The haunting “A Baltimore Love Thing” alludes to heroin’s addictiveness. “God Gave Me Style” says, “You can’t convince me that the Lord doesn’t love me.” Indeed He does, however …
God can’t be too pleased with the rapper’s lyrics. Nearly a dozen tracks exalt lewd promiscuity. Oral sex. Masturbation. Lesbianism. The hits “Disco Inferno” and “Candy Shop” involve ogling women and making sexual propositions. 50 Cent—aka “Fiddy”—brags about playing head games with girls for fun and profit (“Get in My Car”). Dealing drugs is a way of life (“Hate It or Love It,” “I Don’t Need ‘Em,” “Ski Mask Way,” “This Is 50,” “In My Hood”). So is using them, sometimes in conjunction with booze. Fiddy prefers marijuana (“Just a Lil’ Bit,” “Get in My Car”) and cocaine (“Outta Control,” “Ski Mask Way”). Obscenities abound. Amid angry f-words, nearly a dozen raps threaten rivals with death and make crime and gangsta brutality seem chic. Liner pix feature guns and half-naked women.
Born Curtis Jackson, 50 Cent survived a drive-by shooting in 2000 that saw him hit nine times, giving him street cred to spare. Too bad he isn’t parlaying his second chance and resulting celebrity into anything of value.
