Rapper's nasty debut disc a disappointment

By Malcolm X Abram
Knight Ridder News Service

Miserable reviews notwithstanding, 50 Cent's debut album sold a record 872,000 copies in only four days. Associated Press

• He's a thug.
• He's made a lot of money selling drugs in his neighborhood.
• He has a very special personal relationship with guns.
• Women are primarily for passionless humping.
• He's not to be trifled with because he will kill you with one of the many, many guns he proudly owns.
• He's been shot nine times, including once in the face.
• Marijuana is a constant companion.
• Alcohol is a frequent companion.
• He has no respect for Ja Rule.
• Guns are very dangerous, and he'll be glad to show you just how dangerous by mercilessly killing you or someone you love.

Hyped by label owners Eminem (who guests on two tracks) and Dr. Dre as some hybrid of Tupac Shakur and Notorious B.I.G., the Jamaica, Queens, rapper has been making a name for himself on the underground and mix-tape circuit for a couple of years with violent, image-laden freestyles, the humorous name-dropping "How To Rob" and the Ja Rule diss "Wanksta."

Since 50 Cent's subject matter is straight out of Gangster Rappin' 101, his biggest selling point is his back story. According to his bio, he was born into a drug-dealing "dynasty" run by his mother, who was eventually found murdered in the streets before he hit his teens.

The orphan moved in with his grandparents, began selling drugs and eventually found hip-hop. With all that trauma early in his life, one might hope for some of the perspective and introspection that often turned up in the best work of his idols Tupac and to a lesser degree Biggie, but there is little of that to be found in the disc's 19 tracks.

And, despite Eminem's boast on "Patiently Waiting" — "Sprinkle some Big and some Pac and you mix 'em up in a pot, sprinkle (another slain underground favorite) Big L and what have you got? You got the realest and illest killers tied up in a knot" — 50 Cent has neither MC's vivid flair for storytelling nor Big L's talent for searing punch lines.

Consequently, "Get Rich or Die Tryin'" rides on 50's smooth flow, his knack for catchy, lazily delivered hooks and some sturdy beats provided by Eminem, Dr. Dre, Rockwilder and others. High points include (another) Ja Rule diss "Back Down," where he manages to make using Rule's given name of Jeffrey sound like an insult.

The latest single, the very commercial "In Da Club," is driven by Dre, who seems to have become obsessed with the sound of staccato synthesized orchestra kicks.

On "Poor Lil Rich," 50's syrupy flow and too-seldom-tapped sense of humor are perfectly matched with a circular synth line over a loping, neck-snapping beat. The misogynistic "P.I.M.P." uses contrasting melodies from steel drums and Spanish-style acoustic guitar to take some of the sting out of 50's standard claims of pimpdom.

"Get Rich or Die Trying" made its debut in the top spot on the Billboard 200, and it's guaranteed to go multiplatinum quickly. But 50 Cent's hard-earned rise to the top isn't a harbinger of a new voice in hip-hop. It's the sound of the same dead horse being flogged from a few stylish new angles with a diamond-encrusted whip.