Rapper 50 Cent has publicly criticized New York politician Zohran Mamdani, claiming his progressive tax plan will drive major wealth out of the city. The artist took to Instagram following Mamdani’s recent mayoral poll victory on Tuesday, November 4.
He shared an AI-generated image of a tombstone captioned, “New York is over pack it up, lets go! THE MANS First job is Mayor MAMDANI run New York.”
This post came after Mamdani addressed the rapper’s earlier criticism during an appearance on MSNBC’s The Beat with Ari Melber. Mamdani admitted he still listens to 50 Cent’s song “Many Men” despite their political differences. He recalled discovering the initial criticism through social media, saying, “I didn’t even know what my salary would be until I opened up Instagram and saw this thing that was like, 50 Cent offers Mamdani x-amount of money.”
Defending his agenda, Mamdani stated, “I continue to think that having the top one percent on New York City who are making more than one million dollars a year, having them pay two percent more for an economic agenda that would transform every New Yorker’s life, including their own, is something that is worth while.” He argued that underfunding city agencies leads to reduced public services.
In response, 50 Cent doubled down, commenting that while Mamdani’s intentions may be good, “his Tax plan is gonna run the big money out of the city and if he defunds the police they are gonna purge.” The rapper signed off by hinting at a personal relocation, writing, “All Roads lead to SHREVEPORT !”
Following his election win, Mamdani trolled the performer by walking out to Ja Rule’s song “New York” at a Brooklyn event.
