Why Is 50 Cent Not Mentioned Amongst the Greats in Rap History

Yeah! That's a question I want to tackle- why is 50 Cent not mentioned amongst the greatest rappers in the history of rap? Why doesn't his name come up on any “top 5 dead or alive” list…or even a top 10 greatest rappers of all-time list? Why? There is a segment on allhiphop.com dedicated to rappers naming who they consider top 5 dead or alive; I have been following that segment for about 4 years now, and I have never seen 50's name being mentioned. The regulars, in no particular order, are; Tupac, Jay-Z, Biggie, Nas, Rakim, Jadakiss, KRS 1, Big Daddy Kane, Lil Wayne, Eminem, Big Pun, Ice Cube and Prodigy (one half member of Mobb Deep); but there is never a mention of 50 cent.

 

50 Cent has sold more records, on a singular album, than any Black Rapper. His “Get Rich or Die Trying” (2003) has sold 13 million copies worldwide. I think the only other black rapper close to that is Nelly with his Country Grammar album that sold 10 million copies. The follow-up to get rich or die trying, “The Massacre” sold 9 million copies worldwide. I think those are huge numbers, but I guess it is not only about sales. If It were about sales, then you can say Nelly is a better rapper than Jadakiss, which is false. So what is it about?

It's about skill, flow, lyrics, consistency, delivery, and of course commercial success to some point. If it were about sales only, 50 cent would be top 5. I watched a video on youtube recently where some on air personalities invited Fat Joe over to their studio, and they had all this posters on the wall of who and who they consider as the greatest rappers in rap history. There were posters on the wall of Lauryn Hill, Rakim, KRS 1, Nas, Jay-Z, Biggie, Tupac, Lil Wayne, Fat Joe & Big Pun together, Mos Def, and maybe one other rapper I can't remember. So they had Fat Joe talk about what he felt about the entire artists, and he gave his opinion. When he was about to leave, the presenters told him that they had invited 50 Cent over some time ago, but he was vexed with them that they didn't have his picture up. Men!!!I know how he must feel. After selling all those records, having an unstoppable movement (that has crashed right now); why wouldn't they put him up? I guess I have said it.

“I’m the nigga trying to holla cos I want some bread”…those are lines from 50 Cent on his P.I.M.P song that was on his first album…or more like, first album after he was brought back to life from the gun shots. Okay, what about those lines? They say everything; he was in it for the money, and he got more than enough in a very short period. Although his assets have dropped now, in 2007, he was number one in Hip Hop with an asset of over $500 million. It is clear that, although Jay-Z is very business savvy and everything, he is still in it for the art. Of course, he might get a bit too commercial sometimes, but I can say those are just ways of Jay trying to be versatile, and make his music more interesting.

Okay, back to the analysis- Get Rich or Die Trying (2003) sold 6 million copies in the U.S, The Massacre (2005) sold 4.8 million copies in the U.S, Curtis (2007) sold 1.3 million copies in the U.S, and his last studio album, Before I Self Destruct (2009) sold just 600,000 copies in the U.S. So, you have someone go from selling 6 million copies in 2003 to only sell 600,000 copies 6 years later. So, what happened? What happened to all the 5,400,000 fans? I am not trying to be harsh, but just carrying out an analysis here. For a better understanding of what I am trying to prove, I would like to analyze other rappers I consider great- Eminem’s first album, Slim Shady LP (1999) sold 4.5 million copies in the U.S, and his 6^th  album, Recovery, which dropped last year, 2010, has sold 3.9 million copies so far, and is still selling. So, that is a 12 year period of consistency. We can consider also, Jay-Z; his first album, Reasonable Doubt (1996) sold 1 million copies in the U.S, and his last album, Blueprint3 (2009), sold 1.7 million copies (in the US). Lastly, let's check out an artist that is somewhat underrated, but respected by people that know real rap; Jadakiss. Kiss was/is in the legendary rap group, The L.O.X  since 1996 when they signed with Puff Daddy (P.Diddy), but he released his first solo album in 2001. The album, “Kiss the Game Goodbye” sold 800,000 copies in the U.S, and his last solo album, “Kiss of Death” (2009) sold Gold, 500,000 copies. Even though he hasn't sold multi-platinum, at least he has been consistent.

So, I guess that is what 50 Cent lacks, consistency. And that also goes for the quality of his music. I was in my friend's car the other day, and I was forced to listen to Before I Self Destruct from start to finish- no disrespect to 50 Cent fans, but it sounded like a mixtape. Apart from some stand-up songs, the majority of the songs on the album sound …I don't know the word to use…maybe I can say he sounded like he forced himself into the studio to make them. The passion is no longer there. Of course, I will never dispute the fact that Get Rich or Die Trying is a classic album. But, as I said earlier, and is evident in the title of the album, he was and always will be about the money. His second album was aight, but it was definitely not a classic.

And it is so…I don't know, like I was reading this Nas article where they asked him about 50 Cent, and he said he feels for him. He said he knows that 50 is going through a lot…that he is not a happy man, and has a lot of built-up anger in him. So, it is clear money is not everything if you cannot be considered amongst the greats in your art.

 Incase you didn’t know, 50 used to hang around nas and the bravehearts back in 2000, when he was signed to Columbia records…that was before he got shot. And when he blew up, he started disrespecting nas-  that was what the interviews were asking nas about…whether he felt anger towards 50 Cent enough to have done a whole diss record for him. That is what I want to touch on next; 50 Cent brought negativity into Hip Hop…or maybe he championed it and took it to the next level, after Jay-Z started the whole hate thing.

I can’t think of any rapper that 50 has not dissed in his 8 year career- jay-z, lil wayne, t.i, nas, jarule, camron, rick ross, shyne, jadakiss and the whole d-block camp, fat joe, kanye west…and the list goes on and on. He got so tired of dissing rappers and started dissing other celebraties…like Oprah. But I guess the sales of his recent albums have humbled him, and he has started making amends with his co-rappers. I know he has squashed the beef with jadakiss and they even made a song together…and I think he and cam are now cool.

Lastly, I think the problem 50 cent had with staying consistent, which also stemmed from his mission of getting rich or die trying, instead of love for hip hop, was that he went into too many things. He went into too many businesses at the same time. But I think what hurt his career the most are the movies he is focused on now. He keeps acting and producing all these low budget movies. 1, he is not a great actor, even Jarule acts better; and 2, there is no way one thing wouldn't suffer when you are trying to focus on two things. This is where I drop my pen…or, where I stop my fingers from carrying out actions from my brain.