Curtis Jackson, popularly known in the entertainment industry as 50 Cent, is an African-American rapper, actor, producer, and entrepreneur from New York City.
He took to rap, releasing a couple of singles; including his rap single, “How To Rob,” which caught the attention of the late DMX, Jay-Z, and others. Before that, he was taught how to write songs and create choruses by the legendary Jam Master Jay.
He released his debut album, “Get Rich or Die Trying,” in 2003; which catapulted him to number one on the Billboard charts. He sold a million copies of the album within the first four days after its release, and has since released several albums and collaborations.
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While building an empire behind the microphone, the rapper has set his eyes on entrepreneurship and has been quite busy in the business world. One of his major investments was his stake in the water company Vitaminwater, a sweet, colorful water drink with added vitamins.
The investment dates back to 2004 when Glacéau offered the rapper a stake in VitaminWater; leading to 50 Cent’s endorsement in a number of ads and promos for the brand. He later developed his own VitaminWater flavor.
When 50 Cent acquired a stake in the company, the brand was relatively unknown. However, with the rapper’s help, the company’s sales reportedly grew from $100 million to $700 million within three years.
In 2007, Glacéau was sold to Coca-Cola, causing the artist to make millions out of the deal.
“People were talking about how much money I made, but I was focused on the fact that $4.1 billion was made. I think I can do a bigger deal in the future,” 50 Cent told Zack O’Malley Greenburg in 2008.
According to multiple reports, the “P.I.M.P” rapper pocked $100 million from the sale of the brand to the beverage giant. In his hit track, ‘I Get Money’, 50 Cent rapped about the deal, saying: “I took quarter water sold it in bottles for 2 bucks, Coca-Cola came and bought it for billions, what the f**k?”
Face2face Africa previously reported that the artist has a net worth of $30 million, however, at his peak, he was worth $100 million. Additionally, he has made a total of $260 million from his various endeavors in the course of his career.
