Earlier this week - on February 6th to be exact - 50 Cent celebrated the 20th anniversary of his debut album “Get Rich Or Die Tryin”. This is the perfect occasion to revisit the now classic album. So what makes a classic you may ask?
First off, the quality of the music for sure. And there’s plenty of that on 50 Cent’s smashing debut. The fact that Dr Dre produced on the album is not the least, but there’s also the hunger that you can feel from 50 Cent on all the records, as well as his chorus game and undeniable talent for crafting great songs.
Secondly there’s the lasting power of an album that makes it a classic. And here again it is incredible how the music, despite having been made 20 years ago, still sounds fresh and innovative. “In Da Club” is as much of a banger today as it was back in 2003 for example, and the gun toting “Heat” or atmospheric “Poor Lil’ Rich” hit just as hard today. This album also is as cohesive and consistent as can be, making for joyful listening experience throughout with absolutely no reason to skip.
Finally a classic album needs to have a certain vibe that brings you back to the era that it was recorded, sort of a time capsule that brings you back. When “Get Rich Or Die Tryin” was made, we were in the post-9/11 New York era and pre-streaming wave. Eminem was at his height, fresh off releasing his “The Eminem Show” album and “8 Mile” movie also. So when news got out that 50 Cent - who already had a tremendous street buzz at the time with his G Unit crew on the mixtape circuit - had signed a deal with Shady Records and Aftermath, the anticipation was high. The three-headed monster of Dr Dre - Eminem - 50 Cent came up with an innovative brand of music that was both aggressive and melodic, radio ready despite what 50 Cent was rapping about. It was a clear cut away from the syrupy brand of rap that the likes of P. Diddy or Ja Rule were making it at the time, all the while staying commercial friendly. This helped 50 Cent garner one of the widest followings ever, both in the streets and on the mainstream, which skyrocketed him to the levels of fame that only 2Pac and Biggie had been able to reach and over a much longer period of time. Releasing to record breaking first week sales, “Get Rich Or Die Tryin” is all of this at the same time and probably was one of the last momentous commercial successes in rap (with perhaps Lil’ Wayne’ “Tha Carter 3”).
Now let’s dive back into the album a little. The intro alone, whilst short and simple, says it all about the themes that 50 Cent will go through the album and is the perfect sound version of the title. As you hear the penny drop and the sound of a gun charging up, you know that the album will be about the constant chase for more money and the risks for your life that come from it. As we soon find out from the no-barrels hold opener “What Up Gangsta?” 50 Cent is more likely than not to succeed in hi mission to get rich. The braggadocio continues on the Eminem-featured “Patiently Waiting” as 50 Cent proceeds to tell us how he’s been waiting to explode on the scene and take it out on his enemies. The melancholic revenge ballad of “Many Men” is the culmination of that concept as 50 Cent tells vivid stories of his shooting and hint at how those responsible for it are no longer around but he is.
By now you would have noticed that complex rhyme schemes and thought provoking lyrics aren’t Fifty’s strong points. His lyrics are rather simple, but what makes the album so strong is the way that he delivers them and how real and raw they sound whilst still infectiously melodic. “In Da Club” and “High All the Time” may feel like the obligatory club banger and smokers’ anthem respectively but none of this feels forced (even though in the case of the latter, 50 is not known to be a smoker) and he still manages to make the concept unique and capture a certain vibe. The other thing that is done really well and shows his businessman flair is how Fifty uses the album to introduce each member of his G Unit crew, from Young Buck on the Southern sounding “Blood Hound” to Tony Yayo on “Like My Style” or to Lloyd Banks on the second Eminem track “Don’t Push Me”. This was great way to introduce what would come next from the mogul: the G Unit debut album and solo albums from each of the members.
As written above the whole album still holds the rest of time and pleats easily without needing to skip any song from front to back. The songs “P.I.M.P.” and “21 Questions” could have sounded out of place in the middle of the gangsta music and been misses, but 50 Cent makes it work as well and these songs ended being some his biggest hits. Capping off the entire album is the massive “Gotta Make It To Heaven” which sounds like the best way to end the album as Fifty talks about making it out before it is too late, which eventually this album helped him do. The bonus cuts, including the Ja Rule diss and hit song “Wanksta” are just the icing on the cake. “Get Rich Or Die Tryin” definitely is a modern rap classic and will remain a genre defining album for years and years to come. If you have not heard the album yet, go and get it right now!
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