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a): I sell crack and I will kill you,
b): Despite being very rich, I will still kill you, or
C): Girl, lemmie get in those drawers!
The Rap Critic on 50 Cent's favorite themes

Curtis James Jackson III (born July 6, 1975 in Queens, New York), also known by his gang name 50 Cent, is an American rapper and sometimes actor.

He is known for surviving being shot nine times in 2000, days before the planned release of his debut studio album; the album was never officially released. He is associated with Dr. Dre and Eminem, as well as his posse, G-Unit. He was the face of rap music during much of the Zeroes, and his first two studio albums have sold a combined twenty-one million copies, and has starred in several films and video games, such as Get Rich Or Die Tryin', 50 Cent: Bulletproof, and 50 Cent: Blood on the Sand. He is also a producer and supporting actor on the Starz original series Power.


Songs of note:

  • "How to Rob"
  • "In Da Club"
  • "Wanksta"
  • "21 Questions"
  • "P.I.M.P."
  • "If I Can't"
  • "Disco Inferno"
  • "Candy Shop"
  • "Just a Lil Bit"
  • "Outta Control"
  • "Ayo Technology"
  • "Baby By Me"
  • "My Life"

Albums:

  • Get Rich Or Die Tryin' (2003)
  • The Massacre (2005)
  • Curtis (2007)
  • Before I Self Destruct (2009)
  • Animal Ambition (2014)
  • Street King Immortal (in Development Hell)


Tropes found in his music include:

  • Arch-Enemy: Unquestionably Ja Rule; 50 Cent has said that they'll probably never be friends. He's also had beefs with The Game (Rapper), Fat Joe, Jadakiss, Nas, and Rick Ross.
  • Animated Music Video: The "Piggy Bank" video was done completely with CGI, which allowed for some rather unflattering portrayals of some of 50's rivals he calls out in the song, with Jadakiss depicted as a Ninja Turtle, The Game as a Mr. Potato Head, and Nas as a little boy in a Superman t-shirt.
  • Big Applesauce: Jamaica, Queens.
  • Bulletproof Vest: His Iconic Item. Notably, his clothing line originally came in XXL only, in order to fit over them. Saying this, though, 50 Cent refers to his vests as being made out of Teflon rather than Kevlar. Teflon's only used to coat armor-piercing bullets (otherwise, they would wear down the rifling in the barrel much faster than regular bullets); having it on your vest will not help you.
  • Cursed with Awesome: His distinctive voice partially resulted from his injuries, not like it wasn't awesome before the fact, though.
  • The Diss Track: He literally built his career on attacking other rappers, with varying degrees of seriousness.
  • Face on the Cover: Not that this isn't the norm for his brand of rap, but you'd think he'd at least come up with a more inventive album cover: His first two albums featured a shot from him roughly from the waist up and shirtless, the following two featured a close-up shot of him. It wasn't until the fifth, Animal Ambition, that something else is featured (a shot of a lion's face).
  • Freestyle Version: Frequently on his and G-Unit's mixtapes.
  • Gangsta Rap: His music is a classic example of the genre, and Fiddy's got the OG cred to back it up. (For starters, he actually survived getting shot when he was young).
  • In Da Club: His song of the same name is the Trope Namer.
  • Intercourse with You: "Candy Shop" and "Amusement Park". "Amusement Park" wasn't as successful because fans realized it was literally the same song as "Candy Shop" with the metaphor changed. There's also "First Date" featuring Too $hort and his guest verse on Olivia's "In My Bedroom".
  • Made of Iron: How else do you think he's still standing after taking nine bullets?
  • Metallicar Syndrome: Aversion: "Gotta Make It to Heaven"
    In the hood they identify niggaz by they cars / So I switch off bass to stay off the radar.
  • Murder Ballad: Murder is a frequent theme in his songs.
  • Non-Actor Vehicle: His film career (with a filmography rivalling that of Nicolas Cage in recent years) is basically this.
  • Obfuscating Stupidity: He's one of the richest musicians alive. Most of it isn't through music. And it is highlighted in almost all of his interviews and even some of his music: The very first line of "I Get Money" is about his deal with Vitamin Water.
  • Playing with Syringes: The beginning of the video for "In Da Club" features 50 being designed by scientists in a lab, while Dr. Dre and Eminem look on approvingly in lab coats.
  • Rage Against the Mentor: Got some of this from The Game, whom 50 kicked out of G-Unit for "disloyalty" at what proved to be the high point of both artists' careers. He's also got this later from some of the rest of G-Unit, most notably Young Buck.
  • Rags to Riches: He's one of the few musicians that can't be accused of selling out, as his entire thing is this trope and is the theme of many of his songs.
  • Scary Black Man: Many rappers are scared to beef with 50 Cent.
  • Walking Shirtless Scene: Well, it's either that or a bulletproof vest.
  • Web Original: a lot. He really loves to use the Internet for promotion. Some videos that he produces are made to promote other artists and others as Take Thats against other musicians that he dislikes. Some of them are really funny. And that's not to mention all his Instagram content.
  • With Us or Against Us: How his beef with The Game started.
  • Wolverine Publicity: Although not always for music. That being said his last features outside of the world of rap were, er, Nicole Scherzinger and Ed Sheeran.

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