Episode #249 | 9.9.25
50 Cent Pt. 2: Federal Raids, a Stabbing in the Studio, and a Dead Man’s Game
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In this episode
Curtis Jackson took his name from a stickup man – and then proceeded to play by that dead man’s rules. This episode traces the violent legacy of the original 50 Cent and the rise of 50 Cent the rapper through his feud with Ja Rule, the Lorenzo brothers, Kenneth “Supreme” McGriff, and Murder Inc. Records. This is about how Curtis Jackson a/k/a 50 Cent became a rap king, despite a nine-shot assassination attempt that failed to kill the man—or the myth.
Sources
Fat Cat, 50 Cent, and the Rise of the Hip-Hop Hustler, by Ethan Browne
The Original 50 Cent documentary
Get Rich or Die Trying (Stuff Magazine)
Feds: Drug Lord Plotted To Kill 50 Cent (Billboard)
50 CENT SHOOT SAGA – TESTIMONY WASTED (NY Post)
A Complete Timeline of 50 Cent and Ja Rule's Beef (XXL)
Rap Label Offices Raided in Probe (LA Times)
The #9 Biggest Moment: Feds Raid Murder Inc. (XXL)
Rappers' Lament (Village Voice)
50 Cent Arrested for Gun Possession (MTV)
50 Cent Released from Police Custody (MTV)
Rap rival named as 50 Cent's attempted killer (The Guardian)
Murder Inc. Rap Mogul Acquitted (CBS News)
Credits
Hosted by Jake Brennan.
Written by Zeth Lundy.
Scored and mixed by Sean Cahalin.
Additional music and score elements by Ryan Spraker.
DISGRACELAND theme song, “Crenshaw Space Boogie,” written and produced by Jake Brennan. Performed by Jake Brennan, Bryce Kanzer, Jay Cannava, and Evan Kenney. Mixed and engineered by Adam Taylor.
*illustrations by Avi Spivak @avispivak