Tony Yayo reflected on one of the most dangerous moments of his early G-Unit rise, recalling how his Bentley was shot up outside Harlem’s Apollo Theater during the height of his crew’s beef with Jimmy Henchman.
Speaking on the Joe and Jada Podcast, the G-Unit rapper described the incident as happening shortly after he was released from prison, when he says he was moving recklessly without fully grasping how tense the streets had become.
“I’m fresh out of jail, I don’t know nothing,” Yayo said. “All I know is 50 got n***as on. I was with this n***a from 1998… I’m fresh out of jail, n***as give me a Bentley. I got jewelry, I got the Jacob watch, fur on. I’m taking chances that I could have got smoke any day.”
According to Yayo, he was traveling all over New York, Brooklyn, Harlem, everywhere, without concern for the growing animosity surrounding 50 Cent and his circle.
“I’m in the Bentley. I’m everywhere, anywhere. I justdidn’t care,” he admitted.
The situation escalated when DJ Whoo Kid convinced him to attend the Mixtape Awards, which Yayo later realized was being hosted by Henchman, someone deeply connected to ongoing street tensions and industry rivalries, including issues involving The Game.
“I didn’t know Apollo was going to be Rikers Island when I got there,” Yayo said. “Blood n***as in there. Crazy shit. Wasn’t no chicks… Who you think it was hosted by? Jimmy Henchman.”
Yayo recalled a tense face-to-face moment where Henchman attempted to greet him, but Yayo refused to acknowledge him.
“He got his hand out. I’m like, ‘Yo, I can’t do that,’” Yayo explained. “If I don’t fuck with you, I don’t fuck with you… I told him, ‘Get the fuck out of here.’”
The confrontation quickly spiraled, with bottles, weapons, and potential chaos erupting around the venue. Later that same night, Yayo says gunfire followed him outside.
“So I got the Bentley and the BP. I jump into BP," said Yayo. "N***a came and walked by, lit the Bentley up in Harlem. That’s why I always say, watch them Harlem streets."