Nickname
Interscope
Fiddy
Boo Boo
Height
6' (1.83 m)
Biography
Born in the South Jamaica section of Queens, Curtis "50 Cent" Jackson has lived in New York City all his life. Raised by his grandparents after his father ran out and his mother was shot when he was only eight. Growing up, the Queens rapper originally wanted to be a heavyweight boxer, but eventually fell back on rapping. DJs had taken it upon themselves to release two Best of 50 Cent mix CDs, before he had even signed to a major label. 50 Cent hit the scene with "How To Rob An Industry Nigga" and he's been on a rampage ever since dealing with bootleggers, label back stabbing and other platinum selling artists trying to get at him physically.
In 1999 his album Power of the Dollar, was heavily bootlegged and Trackmasters/Columbia never released it. Supposedly, Trackmasters weren't comfortable with him being caught up in the streets and getting shot three days before filming the video for "Thug Love," (with Destiny's Child) -- his first single. 50 was shot nine times that night, two shots hitting him in the head, the bullet that struck his face he carries as a reminder of what happened.
That event led to the fall out with Columbia and negotiating his release from their grasps. He still showed love and rhymed over a Trackmasters produced remix of "I'm Gonna Be Alright" on J-Lo's latest album, but rivals at Murder Inc. had 50 cut from the track which could have launched the rapper. This all changed in one night when Eminem said on a radio show that "50 Cent is definitely my favorite rapper right now, he's the only one keeping it real." The very next day a bidding war started on 50, ending when 50 signed to Eminem's very own label Shady/Aftermath. 50 Cent's fame has exploded, being produced by Dr. Dre and Eminem and finally making his debut album "Get rich or Die Tryin'." 50 has full access and advantage of the streets through mix-tapes; that's his forum because he controls it. 50 Cent is the most anticipated artist of 2003. It's well deserved because he's "been patiently waiting."$PAGE$
On October 13, 1997, 50 Cent's then-girlfriend Shaniqua Tompkins gave birth to a son, Marquise Jackson.[3][62] The birth of his son changed his 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".[63] He credited his son for inspiring his career and being "motivation to go in a different direction".[64] He also has a younger cousin, Michael Francis, who lived with him when he was a child.[9] Two Five earned the nickname "25 Cent" for being his younger counterpart and he raps under that stage name.[9]
50 Cent 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",[32] 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".[32] 50 Cent dated actress Vivica A. Fox in 2003. After a few months, he announced their split up on the The Howard Stern Show when pictures from a photo shoot they did ended up on the cover of Today's Black Woman magazine without his knowledge.[65][66]
50 Cent expressed support for President George W. Bush in 2005 after rapper Kanye West criticized him for the slow response in assisting the Hurricane Katrina victims.[67] If his felony convictions did not prevent him from voting, he claimed he would have voted for Bush.[68] He later stated that Bush "has less compassion than the average human. By all means, I don’t aspire to be like George Bush".[69]
In 2007, Forbes recognized 50 Cent for his wealth, placing him second behind Jay-Z in the rap industry.[70] He resides in Farmington, Connecticut, in the former mansion of ex-boxer Mike Tyson.[71] He put the mansion for sale at US$18.5 million to move closer to his son who lives in Long Island with his ex-girlfriend.[72] 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.[73] One of his homes in New York purchased for 2.4 million dollars in January 2007 and at the center of a lawsuit between 50 Cent and ex-girlfriend Shaniqua Tompkins caught fire on May 31, 2008 while he was out of town filming for a movie in Louisiana.
In December 2008 50 told the Canadian Press that he had already been hit by the recession, losing a couple million dollars on the stock market. He also went on to say that he had been able to sell his Connecticut mansion and pushed Before I Self-Destruct back because of the recent economic downturn.