Where it will end is anyone's guess. But for now, Jackson -- better-known as 50 Cent -- is the undisputed heavyweight champ of hip-hop, dominating The Billboard 200 chart for 17 weeks with his Shady/Aftermath/Interscope major-label debut, "Get Rich or Die Tryin."'
Like any artist who makes it big, he has a solid first act. But when it comes to turning a breakout into a career, it's the second act that really counts. As hot as he is right now, concern already is running through 50 Cent's camp.
For one, at least one writer is questioning his image. He claims that the crack-cocaine epidemic that spawned gangsta rap has long passed and that 50 Cent's whole scene is more than a little contrived.
"At its core, the hubbub around Get Rich and the return of gangsta rap is crack-era nostalgia taken to the extreme," Ta-Nehisi Coates wrote in last week's edition of New York's Village Voice.
Of course, 50 Cent has nine bullet wounds to prove otherwise, but according to Coates, his "handlers have played the angle magnificently.
"The attempts on his life come up repeatedly in interviews, and 50 is happy to provide embellishment," Coates wrote.
Others note that those buying the music are mostly suburban white kids, who fantasize about gangsta life as they would about the X-Men and other cartoon characters.
And at this stage of the game, 50 Cent's management team has another worry: oversaturation.
"There is always that fear that we are doing too much," says Chris Lighty, chief executive of Violator Management, which handles 50 Cent's career. "But in reality, we haven't done anything but allow him to display his artistry."
Rock-solid talent is certainly part of the equation, but how 50 Cent became the breakout music story of 2003 is also a case study in hype and hip-hop's renewed obsession with thug violence.
Good timing and savvy marketing also played a role -- not to mention a lot of luck. After all, his ticket to success was punched when he survived an assailant's wrath and those nine slugs.
Indeed, the incident marked a turning point in more ways than one. 50 Cent was shot in front of his grandmother's house in Queens in April 2000. While he was recovering, Columbia Records dropped him from the label.
After that, he began marketing his music on his own and other DJs' mix tapes (Billboard, Feb. 15). 50 Cent gained attention in the industry and among consumers, especially on the East Coast.
With an emerging fan base, a bidding war erupted. 50 Cent signed with Eminem (news - web sites)'s Shady imprint, which is aligned with Universal Music Group's Interscope label.
Interscope began its campaign with the release last summer of the single "Wanksta" from the 8 Mile soundtrack.
"I don't think anyone expected it to go this far, this quick," Shady Records chief executive Paul Rosenberg says.
"'Wanksta' was a runaway hit. It happened really organically. Once it started to happen, we got behind it and put the official push on it," he says. "The market was so thirsty for a new guy like him that any one of his great mix-tape songs would have blown up for him as his first record."
By the beginning of 2003, Interscope followed "Wanksta" with "In Da Club," the first single from Get Rich or Die Tryin'.
"Moving on from 'Wanksta' to 'In Da Club' really made it official," Rosenberg says. "This was his first single with the big video. From there, the explosion started.
"I don't want to discount any of the initial groundswell that occurred from 50 and his camp," he adds. "They built a strong following for 50 on their own, mostly in the East Coast area. It was a foundation that 99% of the artists coming out now don't have. Beyond that, 'In Da Club' was the moment when we pushed the button."
The combination of the infectious, hook-driven single and video that featured a host of hip-hop heavyweights, including Eminem, Dr. Dre, and Xzibit, proved to be a recipe for success.
By early February, "In Da Club" was climbing the top 10 of the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks chart and The Billboard Hot 100.
The market was now primed for the album's release. The title sold 872,000 copies in its first week, according to Nielsen SoundScan--the best opening frame for any album this year.
The album's second single, "21 Questions," which features Nate Dogg, has kept up the momentum. It is now in its seventh week at No. 1 on Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks and in its third week atop the Hot 100.
In recent weeks, the rapper has had as many as nine singles on the Billboard charts at once, including "Magic Stick," a top 10 hit from Lil' Kim that features him as a guest artist.
According to Rosenberg, radio chose the latest single. "We were going to wait on '21 Questions' initially. We wanted make sure that he didn't get too big, too quick, but we couldn't stop radio.
"They're going to play what they want to play," Rosenberg continues. "This is one of those rare albums where radio starts playing stuff because they know their fans want to listen to this artist. So they pick what they think should be the next single and run with it."
With all that under 50 Cent's belt, already there are signs that the second act could be a lot different from his first.
50 Cent's reported beef with Kenneth "Supreme" McGriff could well be over, or at least put on ice. McGriff, a convicted drug dealer under investigation for murder, was sentenced to 37 months in prison last week in Maryland for illegally possessing a handgun.
Federal investigators are looking into whether McGriff was involved in 50 Cent's shooting, according to court records.
But the rapper is still beefing with Ja Rule, who has been linked with McGriff through his record label, Murder Inc., which is headed by McGriff's childhood friend Irv Gotti.
Some close to 50 Cent and Eminem worry that the dispute could get uglier and possibly violent, according to published reports.
But Coates questions that. "Gangsta rap today is about as reflective of reality as, well, a reality show. And yet still it lumbers across the landscape of pop, shouting, 'I'm real."'
Coates blames the record companies -- and, by extension, 50 Cent -- for "perpetuating the myth of black male violence" to sell records.
Interscope/Geffen/A&M chairman Jimmy Iovine is unfazed by the criticism. "That's always being said about television, movies, books, and records. That's just one person's opinion. I don't pay much attention to it," he says.
Apparently, major manufacturers are unfazed as well.
Last week, 50 Cent signed a long-term deal with Reebok to distribute the artist's collection of athletic footwear, the G-Unit Collection by Rbk.
In that role, the rapper sounds more like an advertising executive. The artist, Reebok says, will help develop an "integrated marketing and advertising campaign" for the shoes.
"Reebok's Rbk Collection is the real thing when it comes to connecting with street and hip-hop culture," 50 Cent said in a prepared statement.
Some wonder, however, whether the deal could be jeopardized if 50 Cent were to get caught in a flare-up of gang violence.
Still, the deal adds up to another success, and it could signal the emergence of a more buttoned-down 50 Cent. But either way, he is on a roll.
The artist is the top finalist for this year's Billboard R&B Hip-Hop Awards, where he will compete in 10 categories (see story, page 1).
Next, he will attempt to conquer the touring circuit with co-headliner Jay-Z on the Rock the Mic summer trek across America.
And if you ask his label, Interscope, this is just the beginning.
"In reality, we're only into our second single," says Steve Berman, Interscope's head of marketing and sales. "This album is deep enough to keep going strong through Christmas. That's our goal. We want to make sure that we do a great job on the tour and then setting up this record for the fall and going into Christmas."
Interscope sees the summer tour, which kicks off June 25 in Hartford, Conn., as an opportunity to create further excitement around the rapper. Advance ticket sales have been strong.
"The tour will create an explosion in every city it goes into," Berman says. "We want to be right underneath that with 50 and G-Unit. Not only selling both albums but setting up the streets for his upcoming projects--that will be the biggest pull."
