the urbanguy chronicles

No Common Sense, Not 50 Cent, The Cause Of T.O.’s Gun Problem
nov 30 2005

By Ryan Patrick
Pride Entertainment Writer

Whitby MP Dan McTeague’s recent call to ban popular gangsta rapper 50 Cent from performing in Canada is your classic case of political grandstanding.
Whether you agree with the notion or not is, frankly, immaterial. It’s a tried and true formula: make a wildly controversial and polarizing statement, whip the media into a frenzy, stand back and pat yourself on the back for doing your “part” in tackling the issue.
On November 22, McTeague asked Immigration Minister Joe Volpe to restrict Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson from entering the country on the grounds that he glorifies gun violence. The hardcore rapper has a criminal record and would need a ministerial permit to enter Canada.
“I don’t think people in Toronto, or any urban centre, need or want to hear Mr. Jackson’s message right now…I think it’s time we send a message of our own to those who glorify violence that their gratuitous violence and movies are not welcome in our country,” McTeague says.
McTeague claims he’s “trying to protect impressionable young men in our communities who are being destroyed in the prime of their lives.”
I’ll admit, I’m not a huge fan of 50 Cent’s music. But I am, also, not a fan of censorship, nor do I agree with the suggestion Jackson’s music amounts to an incitement to commit violence. And, if you are a proponent of free speech, you will defend his right to free expression; to suggest that there is a direct link between lyrics and an increase in gun violence is reaching.
If you ban 50 Cent, why stop there? Why not ban the multitude of artists that cross the border every year? Where would it stop? And what would it accomplish besides raising the notoriety profile of the particular artist?
Problem is, even if we weren’t on the eve of an election call, McTeague’s rhetoric does precious little to stem the growing gun violence in our city.
It also does little to address the deep-rooted evils that are associated with the anti-Black racism and institutional racism that has contributed to Toronto’s gun crime.
Besides, where was McTeague this past summer, when 50 Cent was practically living in the city during the filming of his crime drama, Get Rich or Die Tryin’?”
It’s far too easy to blame hip hop for youth violence.
Recently, I interviewed Toronto rapper Kardinal Offishall, who pointed out the guns have always been a constant on Toronto streets.
What’s changed, he suggested, is the mentality of today’s youth, who seem to be even more disenfranchised and disillusioned than the generation before them.
Black youth have been alienated and marginalized by government cutbacks and neighborhood neglect. McTeague’s blaming of 50 Cent is a convenient method to score publicity, because it’s bound to be a controversial statement. For McTeague to use 50 Cent to sidetrack valid discourse on the real problems contributing to the crisis – inadequate schools and housing, a desperate need for social programs, and high unemployment rate – is irresponsible.
No one is suggesting that, by simply building a basketball court, the situation will be resolved.
But it’s a start.
Also, at this stage in the game, the African Canadian community should be beyond pointing fingers and move towards healing. It should be beyond taking stock in those outside the community who feel compelled to cluck their tongues and wonder aloud why the Black community isn’t doing more.
It’s no secret our community has to work harder to achieve the same gains. It’s a fact of life and we should start living up to it. We’ve got to start fighting back against the system instead of incessantly claiming victimhood.
On the other hand, if local politicians like McTeague are truly interested in finding solutions to gun violence, they should save the empty platitudes and look at the real issues, the growing disconnect between the haves and have-nots in Toronto. They should examine why the Black community’s relationship with the police is the way that it is. They should look at why a certain element of the Black community is drawn to criminal activity. They should look at re-implementing the recreational activities and job creation programs that contribute to a positive culture and a renewed sense of hope.
50 Cent isn’t the cause of Toronto’s gun problem – a lack of common sense is.

50 Cent Relives Some Pivotal Life Moments In Get Rich

By Ryan B. Patrick
Pride Entertainment Writer
Pride News Magazine
Nov. 9, 2005

More a frivolous popcorn flick than a cinematic tour de force, megastar rapper Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson’s new semi-autobiographical film, Get Rich or Die Tryin’, entertains nonetheless. The gritty film – which borrows its title from the rapper’s 2003 multiplatinum debut – is a cautionary, bullet-ridden tale of sorts that examines

50 Cent’s origins as a fatherless child growing up on the dangerous ghetto streets of Queens, N.Y. The film, directed by six-time Oscar nominee Jim Sheridan and produced by Interscope/Shady/Aftermath and MTV Films, opens Wednesday, November 9.

The urban crime drama – parts of which were shot in Toronto – chronicles his life, but takes a few liberties here and there, says the charismatic 50.

“I would say that about 75 percent of the film is real-life,” Jackson tells Pride News Magazine.

“Some situations have been expanded, while others have been minimized in order to make it entertaining. Overall, I want people to leave with a better picture of how my life has been.

“I figure, if they had more information about my past, they’d understand the things I’m doing in the future, and it will be even more entertaining for them.”

It comes as no surprise that controversy surrounds the notorious 50 Cent, and the film itself, like a second skin. The artist has kick-started rap beefs with artists like Nas, Fat Joe, Ja Rule and former G-Unit (50 Cent’s clique) member the Game.
He’s been linked to actress Vivica A. Fox (and began insinuating after the breakup that Fox was “crazy” and using him to get her face on magazine covers).

He’s also been accused of glorifying violence, drugs and the objectification of women.

In the States, billboards promoting the film have been torn down in the midst of opposition from local community groups. The offending billboards in question show 50 holding a gun in one hand and a microphone in the other.

To some, 50 Cent represents the worst excesses (bling-bling, drugs and guns) the hip hop genre has to offer. To others, he’s simply a driven and talented individual playing the role of a gangster thug, and who currently happens to be the best at what he does.

Hate it or love it (to borrow from the title of his recent hit), 50 Cent (“Fiddy” to his legion of fans) is dominating the hip hop game these days.

His latest album – the platinum selling The Massacre – sold 1.1 million copies in a mere four days, smashing the record originally held by The Beatles.

Always outspoken, the savvy 50 Cent has never been afraid to speak his mind. On Kanye West’s remarks that President Bush “doesn’t care about Black people”, because he responded too late to Hurricane Katrina victims, 50 recently said: “I think people responded to it the best way they can. What Kanye West was saying, I don’t know where that came from. The New Orleans disaster was meant to happen. It was an act of God.”
On homosexuals: “Being gay isn’t cool – it’s not what the music is based on. There’s always been conflict at the centre of hip hop because it’s all about which guy has the competitive edge, and you can’t be that aggressive if you’re gay.”

On actor Samuel L. Jackson’s refusal to work with 50 Cent on screen: “Saying he wouldn’t work with a rapper is like saying he wouldn’t work with Will Smith, Queen Latifah or Ice Cube. Basically, he didn’t want to play second fiddle. He knew that because of my success, people would come to see the movie because of me. And he couldn’t handle that.”

Contentious comments aside, Jackson’s well-publicized rise to the top of the hip hop world has been well-documented. His drug-dealing teen mother was murdered by drug rivals when 50 Cent was around eight years old. He moves in with his grandparents, and at age ten, he starts selling drugs himself and quickly rises though the ranks in the drug world.

Along the way, he becomes a father (to son Marquise, now nine years old, and who goes by the name “25 Cent”), establishes a mile-long criminal rap sheet, and eventually does some prison time.

But Jackson also dreams about becoming a successful rapper, and devotes long hours honing his lyrics and perfecting his signature flow and style. He eventually gets his coveted record deal but, after getting shot nine times and nearly dying, he ultimately gets dropped by his record label.

Yet, demonstrating the ambition and work ethic for which he’s known, Jackson perseveres. With the help of a longtime associate, 50 Cent makes an independent mixtape that catches the ear of hip hop stalwarts Dr. Dre and Eminem. Jackson signs a millon-dollar record deal, and the rest, as they say, is history.

The film will inevitably draw comparisons with other “rap genre” movies like 8 Mile and the recent Hustle & Flow. The screenplay by Terence Winter makes comparisons to the Italian mafia, in detailing the ins and outs of Jackson’s “gangsta” environs. Director Jim Sheridan (My Left Foot, In the Name of the Father) does a solid but rather workmanlike job of drawing the parallels between 50 Cent’s real life exploits and his on-screen persona.

Yet, for a gangsta flick, the violence, while present, seems surprisingly downplayed and sanitized. (It’s interesting to note that the film takes pains to show that Jackson doesn’t actually directly kill anyone.)

In the film, 50 Cent plays Marcus aka “Little Ceasar”. It opens with a gripping robbery sequence that ends with Marcus getting fatally wounded. Narrated by Marcus, we then get a flashback and see how he got to this point in his troubled life.
We see Marcus as a child (excellently played by Marc John Jeffries, who has 50 Cent’s mannerisms down pat) and learn about his loving relationship with his mother, the drug-dealing Katrina (played by Serena Reeder).

When Katrina is brutally murdered, Marcus quickly turns to hustling drugs to support himself, but he quickly clashes with his grandparents (Delroy Lindo and Viola Davis) and heads out on his own.

Under the guidance of local kingpin Majestic (Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje) Marcus becomes a ruthless dealer. His life gets complicated when he has a child with longtime girlfriend Charlene (the attractive Joy Bryant) and has a son.

Then, when Marcus tries to get out of the drug game to become a rap star, things take a turn for the worse.

50 Cent gives an earnest but, ultimately, one-dimensional performance as Marcus.
While he has the moxie and charisma for the silver screen, he currently lacks the range and emotional depth to make Marcus a wholly convincing character.

In the face of stellar performances by co-stars Terrence Howard (who does a fabulous job playing Marcus’s crazy manager) and Bill Duke (a Godfather-type figure linked to Marcus’ past) 50 Cent’s shortcomings as an actor are even more pronounced.

This isn’t to say that 50 Cent doesn’t do a capable job. He is willing to go that extra mile for the film, whether it is a nude prison shower scene or a crucial moment that requires him to shed tears.

The pivotal scene when he gets shot and is lying on the operating table was an emotionally draining one, 50 admits. “It was eerie lying on the operating table. The shooting sequence in the movie wasn’t the same as what happened to me, and I was more focused on the physical aspect of it, making it look real,” he notes.

“When it happened for real, I wasn’t conscious by the time I got to the operating table; I was already under anesthetic. So lying there, s
till and awake, for eight hours, while they shot the scene with the actors pretending to be surgeons standing around me, that was weird.”

Overall, Get Rich or Die Tryin’ stands on its own as a flawed, yet entertaining, flick. It also functions as yet another piece in 50 Cent’s growing multi-million dollar empire, along with the music, the G-Unit clothing line, and the soon-to-be-released “Bulletproof” video game.

50 Cent is well aware he has a stranglehold on the rap game, but, even he notes that grip is tenuous. All this coming from a man now living in a in a 4,500 square-metre mansion once owned by Mike Tyson.

“When I wake up every morning, I’m reminded that the man who had it before me made $500 million in his career, and doesn’t have it anymore,” he recently told the media. “This is where my work ethic comes from.”
Jackson also tells Pride that he recently signed a movie deal with Sony Pictures, and is actively seeking new projects.

“The idea of creating a film that gives people something to judge me on is easier than them trying to piece together things that they hear in the media,” 50 says.
“In the future, if I come across a script that affects me as much as my life story, I’ll commit to it.”