50 Cent from the album Get Rich or Die Tryin'

50 Cent




50 Cent from the album Get Rich or Die Tryin'


50 Cent (a.k.a. Fiddy, or Fifty; born Curtis
James Jackson on July 6, 1976^[1]
in Queens, New York) is
a popular African-American rapper.

Biography






Once almost unknown outside his hometown of southside Jamaica,
Queens, 50 Cent is currently one of the most well-known and commercially
successful rappers of the decade. Because the success of an artist in gangsta
rap often depends on street credibility and reputation, Interscope Records has sold 50 Cent as the
"real deal". His mother was killed in a drug deal. He has been shot
nine times, and he built a large rap empire in New York City before ever signing a major
record deal.


50 Cent poses with police from the NYPD on the set of the
"Hate It or Love It" music video.


50 Cent's continued success seems guaranteed by his large underground
fanbase and the street credibility he has gained by appearing on almost every
major mix tape sold in New York
in the past few years. The rapper, who was the first to sign to Shady Records,
was scouted before knowing Eminem. He is currently signed to Eminem's Shady
Records and Dr.
Dre's Aftermath Entertainment.


Eminem first encountered 50 Cent with MTV News reporter Sway
Calloway, apparently having not heard any of his performances before seeing him
in person. He then appeared on the 8 Mile soundtrack with an accompanying song and video
("Wanksta") that immediately went into heavy rotation on BET, MTV, and radio
stations across the country.


Before signing to Interscope, 50 Cent was living with his grandparents. He
soon became immersed in the drug trade, hustling around his native neighborhood
by the name of "Boo Boo" with fellow Queens
native Tony
Yayo. In June of 1994,
Jackson was
arrested on felony drug charges. Being a second time offender, Jackson was able to plead out of significant
prison time by accepting seven months in a "shock incarceration" boot
camp. He would later boast about this period as his doing "seven to
nine." He became a father to a son, Marquise, in 1997.


Jackson met up with Jam
Master Jay of Run-DMC
fame and was signed to his label JMJ. Once Jay had taught him the basics, 50
left the label in search of someone who could help him achieve his dream of rap
stardom. He teamed up with the hip-hop production duo Track Masters, who had
recognized his talent for incisive lyrics. 50 Cent was signed to Columbia
Records in 1999.


"How to Rob", the humorous ode to robbing a slew of industry
rappers, was an instant hit for New
York radio. His debut album Power of the Dollar was never released, due
to his shooting in 2000
that Columbia Records used as incentive to drop 50 Cent.

The support of Eminem and Dr. Dre




50 Cent is the Future was heard by a very impressed
Eminem who brought the rapper to Dr. Dre's attention. They endorsed the idea of
signing a deal and working with 50 Cent on an album. Eminem was quick to get
onto New York's
hip-hop radio circuit with the message that 50 Cent was his favorite rapper of
the moment. After a meeting with Interscope and Eminem in Los Angeles, 50 Cent quickly signed a deal
with Interscope.


Before starting production of his new album with Eminem and Dre, 50 quickly
released another bootleg album of his raps over stolen beats entitled No
Mercy, No Fear aimed at rapper Ja Rule.
Although the song "Wanksta" was never meant as a radio single, under
the barrage of 50 Cent albums and the buzz over Eminem's words of praise and
subsequent deal with 50 Cent, "Wanksta"
quickly became the most requested song on New York radio.


Capitalizing on the appropriated song's success, it was added to Eminem's
hit movie soundtrack 8 Mile and had its own video release, quickly entering heavy
rotation on MTV, BET, MuchMusic, and radio stations around the country

The popularity of G-Unit




In its first week of release, 50's major label debut Get Rich Or Die
Tryin' sold 872,000 units. The album was certified gold in its first week
and platinum the next, and it broke the record for first week sales of any
major label debut in the entire Soundscan era. On April 12, 2004 Get Rich or Die
Tryin was certified seven times platinum by the RIAA.


On March 3,
2005, 50 released
the album "The Massacre". It was originally entitled St.
Valentine's Day Massacre, but changed when the album release date was set
back. He scored a hit with the album's first single "Candy Shop". The
album's second single, "Just A Lil' Bit" peaked at #3 on the
Billboard Hot 100.


After the success of 50 Cent's Get Rich Or Die Tryin', Interscope
granted 50 Cent his own label, like his mentor Eminem. In 2003, G-Unit
Records officially came into being. 50 Cent appointed his manager Sha Money
XL as the president. In 2003, the label signed on Lloyd Banks,
Tony Yayo
and Young
Buck as the established members of G-Unit. In 2004, The Game, R & B singer Olivia,
and DJ
Whoo Kid were signed to the label. Recently Spider Loc,
Mobb Deep,
Mase, and M.O.P. joined
G-Unit Records. 50 Cent is also scouting gangsta crooner Kokane, Jayo Felony
and Lil'
Scrappy to join the label.

Other Endorsements




After the release of Beg For Mercy from his
group G-Unit, he teamed up with Reebok to release his own G-Unit Sneakers. He
also invested in bottled water and his own clothing line. 50 Cent appeared on
an episode of The Simpsons entitled, "Pranksta Rap" in
February, 2005.


A video game starring 50 Cent, called 50 Cent: Bulletproof, will be availible on
November
13 2005 for PS2. It is published by VU Games. It
will be available on the PlayStation 2 and the Xbox, and there is
another version in production for the PlayStation Portable.

Film career




50 Cent will be starring in the semi-autobiographical film called Get Rich or Die Tryin',
which will be released November 9, 2005.

Literature




50 Cent has released a memoir book (his first) about his life up to his
success. The book is titled From Pieces
to Weight: Once Upon a Time in Southside Queens and was released on
August 9, 2005. Written by Curtis "50 Cent" Jackson with Kris Ex; From Pieces To Weight:
Once Upon A Time In Southside Queens released by MTV Books, is 50's debut autobiography.




Disputes and controversy



Ja Rule and Murder, Inc
Records




Before even signing to Eminem's and Dr. Dre's label, 50 Cent was engaged in
a well-publicized dispute with rival rapper Ja Rule and his
label The Inc. Records. The rappers engaged in numerous
mixtape "disses," but have since ended the conflict. The conflict
stemmed from Jackson's
alleged robbery of Ja Rule's jewelry, which led to a confrontation and 50
Cent's stabbing.


Before the release of Get Rich Or Die Tryin, Murder, Inc alongside The Source began a smear campaign against
the rapper. A restraining order document was floating around the Internet
stating that 50 Cent had placed label CEO, Irv Gotti
and rapper Black Child in the document forging a belief that 50 Cent is a
"snitch" or a police informant. Although 50 Cent dismissed the claims
of a restraining order, the bad publicity continues to be a tool used among
various rappers who engage in beef with G-Unit.


This was one of the most well known feuds in hip-hop history. Ja Rule
eventaully tried to squash the beef with 50 Cent by using Louis
Farrakhan in a televised interview. Ja Rule soon lost credibilty when the
interview was done a day before his album Blood From My Eye was
released, leading 50 Cent to dismiss the interview as a blantant publicity
stunt. 50 Cent had not commented much on Ja Rule's and Irv Gotti's situation.
The FBI is probing Murder Inc.'s ties to drug-kingpin Kenneth "Supreme" McGriff
who is possibly involved in the murder of Jam Master Jay.


According to website The Smoking Gun a 2003 search warrant
affidavit for the Manhattan
offices of the Murder, Inc. record label showed that McGriff, an incarcerated
Drug Lord with ties to Murder Inc., was still trying to kill 50 Cent and that
he "communicates with Murder, Inc. employees concerning the target."
An excerpt of the affidavit reads:


"The investigation has
uncovered a conspiracy involving McGriff and others to murder a rap artist who
has relesed songs containingh lyrics regarding McGriff's criminal activities.
The rap artist was shot in 2000, survived and there after refused to cooperate
with law enforcement regarding the shooting. Messages transmitted over the
Murder Inc. Pager indicate that McGriff is involved in an ongoing plot to kill
this rap artist, and that he communicates with Murder Inc. employees concerning
the target".

New York Rappers




50 Cent also has a rivalry with Shyne, Jadakiss, Nas,
and Fat Joe.
He claimed that Nas had made disparaging comments about him and his G-Unit camp
while performing at a New York
concert. The rapper has denounced Nas as a traitor over the allying himself
with Ja Rule and Irv Gotti. 50 Cent points out that Jadakiss and Fat Joe were
notorious for allowing themselves to partner up with Ja Rule while filming a
video in which the rapper took shots at him. He recorded the "Piggy
Bank" and attacked directly at Jadakiss and Fat Joe for their association
with Ja Rule. Shyne was named as an enemy of 50 Cent. Shyne had Irv Gotti
produce his album, and 50 Cent also attacked him for this association. Even
though things cooled down, at 2005 MTV Video Music Awards, Fat Joe made a
disparaging comment about G-Unit during a performance. 50 Cent and G-Unit retaliated on set by shouting obsenities toward
Fat Joe and Terror Squad.


50 Cent has a long-standing dispute with former G-Unit artists Bang 'Em
Smurf and Domination over internal conflicts. On the song "Love Me"
off the 8 Mile
soundtrack, 50 Cent criticized Lil' Kim for having breast implants and discusses why he
refused her request to be in a video clip for her single "Magic Stick",
which he refused to record with her, citing that song was originally entitled
to Miami rapper
Trina.


50 Cent also had a little known feud with Jay-Z in 1999. Jay-Z
did not take to kindly to 50 Cent's mention of him on "How To Rob"
and responded with a line in his song "It's Hot". 50 Cent responded
with "Be A Gentleman," though the track was never heard by many due
to 50 Cent getting dropped from Columbia Records after his shooting. 50 Cent
and Jay-Z eventually squashed their beef, and they toured together in 2003.
Jay-Z and 50 Cent even appeared in a Reebok commercial together promoting their
sneaker lines, called S. Carter and the G-Unit, respectively.

The Game




50 Cent currently has an escalating feud with The Game. The Game, who was previously signed to
G-Unit, was booted by 50 Cent. Fans mostly believed that 50 Cent and The Game
were bonding at the time of The
Documentary's release. The Game's major debut album was surrounded by
controversy. Right after its release, 50 Cent felt that the rapper was disloyal
for saying he wanted to work with artists G-Unit were feuding with and he
formally dismissed the rapper.


50 Cent also claimed that he was not getting his proper credit for the
debut of the album. During that dispute, a member of The Game's entourage was
shot and wounded after confrontation at Hot 97. After the
situation between them escalated, 50 Cent and The Game decided to hold a press
conference to announce their reconciliation. Many fans felt that the supposed
feud, and particularly the incident at the radio station was a publicity stunt
designed to boost the sales of the two albums the pair had just released.
Nevertheless, even after the situation had apparently deflated, 50 Cent and
G-Unit continued to feud with The Game, denouncing his street credibilty in the
media and claiming that without their support, he will not score a hit from his
second album. 50 Cent also sued The Game's manager Jimmy Henchmen over
unauthorized filming for a documentary about Kelvin
Martin. The Game during a performance at the Summer Jam launched "G-Unot".


After the performance at Summer Jam, The Game responded with a hard hitting
diss titled "300 Bars and Runnin'", which directly
addresses 50 Cent and G-Unit. 50 Cent has mixed feelings towards the diss, but
nevertheless responded through his "Piggybank" video, which features
The Game dressed as a Mr. Potato Head and parodies many other nemesises.
This was the first of many feuds where two rappers from the same label were involved against each
other.

Other Feuds




While appearing at the Summer Jam XI concert in New York, 50 Cent and his members of G-Unit
were being criticized for speaking out against other notable artists including
R&B singer R.
Kelly. Before he was to come on stage, 50 Cent mentioned R. Kelly's pending
child pornography trial. He and his crew received
mixed emotions from the crowd and chairs were thrown onstage, forcing 50 Cent
and his G-Unit crew to leave the stage for safety reasons.


50 Cent was also dramatically booed off stage at the Reading Festival while on tour in England. A rain
of bottles hit him and his G-Unit crew as they came onstage. Chants of "50
Cent is a wanker" were heard as the group was jeered and heckled
throughout the short appearance.


The rapper also had a fall-out with Eminem's former deejay Green
Lantern. The deejay has been labeled a "snitch" and
"traitor" for his apparent phone conversation with rival Jadakiss.
The rapper had a phone interview with DJ Green Lantern over his the feud with
50 Cent. The deejay was apparently encouraging Jadakiss to "deliver a
major blow" to 50 Cent. The rapper never confronted the deejay about the
situation, but it did affect the relationship within the Shady Records. The
situation forced Green Lantern to leave Shady Records and other ventures
associated with Eminem.


On a taping of The O'Reilly Factor, conservative commentator Bill O'Reilly has insisted boycotts
against rap music. O'Reilly named 50 Cent as a target of his crusade to stop
rappers who promote bad behavior from endorsing mainstream merchandise. He
criticized shoe maker Reebok for partnering up with 50 Cent to endorse his G-Unit
Sneakers. O'Reilly has rallied a boycott against the shoe maker.
Despite the boycott, sales remain excellent, and Reebok still continues to
endorse 50 Cent's products. However, a television advertisement for Reebok
which featured 50 Cent was recently taken off air in the United
Kingdom. The advertisement contained lyrics from one of 50's tracks, which
resulted in complaints against their violent imagery.


50 Cent sued a Philadelphia car dealer for $1 million for using his
likeness in advertisements without permission. 50 Cent described himself in the
lawsuit as "a hugely popular and extremely successful hip-hop music artist
... known for his good looks, 'gangsta' image and hard knocks success
story." The auto dealer, Gary Barbera Enterprises, used the slogan
"Just Like 50 Says!" and the artist's picture in a print
advertisement for a Dodge Magnum.


50 Cent was collaborating with talent in Pittsburgh.
Confusion escalated into shouting, until 50 Cent was alleged to have thrown a Stouffer's
frozen dinner through the recording booth glass, injuring a person's face. 50 Cent
is alleged to have immediately apologized for the accident and shuttled the
injured intern to University Of Pittsburgh Medical
Presbyterian Hospital where he was treated and released.

Studio
Albums





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DVDs





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Singles