50 Cent - He’ll Get Rich or Die Trying
Curtis James Jackson, more frequently known as 50 Cent, Fifty, or Fiddy, is one of the most prominent and successful rap musicians of the current decade. Though he has had a strong ‘underground’ following in New York for some time, he rose suddenly to widespread recognition with the release of his first major album, ‘Get Rich Quick or Die Tryin’’, in 2003.
50 Cent was born on July 6th, 1975 in South Jamaica, Queens, and has lived in New York his whole life. His father left the family when he was still a baby, and his mother was shot dead during a drug deal when he was only 8, so 50 Cent was raised primarily by his grandparents.
With dreams of becoming a heavyweight boxer, 50 Cent instead became involved in the illicit drug trade as a teenager. He was arrested a couple of times for felony drug charges, but was able to avoid doing serious prison time by serving 7 months in an incarceration ‘boot camp’.
50 Cent began his rapping career studying under Jay Master Jay from Run DMC, signing on with his label in the late 1990’s. He then went on to sign on with Columbia Records in 2000 and recorded his first full length album, ‘Power of the Dollar’. Unfortunately, in May of 2000, 50 Cent was shot three times in a drive-by style shooting. It is widely stated that he was shot nine times, though this is an exaggeration; he was shot at nine times and hit three times. Though not critically wounded, the incident won him enough attention to scare Columbia Records into dropping his deal without ever releasing the album.
After meeting with fellow rap stars Eminem and Dr. Dre, 50 Cent signed on with Eminem’s label Aftermath/Shady & Interscope. With Eminem and Dr. Dre’s backing, 50 Cent released his first major album, ‘Get Rich Quick or Die Tryin’’, in 2003. The album was an enormous success, going nearly platinum in the first week, breaking records for the most units ever sold in a first week. In March of 2005, 50 Cent released his 2nd album, ‘The Massacre’, which has also been highly successful.
50 Cent now has his own record label, ‘G-Unit Records’. With the endorsement of popular rappers like Eminem and Dr. Dre, a large underground following, and the actual experience of having been involved in the kinds of violent crimes that are the subject of his music, 50 Cent is already an icon in the rap music industry and will likely remain so for years to come.
Written by Tuppy on October 4th, 2006 with
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