WHO IS 50 CENT

50 CENT BIOGRAPHY

Among the masters of the hip-hop industry is the man with a gunshot wound some would mistake for a dimple. He is without a doubt one of those rappers who are the real deal - the ones whose lyrics are based on their actual experiences as gangsters.

50 Cent, born Curtis James Jackson III in New York on July 6 of 1975, had begun boxing at 11 and drug dealing at 12. After a few arrests, Jackson started rapping over instrumentals in his friend’s basement not long before he got introduced to Run DMC’s Jam Master Jay, who would soon become his mentor.

He got signed to Columbia Records in 1999, where he would produce 36 songs in one week, 18 of which were in the unreleased album, “Power of the Dollar”. He was initially known underground for years before he became mainstream. He released a single called, “How to Rob”, that caught the attention of many and was met with mixed reactions. After a shooting that almost killed him in 2000, he was dropped by Columbia Records.

He released mixtapes until Eminem took notice and signed him into Shady/Aftermath Records, and that was thanks to his bouncy single, “Wanksta”. 2003 came, and 50 Cent finally released his first studio album, “Get Rich or Die Tryin’”. The album debuted at #1 on the Billboard 200, got certified 9x platinum by the RIAA, and paved the way for the creation of his own record label, G-Unit.

“Behind me is infinite power. Before me is endless possibility. Around me is boundless opportunity. My strength is mental, physical and spiritual”