The 2004 Star Mega Jam concert tour in Nigeria, headlined by American rapper 50 Cent, came to an abrupt end after a physical altercation over seating on a chartered flight involving Nigerian rapper Eedris Abdulkareem. The dispute, which occurred on a plane during the tour, led to 50 Cent leaving Nigeria early and Eedris claiming he was blacklisted from parts of the Nigerian music industry for years.
The Star Mega Jam and the Stage Warning
In December 2004, Nigeria hosted the Star Mega Jam, a major concert tour that ran across four cities in five days. The headline act was 50 Cent, who was then one of the most dominant rappers globally. Nigerian artists, including Eedris Abdulkareem, were also booked for the tour. Eedris, known for his outspoken nature, made his feelings about the billing clear during an early show, telling the crowd, "50 Cent na oga for America, me I be Oga for rap for Nigeria."
The Plane Dispute
The tour's remaining stops required a chartered flight, and it was on this plane that the conflict began. The front seats had been reserved for 50 Cent and his team. Eedris and several Nigerian acts were either already seated there or attempted to sit there, depending on the account. Eedris claimed he and other Nigerian artists had been seated for a long time before being told to move so 50 Cent's section could be cleared, and he refused, viewing it as an insult to his standing as an artist in his own country. 50 Cent gave a different account on Hot 97's Funkmaster Flex show, saying Eedris and his group had tried to sit in seats already assigned to his crew. A journalist reportedly on the flight, writing for The Guardian, backed 50 Cent's version publicly.
Physical Clash and Tour Cancellation
What is not disputed is that the disagreement turned physical. Members of both camps clashed, and by some accounts, the fight spilled out onto the tarmac at Murtala Muhammed Airport before being broken up. 50 Cent did not perform at the remaining shows and left Nigeria shortly after the incident, reportedly on the advice of the American Embassy in Lagos, cutting the tour short. For Eedris, the fallout lasted far longer than the tour itself. He has said the incident effectively got him blacklisted in parts of the Nigerian music industry for years afterward, a cost he described as sacrificing his career to stand up for how local artists were being treated.
Public Apology and Later Claims
The two rappers eventually made peace. At the 2008 Kora Awards, mediated by organiser Ernest Adjovi, Eedris apologised to 50 Cent on stage, later saying it took swallowing his pride to do it. The incident came up again in 2021, when Eedris posted on Instagram accusing Charly Boy, who led the Performing Musicians Association of Nigeria at the time of the fight and had been asked to help resolve it, of taking ₦70 million from Nigerian Breweries to quiet the matter down. Eedris also claimed that a DJ who recorded the entire altercation on the plane was later arrested by police to silence him before relocating to the United States. These claims have not been independently verified and remain Eedris's own account of what happened behind the scenes.
The Star Mega Jam continued for several more years before it was cancelled in 2011 and never returned.
