I Got It MADE

IF ever there was a man to grab the baton of opportunity and run with it, it’s 50 Cent. Love him or loathe him, the US rapper, actor, author, businessman and father-of-one has come a long way since his drug-dealing teenage years.

His story has been well documented. Born in Queens, New York, 50 – born Curtis Jackson – began selling drugs following the death of his mother (herself a drug dealer) when he was eight years old. He then went to live with his grandparents but a life of crime eventually led to the infamous incident where he was shot nine times – which, inevitably, forced him to re-evaluate his life.

Countless mixtapes later, the ambitious MC caught the attention of rap star Eminem and later, hip-hop legend Dr Dre, and he was subsequently signed to Interscope Records. And in a true example of triumph over tragedy, Jackson has since gone on to become one of the wealthiest hip-hop stars.

Having recently flexed his acting muscles in the new British flick, Dead Man Running, the 34-year-old admits that he likes to keep busy.

“I feel like the moment I’m not busy, it will be a clear indication that I’m ceasing,” he laughs. “I hold on to that thought any time I sign an autograph or take a picture when I’m not really in the mood. Whenever I feel frustrated about signing an autograph, I think to myself, ‘It’ll be even more frustrating when I’m walking through places and nobody wants to take my picture!’”

TO his credit, he does possess what seems like a genuine appreciation for the success he enjoys. It would be easy enough to get caught up in the hype and let fame and fortune go to his head. (Kanye West, anyone?) But Fiddy – as he’s affectionately known to his fans – comes across as a pretty down to earth guy.

Our chat took place while he was in the UK for the recent premiere of Dead Man Running.

(Can you believe he revealed that one of the first things he did when he arrived in London was use the hotel’s gym? Talk about a fitness fanatic!) In the film – produced by British talent Nicholas ‘Pikki’ Fearon and executively produced by football stars Rio Ferdinand and Ashley Cole – 50 plays US loan shark and general bad man Mr Thigo.

In a bid to prove he’s not to be messed with, Thigo comes to London and threatens Nick (Tamer Hassan) – one of the people he’s loaned money to – that if he doesn’t return his £100,000 in 24 hours, he’ll kill both Nick and Nick’s mother (hilariously played by Brenda Blethyn).

Aided by his assistant Fitzroy (played by British star Ashley Walters), Thigo issues his warning, sending Nick into a race against time to save his mother, who’s being held hostage by one of Thigo’s henchmen.

Is it safe to assume 50 doesn’t have much in common with his character?

“No, I don’t, coz I’ve never loaned anyone any money! Not with the intention of generating interest on what I’ve loaned them anyway. Thigo is a loan shark. That’s not really me!”

He might not loan money, but he’s certainly made plenty. In 2008, he topped Forbes’ Richest Rappers list, having raked in a whopping $150 million the previous year.

In addition to his music pursuits, 50 also embarked on a number of other ventures, from his thisis50.com website to his Formula 50 vitamin water drink to his strategy book The 50th Law…

“I’m just ambitious,” he says. “When I accomplish one thing, I re-assess the situation and establish new goals. I always wanna be active and be involved in different things. I don’t wanna be like 45 and be talking about, ‘Yo, check out my new CD!’”

But what does this hip-hop superstar do when he’s not finding new ways to make money?

“I’ll probably hang out at my grandparents’ house,” he says. “My grandfather had a light stroke recently. He didn’t lose the use of any of his body parts, but he had to go through therapy in order to walk around again. My grandmother was sick shortly afterwards. They’ve been married for like 56 years.

I think that when you’ve been around somebody that long, if one of you gets sick, it makes the other one get sick too. I think it’s psychological. My grandmother’s interesting – nothing changes with her. I’ll buy her all sorts and she’ll still tell me to take out the garbage.”

And he listens to grandma, right?

“Of course!”

But while the man behind the millions is happy to take out the trash for his granny, he definitely won’t stand for anyone talking trash about him. You may remember several months back, we did an article exploring the various feuds there have been in music history. Suffice to say, Fiddy was voted the ‘king of beefs’, having done lyrical battle with a plethora of artists. From Ja Rule to The Game to Rick Ross and Fat Joe, 50 has sought to lyrically annihilate everyone who’s crossed him – sometimes with hilarious effects…

Just recently, word came from people in 50’s camp that the rapper had been taken to hospital, having been diagnosed with “noise pollution”. 50 soon put out a video – in which he was crying – to explain to his fans that his ‘condition’ had been brought on after he listened to Fat Joe’s new album!

The spoof had his followers in stitches, prompting many of them to send him “get well soon” messages. But of course, his fans know the video was typical 50, as the rapper is well-known for his comedic diss lyrics and hilarious videos.

(I personally thanked him for the countless times he’s made me laugh with his weird and wacky antics!) But with many of his fans often jokingly branding the star as “crazy”, it seemed only right to ask him: does he ever think he might be a bit crazy?

He laughs: “I’ve learned to embrace crazy. I have to absolutely be crazy enough to believe in myself and be persistent enough to make things work for me. I try to be creative. I like to come up with new ideas...I might very well be interpreted as crazy – I’m not even upset by that!”

And does Mr Crazy have time for a love life? For the past few years, the rapper has been romantically linked to R’n’B star Ciara – but neither of them ever confirm that they are an item. Do tell, Fiddy…

“That’s like the longest going rumour. It’s not a bad one though – the woman isn’t unattractive. And I’ve heard worst things. I heard I was in cocaine in Croatia, I was on steroids... what else have I done? I’ve done so many different things as far as the rumour mill was concerned.”

Isn’t he good at avoiding the issue? Ok Fiddy, let’s get back to the film. There’s a scene where his character refuses to eat a portion of jellied eels, despite being told that it’s traditional English grub. 50 admits he was relieved that he didn’t have to eat it.

“When they brought me those jellied eels, they were like, ‘Yeah, this is proper English food.’ I was like, ‘Damn! Do y’all really eat that?’ Ash [Ashley Walters] was like – in his accent – ‘Nah, I wouldn’t eat that myself, bruv!’ Thankfully, I didn’t have to eat it. If it was written that I’d had to eat it, I would’ve asked for a re-write!”

Dead Man Running is in cinemas now through Revolver Entertainment

MS DIOR

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