50 Cent has publicly criticized newly elected New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, claiming the politician’s proposed tax policies will drive wealthy residents out of the city.
The rapper posted an AI-generated image of a tombstone on Instagram with the caption: “New York is over pack it up, let’s go! THE MAN’S First job is Mayor MAMDANI run New York.” The post followed Mamdani’s victory in the city’s mayoral election on November 4.
Mamdani, appearing earlier this week on MSNBC’s The Beat with Ari Melber, addressed 50 Cent’s earlier remarks and revealed he still listens to the rapper’s hit song “Many Men.” He also joked that he first learned about the criticism through social media: “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.’ I was like, ‘That’s a very specific amount of money. Oh my god!’”
Defending his tax plan, Mamdani argued that raising taxes by 2% on New Yorkers earning over $1 million annually would help fund essential services and reduce inequality. “Having the top one percent pay two percent more for an economic agenda that would transform every New Yorker’s life, including their own, is something worthwhile,” he said.
50 Cent later doubled down, writing that while Mamdani’s motives might be positive, “his tax plan is gonna run the big money out of the city and if he defunds the police they are gonna purge.” He ended his post by suggesting he might relocate: “All Roads lead to SHREVEPORT!”
In a lighthearted response after his election win, Mamdani appeared to troll the rapper by walking onstage to Ja Rule’s track “New York” during a celebration in Brooklyn.
