The Game has had enough rap beefs, legal beefs and inner-crew beefs to feed a homeless shelter. Now, the rapper says his thugged-out modus operandi has changed for the positive and he’s tattooed a butterfly on his right cheek to represent that dramatic transformation. Across from the new symbol is a tattooed tear, an older sign, which embodies a number of negatives depending on what hood you hail from. Nevertheless, The Game talked to AllHipHop.com about his new tat and the update on everything from G-Unit to Mya to his next CD. He even reminded us of what he says happened in D.C.
AllHipHop.com: What’s the deal with the new butterfly tattoo on your face and the tears?
Game: Man, it just represents new life. I got the teardrop on some bad s**t, stupid s**t don’t even gotta go there but – it’s new life, man. After the shooting and s**t, and Hot 97, and all that, donatin’ money to the kids, [and] my son’s birthday. And then I felt like, if in 2001 after I woke up out the coma and s**t; if a n***a wouldn’t a made it, if I [would’ve] died, I wouldn’t have—you know what I’m saying? Like, the Hip-Hop world, wouldn’t know Game, man. [There] wouldn’t be my son, he wouldn’t be alive, it wouldn’t be nothin’, man. So, it’s all about new life. I know mothaf**kers is questionin’ my ethics on the tattoo, ‘cause, y’know, the s**t is a butterfly on my cheek, but, y’know, you gotta know what it mean.
AllHipHop.com: Right, a butterfly is the evolution of the caterpillar.
Game: My grandmother passed away, like right after High School. She always [encouraged me] to write poems and s**t. And, you know, I had this one poem I had, one poem that she gave me, and it was something that my pops had wrote a long time ago and s**t, and it was about a butterfly. It was a poem that my pops wrote to my grandmother, so I stumbled upon this s**t, I felt obligated, and what my pops is sayin’, you know how a butterfly is the symbol of new life, a new beginning. I’m just tryin’ to live, man. I just wanna live to see my son [grow]. But at the same time, man, I’m not no follower, I’m a leader. I ain’t a soldier, I’m a general, so I’m gonna leave it at that, man.
AllHipHop.com: Right.
Game: But I don’t want nobody to think, uh, that I’m less gangsta or nothin’, because you know that I’ll break [their] f**kin’ face in half. [pause] I’m not tryin’ to get disrespectful. I’m just sayin’ that I’m shyin’ away from all that. I’m tryin’ to watch my steps, watch the things that I say, monitor the things that I do so that I don’t have the repercussions that I’ve had – $280 million, when I ain’t put one hand on the dude, and, y’know, the whole Hot 97 s**t, with my homeboy gettin’ shot, [and] I got shot in the leg. I believe in God, man, and I need to be a little bit more thankful, man, ‘cause a lotta people that ain’t here. There’s about a hundred thousand people that didn’t wake up with us this mornin’, man, and, that’s my reality man. So it’s all about new life and new beginning. Uh, I’m goin’ into my new project, workin’ on my new record, O.G. on it.
AllHipHop.com: So do you have any regrets about the line about the Washington D.C. incident in the “Hate it or Love it” remix?
Game: Man, I’m gonna tell AllHipHop.com – I wasn’t talking about that D.C. incident. I said, “Don’t make me remind y’all what happened in D.C.” I didn’t say “Don’t make me remind y’all of when the radio DJ, somebody whipped his ass downstairs while I was upstairs doing a radio interview.” Don’t make me remind y’all what happened in D.C. – I was talkin’ about The Million Man March.
AllHipHop.com: Right.
Game: I could’ve been talkin’ ‘bout the D.C. sniper. I wasn’t talkin’ ‘bout [DJ Zxulu]. So, you know, I wanna straighten it all up right here, man, and say—dude suing me for $285 million, and I’m about $275 million short and I ain’t even put a hand on that dude, you know what I’m sayin?
AllHipHop.com: Right. [Laughter] Yeah.
Game: And I ain’t even put a hand on that dude, you know what I’m sayin? I ain’t touch that dude, dude. When I was upstairs, they talkin’ about people downstairs fightin’, my security rushed me right out the studio, dude. I never even saw the dude. Tell ‘em to show a tape of me, of me touchin’ him. It’s just I was in the buildin’, the biggest name in the buildin’, so of course they gonna say it was me. I don’t know who touched that dude.
AllHipHop.com: On some gossip, can you tell us anything about you and Mya?
Game: F**k that question, man. You can take it and run with it.
AllHipHop.com: You’ve mentioned her in the lyrics a few times.
Game: I mean, whatever you probably would guess, you would probably be right, so, y’know, take your imagination and let it wander. Maybe one day you’ll find out the answers, but not today, baby.
AllHipHop.com: Tell us about that next record.
Game: We just opened the budget on my next album. I ain’t gonna go into details. I’m back in the studio. [The] album’ll be out same time next year, first quarter or, like, early second. That’s what’s up. It’s the Black Wall Street Records now, y’know what I’m sayin’? Shady is in the house, and, y’know, even though I parted my ways with G-Unit, I ain’t got no—I ain’t even mad at 50, I ain’t mad at Banks, I ain’t mad at Buck, I ain’t mad at Yayo, man. They can do they thing, and I’m gonna continue to do mines. I’m the Los Angeles King, y’know – love it. [The] underdog’s on top, man. I’m, I ain’t goin’ nowhere in this s**t. So n##### better stop hatin’ on me and pay homage, pay their respect, ‘cause I’m gonna be here, and I’m gonna be a legend before I’m gone, man. I brought the whole West Coast back by my motherf**kin’ self.
AllHipHop.com: Word.
Game: I ain’t takin’ nothing away from the other West Coast artists or nobody, no other artist, but I’m sayin’, when the West Coast was dry, I brought it back to the bright lights, to the mainstream, to the MTV, BET level, and I’m gonna hold it down. In 2006, I’m gonna do it again, man.
AllHipHop.com: Can you reflect on the beefs in your short career?
Game: Half of them dudes ain’t even on my level. The beef with 50 is pretty much squashed. That’s a dead issue. We’re on the same label, it’s a conflict of interest. [And we] both work with and need Dr. Dre. So we don’t never gotta speak again, [but] I don’t got no beef with dude. Let dudes live.
AllHipHop.com: What about The Source insider expose, what’s your reaction to that? Somebody in your own crew did a full interview with the other side.
Game: Somebody ratted me out, and I don’t know who did it. I’m just gonna get to the bottom of that, like I’m startin’ to get to the bottom of who fought the dude in D.C. It was somebody, I don’t know who it was, but I gotta couple ideas, man, but I won’t say no names, so that way I don’t incriminate myself. But I thank The Source for puttin’ me in there. I said, “F**k The Source,” like, three times on my album, and still got the cover, man, so like I said, no hard feelin’s with them either, man. I still gotta ride with [Dre], man. But I gotta put the bulls**t in my past. My album been out for three months. I think I done had more magazine covers than, than 99% of the Hip-Hop artists in the game right now. And like I said, even with them, man, no beef, man. It’s a new life.
AllHipHop.com: Do you think people underestimated you? I certainly didn’t expect Documentary to go where it went. Plus, people are still crediting 50 for his role in things.
Game: Yeah, what I wanna say [something] about that is…I never said 50 didn’t donate [or] contribute to my album, ‘cause the n***a did. He contributed to my album, just like I contributed to Buck’s, or the way I contributed to the G-Unit album.
AllHipHop.com: Right.
Game: It’s just like Eminem and Dr. Dre contributed to Get Rich or Die Trying. How many albums do you think 50 would’ve sold if it wasn’t for the Shady or the Aftermath? I’m not saying he’s not a good rapper. The n***a’s talented, he’s a dope MC. Do Eminem or Dre go to the radio and say, “Oh 50 owes us everything”? They didn’t say that. So I’m not saying he didn’t contribute, he did contribute, along with Dr. Dre, Eminem, Busta Rhymes, Scott Storch.
AllHipHop.com: So looking at Black Wall Street, is it true you’ve signed Charli Baltimore? We know you’re working with Vita.
Game: Aw man. All I’m gonna say is that I got my label. I’m not 100% sure it’s gonna fall under Aftermath/Interscope. I’m working with a lot of artists, but I can’t [confirm that]. I don’t wanna show nobody no false hopes or none of that. I do have a group called Khakis and Chucks [though]. And when you find out [who they are], it’s gonna amaze you.
AllHipHop.com: So it’s some notable people that we’ve heard of?
Game: Yeah, but ain’t never had an album out or nothin’ like that, so you’ll see. I’m sellin’ everything, man. Wall Street Black toilet paper, wipe ya ass, Black! That way you can’t be embarrassed by your s**t stains—some s**t like that.