The entertainer took to Instagram to respond, humorously pointing out that their short-lived romance ended more than two decades ago.

The exchange began during Vivica A. Fox’s appearance at the Ultimate Women’s Expo last weekend. When an audience member asked for life advice, the 61-year-old actress didn’t hold back. “Don’t date 50 Cent, don’t date no damn rappers,” she said instantly, drawing cheers and laughter from the crowd. She stood up and added, “Facts! Facts! Yes! Just so you know, it took me years to be able to laugh about it. I had to learn to laugh not to cry no more, but I did it.”

Not one to let such comments slide, 50 Cent reacted on Monday with a clever Instagram post. He shared an AI-generated image portraying himself as Morpheus from The Matrix, holding both the red and blue pills. In the caption, he wrote, “Either way I’m a have that ass in the matrix, you know I love me some you girl,” before adding the punchline: “but Damn it’s been 22 years Vivica. @50centaction.”

The two first got together in 2003 after meeting at the BET Awards. Their relationship quickly became public when they attended the MTV Video Music Awards that same year. Though their romance lasted less than a year, they later reconnected professionally—Fox appeared in the music video for 50 Cent’s 2009 track “Do You Think About Me.”

Over the years, the former couple has occasionally thrown shade at each other online. Despite the playful digs, Fox once referred to 50 Cent as the “love of my life” during a 2021 VladTV interview. Responding to that comment in a later podcast, 50 Cent seemed at peace with their past, saying, “I’m never bothered by when she says that. At the time that we actually connected with each other, we were unconscious of everything else.” Clearly, even after all these years, their story still makes headlines.