DJ Khaled has strong connections to Southern hip hop and he proved this on his first two albums. For years, Def Jam South has struggled and Ludacris was the only artist. Soon, he was absorbed into the mainstream Def Jam label. Def Jam would soon relieve Scarface of his duties with the label. In 2008, DJ Khaled was offered the job as President of Def Jam South.
During his time as president of the sub-label, DJ Khaled has done wonders for the label. He has added multiple artists to the label and he keeps the artists already on the label relevant. Def Jam has actually relied on its Southern branch for the past few years. Happy with the success of Rick Ross, Def Jam was built upon New York hip hop. The most-popular rapper from New York on the label was Fabolous and he does not sell well.
50 Cent, on the other hand, is a very popular rapper with a label of his own. Adding him to Def Jam would also add ten other artists to the label. For the past few years, 50 has struggled to keep fans, but a lot of the blame has fallen upon Interscope Records. In 2007, 50 Cent made it clear he was not going to re-sign with the label. Last summer, 50 Cent said he would find a distribution deal with an independent record label. But, during the height of his feud with Rick Ross, 50 Cent bragged of how he would head over to Def Jam to become Rick Ross' boss.
Sha Money XL, the co-founder of G-Unit Records, landed a deal as an A&R for Def Jam and the first deal he made was bringing G-Unit over to Def Jam. Right after he left Interscope Records, 50 Cent announced plans to expand his label. A few years ago, 50 Cent attempted to launch G-Unit South through Young Buck, but his feud with Buck derailed those plans. Still, 50 Cent would love to break into the Southern market and he has the perfect opportunity to do so with Def Jam. He has access to DJ Khaled and despite their feud, they could possibly work together to make money.
When he first arrived to Def Jam, Sha Money XL made it clear he was there to make money, not enemies and he offered an olive branch to Rick Ross. Once he heard Sha Money's statement, Rick Ross agreed there would be no trouble for him at Def Jam.