Pop Culture

Cam’ron Recalls Pulling a Real Gun During ‘Paid in Full’ Audition: ‘I Got to Get This F*cking Part'

The rapper and podcaster went to extremes to land the role of Rico in the 2002 crime-drama.

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MIAMI BEACH, FLORIDA - DECEMBER 03: Cam'ron visits SiriusXM Studios on December 03, 2025 in Miami Beach, Florida.
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Key Takeaways

  • Cam’ron said on Talk With Flee that he pulled a real pistol on his scene partner during his Paid In Full audition to land the role of Rico.
  • The rapper said he had no acting experience prior to the role, but Paid In Full producer Dame Dash could back up his account, which he also told on All the Smoke in 2023.
  • 50 Cent claimed he acquired the rights to develop a Paid In Full TV adaptation last year, which prompted Dash to call him Cam’ron’s “new boss.”

Pulling out a gun during his Paid In Full audition landed Cam’ron the role of Rico in the 2002 crime drama.

The rapper interviewed The Drop: A Snowfall Saga stars Aleyse Shannon and Symba on the Wednesday (Nov. 4) episode of Talk With Flee when he discussed his personal acting history. The rapper and podcaster starred in Paid In Full as Rico, based on late Harlem drug kingpin Alpo Martinez, opposite acting veterans Wood Harris and Mekhi Phifer.

“I've never acted before in my life, but the story was from Harlem,” Cam’ron said around the eight-minute mark of the video below. “When I went to audition I'm like, ‘I got to get this fucking part.’”

“And when I was reading, I pulled out a real pistol on the n***a I was reading with and the n***a like, ‘Yo, what's up?’” Cam continued. “And I'm like, I went to n***a, I said, ‘I need this part. I really need this part.’”

While Cam’ron admitted that he doesn’t have the audition tape, he said that Paid In Full producer and his former friend Dame Dash can co-sign him. The “Oh Boy” artist also retold the story on a 2023 episode of All the Smoke.

Last September, 50 Cent claimed to have acquired the rights to Paid In Full to develop a television adaptation, which was criticized by Dame, who said the Get Rich or Die Tryin’ rapper was Cam’s “new boss.” In response, Cam’ron called the former Roc-A-Fella Records head a “chatty patty.”

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