50 Cent Says People Are More Ruthless in Business Than in the Streets. Here’s His Advice on How to Deal With It.

Curtis James Jackson III, better known as 50 Cent, is a rapper, actor, producer and entrepreneur whose rags-to-riches story is arguably the greatest in hip-hop history.

Jackson was born and raised in the South Jamaica neighborhood of Queens, New York during the height of the 1980s crack epidemic. He grew up without a father, and his mother was murdered when he was just 8 years old. Jackson started selling drugs at 12 years old, and at 19 he was arrested, charged and sentenced for possession of crack cocaine, heroin and a firearm.

Following his early release, he shifted his focus to music, started to write rap songs and secured a record deal with Jam Master Jay. Jackson eventually signed a record deal with Columbia Records but was dropped by the label after he was shot nine times in 2000. He survived the assassination attempt, but rather than back down, he released a slew of records dissing his enemies.

Jackson pioneered the mixtape as a promotional tool,…

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