and "The Beast Is G-Unit" (2015).