He was full of contradictions, but for his fans, it wasn’t an issue: either they were too lost in the sauce to recognize it, they figured it was means to an end of their values being represented, or they were satisfied with seeing the rap game burn. Dre comeback LP that arguably established him as the greatest producer of all time ( 2001), and a blockbuster film that featured him on several soundtrack songs ( 8 Mile), 50 Cent had just as much, if not more corporate backing than the rappers he was rhyming about sticking up four years earlier. He presented himself as an underdog and as the gritty antithesis of rap’s elitism, which was true to a point since he was nearly killed and dropped by his label.īut by signing to Shady/Aftermath, he gained the backing of the time’s most successful crew in rap. Fresh off the success of Eminem’s third multi-platinum album in a row ( The Eminem Show), the multi-platinum Dr. On ”Back Down,” he accused the chart-reigning Ja Rule of “singing for hoes, and sound like the Cookie Monster” - but four tracks later, he used his own penchant for melody to drive his single “21 Questions” to radio dominance. With a constituency under duress, 50 was able to twist any bit of info to his will on Get Rich Or Die Tryin’, and listeners were none the wiser. 50 Cent had a lineup of both covert, and in the case of Ja Rule, overt enemies and with his muscle-bound frame and his 2Pac-ian invincibility, he was the leader who could take on those foes. Like many Trump supporters felt about their ways of life in 2016, some rap loyalists in the early 2000s felt that the hip-hop they loved - street, irreverent, and uncut - was becoming extinct in the name of poppier crossover fare. And even Eminem veered from rap’s usual avatar, a goofball white rapper who talked about hating his mother, popping drugs and killing his baby’s mother. Kanye West was preparing rap for his own culture-shifting career with an early mixtape, Get Well Soon. The year before, the charts were ran by the likes of Nelly and Ludacris, friendly faces who wooed women and filled dance floors. Rap was prime for a villain in 2003: 50 was the antagonist, and he had plenty of would-be heroes to terrorize.
A then-important XXL magazine cover labeled the trio as “Triple Threat” - and a blowout hit, “In Da Club,” proved it, earning a No. 1 spot on the Billboard Hot 100 and a platinum plaque. Kelly’s sex tape and Lil Kim’s surgeries and a freestyle over Eminem’s “Till I Collapse” showed that he could get busy with the flow. This album defines the urban black experience in 2003 in the same way that Curtis Mayfield's "We People who are darker than Blue" did in the 1970s.First, this came through several songs on the soundtrack to 8 Mile, a starring vehicle for Eminem. “Wanksta” established 50’s authenticity with images of him chiding fake gangstas “Rap Game” showcased his penchant for melody “Love Me” showcased his willingness to shock people, with its references to R. Get Rich or Die Tryin is the antithesis to the pop looped chart friendly sound of mainstream hip hop and offers listeners a fresh innovative approach. The need for emotional support results in the repetitive question "would you love me if I was down and out?" In an environment where ones fortunes could be anything from working in a burger joint, prison or worse - the need for a woman who is there is a "blessin" The surprise on the album is "21 Questions" which shows that even a gangsta has a heart. 50 Cent was famously shot 9 times and as he muses without irony, "death has to be easy as life is hard." "Lifes on the Line" and "Many Men (Wish Death)" delve into the ghetto morality where life is a cheap commodity and the rule of law is drugs, gangs, guns and ultimately death. The single "In Da Club" a spectacular party anthem produced by Dr Dre,highlights 50 Cent's ability to twist his words effortlessly. He sold 2.1 million copies of his dark debut album in the first three weeks of its release (on Eminem's label) and he is already being compared to posthumous legends Tupac and the Notorious BIG. This 26 year old New Yorker 50 Cent aka Curtis Jackson, the biggest new hip-hop star of 2003, a ghetto celebrity, ex-crack dealer who turned to hip-hop as a way out of a gangstas fate: prison or death. Get Rich Or Die Trying is boldly tipped to be a hip-hop classic. Mormile Marcus Heisser Marc Labelle Tracy McNew Riggs Moralesġ001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die ( 2005 edition) (order: 96) Rolling Stone: 500 Greatest Albums of All Time: 2020 edition (number: 280) (order: 280)ĬritiqueBrainz ReviewsThere’s 1 review on CritiqueBrainz. Relationships artist & repertoire support:ĭ.J.