By Christina Radish
Hugely successful recording artist Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson burst onto the music scene with his debut album Get Rich or Die Tryin’ (2003), which soared to the top of the Billboard album charts and went on to sell more than 12 million copies worldwide. With his 2005 follow-up, The Massacre, he became the first artist to have four songs in the top 10 of Billboard’s Hot 100 since The Beatles in 1964.
Born into a notorious Queens drug dynasty in the 70's and orphaned at an early age, the 31-year-old Jackson ultimately escaped his violent drug past to become a rap millionaire and role model. Now, he is also looking to conquer the world of acting. Making his feature film debut in the Jim Sheridan film Get Rich or Die Tryin’, as a character that was loosely based on his life, and then following that up as a soldier returning from Iraq who is trying to readjust to life back at home in the MGM release Home of the Brave, shows that Jackson is already off to a great start.
“For me, acting is a new challenge, and it’s exciting,” he tells MediaBlvd Magazine. “I’ve had to constantly be in front of cameras for music, but it’s a different thing. When you film music videos, you spend a lot of time performing directly to the camera, and it’s almost the opposite on a film set. Just being a recording artist, you get comfortable with cameras and microphones in your face.”
{quote_top}For his role in Home of the Brave, Jackson admits that he worked with an acting coach prior to working with the likes of Samuel L. Jackson. And, as a result, the role was expanded from what was in the initial script. “When I read the screenplay, I wanted to be a part of the film, so I approached Irwin about it. After our conversation, he saw something different in me that made him want to allow me to be a part of the project. Following that, when he saw my performance in the film, he wanted me to do more, so they started creating more and more scenes. They were writing things for me, on the set.”
His fame and success in music enabled the acting roles to start heading his way, but at the same time, Jackson wants to show that he has the talent to back it up. “It’s definitely a challenge to be a part of a film project because I’m conditioned to music. I had to create a new goal for myself, and move in that direction. Music used to be a dream, but now I’m taking steps towards making my acting dreams come true. I have a vision, and I see myself doing things even greater than I’ve done so far. Even though I’ve accomplished a lot, in a short period of time, I feel like I can do so much more. Home of the Brave just puts me one more foot forward.”
{quote_middle}Jackson understands that there are some actors out there, who are seriously trained, that become bitter when someone famous in another arena, such as music, gets a role that they could have done instead. “Everybody is not going to get a shot at doing what they want. People will come from other forms of entertainment that generate the interest of the general public, and they’ll receive opportunities that other people wish they were receiving. As a business person, you say, ‘Do I take a shot on this new guy that I think can actually pull this off, or do I take a shot on this new guy that I think can actually pull this off, and who also generates the interest of maybe 30 or 40 million people?’ There’s a whole other level of opportunity, going into business with someone who has already created a base somewhere else. Similarly, a person who’s been singing all their life hates the fact that Jamie Foxx has a successful album, when his interest comes from winning Oscars and making great films.”
With plans to release his next album, Before I Self-Destruct, by March, Jackson says he is constantly under pressure to keep his work in the top spot on the sales charts. “There’s a shadow of doubt cast over every artist, in between projects. They don’t wonder whether I can make a good record because I’ve proven that, over and over again. They say, ‘Can he do it again?’ It’s a huge task to create material that can compete with the sales of my first two records. You’ve gotta come up with something that has some real content and substance, that people can sink their teeth into and really enjoy.”
It is that competitive nature that Jackson says can lead to the fighting between hip-hop artists, who all vie for the top position. “There absolutely will not be a moment in hip-hop where there is no friction. It’s the nature of the music. It sounds dangerous. It sounds more real than it actually is because they’re using terminology and they speak just like the person that would do something to you on the street. But, for the most part, it’s just artists competing. For me, it seems like I’m constantly in conflict, only because I fall into the championship space. When other artists condition themselves, mentally, like fighters, the only challenge is to beat the champ.”
{quote_bottom}At the top of his game, musically, Jackson looks to the future, knowing that he doesn’t want to still be rapping at the age of 40. “Film is a whole new challenge for me. I go to the set over-prepared, not just knowing my lines, but knowing what the other person is supposed to say to me because I go over it so many times. I’m nervous when I’m presenting music that I’ve created, but I’m far more nervous when it’s something someone else wrote, and I’ve got to match it with emotions and the physical response that people feel is up to par.”
Currently working on the dramatic thriller New Orleans, in which he plays a police officer, opposite Robert DeNiro, Jackson reveals that he still feels like he’s only at the beginning of what he think he’s capable of, as far as his acting career is concerned. “It’s a great start, but it’s not the absolute best I can do. Over time, you’ll see me do a lot better. I’m an ambitious person. I don’t believe ambition is a learned behavior. I believe it’s part of a person’s character. And, I’ll continue to want to move to the next level, regardless of how far I’ve come.”
