50 Cent talks about the movie

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50 Cent Talks About the Movie

There are a lot of stereotypes about rappers out there. The thug life, the guns, the drugs, the women… Love it or leave it, 50 Cent has seen a lot for a 29-year-old man. You may not agree with everything he says in his raps or in interviews, but he's still undeniably compelling.

If you've read about "50," as he is referred to by his seemingly endless entourage, you've already heard the stories. Born Curtis Jackson, there was the drug-dealing youth in Jamaica Queens, the death of his mother when he was only 8 years old and the shooting that nearly took his life just as his first album was set for release.

There are the endless beefs with other members of the hip-hop community, from Ja Rule to Fat Joe and, most recently, Lil' Kim. Even as a superstar in almost every arena of entertainment, 50 can't seem to escape the troubles of his past life.

IGN FilmForce took to the air just after Hurricane Katrina to go to Miami and meet with 50 on the morning of his performance at the 2005 Video Music Awards. The previous night, Death Row Records head honcho Suge Knight was shot in the leg at popular Miami club The Shore. As the city prepares for MTV's big night on the heels of Katrina, the shooting adds some extra tension to the day. The security at the awards is sure to be extremely tight.

Outside of the South Beach Ritz Carlton, where we set to meet 50, giant tour buses marked with the "G Unit" logo line the side street. We are led through the extravagant hotel, into the restaurant and finally into a small private room in the back. As we wait for 50 to enter, members of his entourage come through, checking out the room, closing the drapes and checking around the restaurant. A few large men, one who could easily play front line for the Dolphins, wait patiently.

Time passes and our cups of coffee and glasses of orange juice are filled again and again. By the time 50 nears arrival, I'm hyped up on seven cups of coffee and I've had enough vitamin C to ward off the black plague. I sneak away for a bathroom break just before he comes in.

50's entrance is surprisingly low key. I guess his security didn't think we looked like much of a threat, because 50 enters the room without a publicist or any members of security. Should I be offended? Far from press shy, 50 shakes hands and gives the guys manly side hugs. The women get a full-on hug and a kiss on the cheek. He wears an oversized "M.O.P." t-shirt, the trademark white do rag with a black cap turned to the side and enough bling to outfit Tiffany's. Life is good when you're 50 Cent.

Soft spoken and all smiles, he appears completely at ease in front of the glowing red lights of our recorders. He actually seems like he's enjoying hanging with the press. Hey, maybe this guy can act? He sits to join us at the table and the interview begins.

Self-promotion is something 50 Cent takes very seriously. Many rappers have a reputation for blowing off interviews, but 50 says he sees the importance. "You know, I work with so many different journalists for different publications that come through to write small stories. I read all of the stories that people write about me. The ones that are really interesting are the ones where they actually write their take on me as opposed to just printing what I said, because they're asking similar questions so often, sometimes it just sounds like I'm answering the questions different intentionally.

"It was difficult to create a film that captures all of that energy accurately in one little, you know, hour and a half. How do you put your life – I'm 29 years old – into an hour and a half? It has to be something that ties it together to make it accurate or make it a good film that makes people interested enough to watch it. There's different ways to turn it into a great film and I think the direction that we took was the best possible direction."

50 has had thoughts of making a movie out of his life even before the album Get Rich or Die Tryin' was released in February of '03. "Actually, after the first week of sales of Get Rich or Die Tryin', we started talking about the film. The first week sales came in and we had the projections for the next week and they said, 'It's gonna be big enough.' (Laughs) I talked to them about it and found the right writers, Terry Winter came out on the tour with me during 'Rock the Mic.' It was me, Jay-Z, Busta Rhymes, Missy Elliot, Sean Paul, Fabulous, Lil' Mo… We went out on the road and he stayed with me for two and a half months and he compiled the information…"

In the film, Joy Bryant plays 50's childhood friend and eventual love interest. "Me and Joy Bryant, in the film, there's similar portions and situations I've dealt with in my life. After being shot, [we] had similar arguments – we have it in the film, you know, but that's just, the way she grew up, the character Joy [plays], the way she lived across the street from me when I was small and she was like my best friend from the beginning in the film; that was actually a guy in my real life. His name is Charles Pringle. He lived across the street from me… He was older than me, but both his parents were kind of really strict on him. I was living with my grandparents, we was in a crowded house. I had eight aunts and uncles, so it was a little more – it was kind of easier not to notice that I wasn't right there… It kind of took some of the characteristics of the character from other portions of my life. So everything that's there is relevant to my life, it's just, it's gumbo."

Get Rich also afforded 50 the opportunity to work with one of the hottest and most respected actors of the moment, Terrence Howard. Ironically, Howard recently portrayed a rapper in the acclaimed Hustle and Flow. "Terrence, he's incredible. This is his time on the acting circuit. He's coming up for real. You can see his consistency. Sometimes you don't have to have a knockout punch to win. It's been a combination for Terrence… I actually think his performance in this film is going to take him to a higher level. I watch all his films – So I get a chance to see him progress and how he's becoming more and more comfortable with being different people. He's a little crazy. These people are crazy, you know the people that can consistently be someone else. How do you get home, how do you get back to you? Have you ever thought about that?

"You know, when you spend three months – they say it take 30 days to make it happen, whatever it is. If you decide you're on a diet, after 30 days it becomes easy for you. You know, so if you become someone else for three months, don't you think sometimes that portions of that character come back? When you get frustrated or angry, you go back to being that angry character… My experience with Hollywood women prove it." (Laughs)

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