Saturday 4 February 2012

50 Cent


50 CENT

   Curtis James Jackson III (born July 6, 1975), better known by his stage name 50 Cent, is an American rapper, entrepreneur, investor, record producer, and actor. He rose to fame with the release of his albums Get Rich or Die Tryin' (2003) and The Massacre (2005). His album Get Rich or Die Tryin' has been certified six times platinum by the RIAA.

   Born in South Jamaica, Queens, Jackson began drug dealing at the age of twelve during the 1980s crack epidemic.After leaving drug dealing to pursue a rap career, he was shot at and struck by nine bullets during an incident in 2000. After releasing his album Guess Who's Back? in 2002, Jackson was discovered by rapper Eminem and signed to Interscope Records. With the help of Eminem and Dr. Dre, who produced his first major commercial successes, Jackson became one of the world's highest selling rappers. In 2003, he founded the record label G-Unit Records, which signed several successful rappers such as Young Buck, Lloyd Banks, and Tony Yayo.

  Jackson has engaged in feuds with other rappers including Ja Rule, Nas, Fat Joe, Jadakiss, Cam'ron, Puff Daddy, Rick Ross, and former G-Unit members The Game and Young Buck. He has also pursued an acting career, appearing in the semi-autobiographical film Get Rich or Die Tryin' in 2005, the Iraq War film Home of the Brave in 2006, and Righteous Kill in 2008. 50 Cent was ranked as the sixth best artist of the 2000s by Billboard magazine. The magazine also ranked him as the fourth top male artist and as the third top rapper behind Eminem and Nelly.Billboard magazine also ranked him as the sixth best and most successful Hot 100 Artist of the 2000s and as the number one rap artist of the 2000s.Billboard ranked his album Get Rich or Die Tryin' as the twelfth best album of the 2000s and his album The Massacre as the 37th best album of the 2000s.As of September 2011, 50 Cent is working on his yet-to-be-titled fifth studio album, which is set to be released in December 2011.


Early life:

   Curtis Jackson III grew up in the South Jamaica neighborhood of Queens, in New York City. He grew up without a father and was raised by his mother, Sabrina, who gave birth to him at the age of fifteen.

   Sabrina, a cocaine dealer, raised Jackson until the age of twelve, when she was killed in 1988. Twenty-seven at the time, she became unconscious after someone drugged her drink. She was then left for dead after the gas in her apartment was turned on and the windows shut closed.

   After her death, Jackson moved into his grandparents' house with his eight aunts and uncles.He recalls, "My grandmother told me, 'Your mother's not coming home. She's not gonna come back to pick you up. You're gonna stay with us now.' That's when I started adjusting to the streets a little bit".

   Jackson began boxing around the age of eleven.

   At fourteen, a neighbor opened a boxing gym for local kids.


   "When I wasn't killing time in school, I was sparring in the gym or selling crack on the strip", he recalled.In the mid 1980s, he competed in the Junior Olympics as an amateur boxer. He recounts, "I was competitive in the ring and hip-hop is competitive too... I think rappers condition themselves like boxers, so they all kind of feel like they're the champ".At the age of twelve, Jackson began dealing narcotics when his grandparents thought he was at after-school programs.He also took guns and drug money to school. In the tenth grade, he was caught by metal detectors at Andrew Jackson High School. He later stated, "I was embarrassed that I got arrested like that... After I got arrested I stopped hiding it. I was telling my grandmother [openly], 'I sell drugs.'"

   Following time spent in a correctional boot camp, Jackson adopted the nickname "50 Cent" as a metaphor for "change".The name was derived from Kelvin Martin, a 1980s Brooklyn robber known as "50 Cent". Jackson chose the name "because it says everything I want it to say. I'm the same kind of person 50 Cent was. I provide for myself by any means".


Personal life:

   Jackson has a tattoo of "Marquise" with an axe on his right biceps. "The axe is 'cause I'm a warrior. I don't want him to be one, though," he explains. He also has "50", "Southside", and "Cold World" inscribed on his back because "I'm a product of that environment. It's on my back, though, so it's all behind me."

Family:

   On October 13, 1997, Jackson's then-girlfriend Shaniqua Tompkins gave birth to a son, Marquise Jackson.

   The birth of his son changed Jackson's outlook on life: "When my son came into my life, my priorities changed, because I wanted to have the relationship with him, that I didn't have with my father." He credited his son for inspiring his career and being "motivation to go in a different direction".


Wealth:

   In 2007, Jackson was the second wealthiest performer in the rap industry, behind Jay-Z.He resides in Farmington, Connecticut, in the former mansion of ex-boxer Mike Tyson.

   He put the mansion for sale at $18.5 million to move closer to his son who lives in Long Island with his ex-girlfriend.On October 12, 2007, the Mayor of Bridgeport, Connecticut declared it "50 Cent Curtis Jackson Day". He was honored with a key to the city and an official proclamation.

   One of his homes in New York purchased for 2.4 million dollars in January 2007 and at the center of a lawsuit between Jackson and ex-girlfriend Shaniqua Tompkins caught fire on May 30, 2008 while he was out of town filming for a movie in Louisiana.

   In December 2008 Jackson told the Canadian press that he had been affected by the recession, losing several million dollars in the stock market as an investor. He also went on to say that he had been unable to sell his Connecticut mansion and pushed Before I Self-Destruct back because of the recent economic downturn.


Legal issues:

   On June 29, 1994, Jackson was arrested for helping to sell four vials of cocaine to an undercover police officer. He was arrested again three weeks later when police searched his home and found heroin, ten ounces of crack cocaine, and a starter gun.

   He was sentenced to three to nine years in prison, but managed to serve six months in a shock incarceration boot camp where he earned his GED. Jackson said that he did not use cocaine himself, he only sold it.

   His ex-girlfriend Shaniqua Tompkins sued Jackson for $50 million, claiming that he said that he would take care of her for life; the suit, which includes 15 claims was later dismissed by a judge, calling it "an unfortunate tale of a love relationship gone sour."

   50 Cent was sentenced to two years probation on July 22, 2005 from an incident in May 2004 when 50 Cent jumped into the audience after being hit with a water bottle.He was charged with three counts of assault and battery.

Discography:

GET RICH OR DIE TRYIN'
(2003)

   Get Rich or Die Tryin' is the debut studio album of American rapper 50 Cent, released February 4, 2003, on Aftermath Entertainment under a joint venture with Shady Records and distribution by Interscope Records. Its initially planned release was pushed seven days ahead due to heavy bootlegging and Internet leakage. The album featured production from Dr. Dre and Eminem, among others and featured guest appearances from Eminem and then-newcomers Young Buck, Lloyd Banks and Tony Yayo.

   The album debuted at number one on the U.S. Billboard 200 chart, selling 872,000 copies in its first week.It spawned five singles, including the number 1-hits "In da Club", "21 Questions", "Wanksta", and the international single "P.I.M.P.". By December 2003, Get Rich or Die Tryin' had sold six million copies in the United States and was certified sextuple platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America. As of January 2011, it has sold eight million copies in the US, making it the fourth best-selling hip hop album in the US.Upon its release, the album received positive reviews from most music critics and was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Rap Album, losing to OutKast's Speakerboxxx/The Love Below at the 46th Grammy Awards.

THE MASSACRE
(2005)

   The Massacre is the second studio album by American rapper 50 Cent, released March 3, 2005 on Aftermath Entertainment and Interscope Records in the United States. Its initially planned release was pushed five days ahead to avoid Internet leakage. The album debuted at number one on the US Billboard 200 chart, selling over 1.14 million copies in its first week. Upon its release, The Massacre received generally positive reviews from most music critics. It was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Rap Album, losing to Kanye West's Late Registration at the 48th Grammy Awards.

CURTIS
(2007)

   Curtis is the third studio album by American rapper 50 Cent, released September 11, 2007, on Aftermath Entertainment and Interscope Records. The album features production from Dr. Dre, Eminem, and Timbaland, among others. Music writers have noted that 50 Cent divides between "hard" songs and "soft" songs on the album.

   Upon its release, Curtis was met with significant commercial success. The album debuted at number two on the US Billboard 200 chart, selling 691,000 copies in its first week. Upon its release, the album received generally mixed to positive reviews from most music critics. After years of slumping sales, the album's competition with Kanye West's Graduation and the resulting record breaking performances both albums displayed was considered to be a "great day for hip hop."

BEFORE I SELF DESTRUCT
(2009)

   Before I Self Destruct is the fourth studio album by American rapper 50 Cent, released November 9, 2009 on Interscope Records in the United States. It is his final solo release for his current contract with Interscope Records, excluding a "greatest hits" album.A feature film, also titled Before I Self Destruct was also made, and is available within the album packaging. The Invitation Tour took place in promotion of the album and his then upcoming studio album Black Magic, which has since been shelved.50 Cent told MTV that he named the album Before I Self Destruct because "it could potentially happen." 50 Cent described the album as "darker" and more "aggressive" than his previous album and stated, "hands down, [it] will be the best record of that time period".

And now fellows let's dwelve into real art:


No comments:

Post a Comment