Rick Ross fires back at 50 Cent over album sales

Rapper Rick Ross has responded to a new round of public mockery from his longtime rival 50 Cent, defending the commercial performance of his latest album and firing back with pointed questions about 50 Cent's business ventures. The exchange, which played out on social media on Tuesday, August 4, and Wednesday, August 5, marks the latest flare-up in a feud that has spanned nearly two decades.

The conflict reignited following the release of Ross's album "Set in Stone" on July 17. Initial reports indicated the album sold approximately 19,000 to 20,000 album-equivalent units in its first week, debuting outside the top 20 on the Billboard 200 chart. 50 Cent seized on these figures, posting on social media, "LOL IM SORRY ITS OVER, CANT FAKE IT FOREVER!" He also shared a video purporting to show empty seats at a recent Rick Ross performance in Detroit and linked the album's sales to Ross's Wingstop restaurant business.

In a series of clips posted to his Instagram Story on August 5, Rick Ross broke his silence. He framed his sales numbers as a legitimate achievement, arguing that he reached them without artificial inflation. "Those drastic falloffs that you see with a lot of those other...