Lloyd Banks Biography

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It's 50 Cent's shadow, we're all just living in it. And no one is more acutely aware of the mega-monolith Queens rapper's stature than his close friend and protégé Lloyd Banks. Don't get it twisted though, Curtis "Interscope" Jackson may be the benchmark of success in rap's modern age, but Lloyd Banks is no candle in the sun.

"I consider being so close to 50 as nothing but positive," says the 24 year-old who was reared in Jamaica, Queens. "I've been so successful as a solo artist there's absolutely no reason that I can complain." And, in fact, he's absolutely right. Nearly no other protégé has ever achieved close to the commercial success that Banks has, seeing 2 million sales with his debut, The Hunger For More. On the strength of massive hits like the Eminem produced "On Fire" and the Timbaland helmed "Karma" Banks was able to establish himself as star with staying power independent of his label head.

However, it's with his sophomore release, The Rotten Apple, that Banks hopes to truly step out of 50's shadow. "My last album was great but I think that I need to let people know more about me, to make that connection," he says. "That's why with this album I just focused on my punchlines and my overall content." Indeed, it was Banks' punchlines which first earned him acclaim on the New York mixtape scene.

Verses on street classics like "Banks Workout" and "Bad News" heralded him as the rapper to beat. 50 wrote the hooks that the whole world sung, but it was Banks who blew away the competition with lines like, "It could get uglier than the Master P sneakers." His contributions to unforgettable mixtapes like 50 Cent Is the Future and No Mercy No Fear earned him an undeniable street buzz as G-Unit's most lyrical soldier.

Banks further solidified his standing with stellar performances on both 50 Cent's 10 times platinum, universally hailed classic debut Get Rich Or Die Trying, and on the 3 times platinum G-Unit debut Beg For Mercy. In fact, he secured the third single, "Smile" from the aforementioned G-Unit release. "With those albums we were just in the zone," he says.

Also See: ilikemusic.com

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