:''For the U.S. currency value, see Half dollar (United States coin).''
'''Curtis James Jackson III''' (born July 6, 1975) is a rapper commonly known by his rap name '''50 Cent''' and recognized by the nicknames '''Fifty Cent''' and '''Fiddy Cent'''. He rose to fame following the success of his albums ''
Get Rich or Die Tryin''' and ''
The Massacre''. 50 Cent achieved multi-platinum success with both albums, selling around 22 million albums worldwide. He is known for his gangster image, and prides himself on having been shot nine times and surviving the ordeal.
Early life
thumb|50 Cent's mug shot from his 1994 incarceration for drug charges.
Curtis James Jackson III grew up in neighborhood known as South Jamaica, located in Queens, New York. Under poverty-stricken circumstances, his mother was murdered in her home in a failed drug deal which led to the rapper being raised by his grandparents. Immersed in the drug trade, the rapper began hustling his native neighborhood under the name of "Boo Boo." This reputation helped build 50 Cent a large following in New York before ever signing a major record deal.
Jam Master Jay of Run-DMC detected talent in the rapper and signed him to his label, for a brief time. After leaving Jam Master Jay, 50 Cent began working with hip-hop producers the Track Masters. While signed to Columbia Records, his career took off after the release of the successful, but controversial single "How to Rob". This single was an ode to robbing a number of industry rappers. The next single, "Ghetto Qur'an", led to a feud with a drug kingpin known as Kenneth "Supreme" McGriff, founder of a gang known as the "Supreme Team." The song goes indepth about the business
