50 Cent is part of a lot of groundbreaking business deals related to the music industry. This is one of them. SOHH brought the following to our attention about iTunes and 50 Cent’s Before I Self Destruct:

Like an NFL coaching staff making in-game adjustments on the fly, Interscope’s Jimmy Iovine and Steve Berman did some last-minute maneuvering around the release of 50 Cent’s Before I Self Destruct following worldwide Internet leaks weeks prior to the original street date. In rapid succession, they pushed forward the physical release date from Nov. 23 to Nov. 17 — the soonest the CD could be manufactured and shipped — while also working out a one-week exclusive with iTunes for the digital album, to take effect Nov. 10. In return, iTunes agreed to go against its standard policy and “locked” the album, with only the single available a la carte, selling 46k album downloads during the exclusive window. Additionally, the compilers of the charts agreed to include the initial iTunes sales in the total for first week of general release, which is now looking in the 140-150k range. That won’t challenge Columbia’s John Mayer, now a lock for #1 with 275-300k. (Hits Daily Double)