1
00:00:00,720 --> 00:00:13,520
Speaker 1: Disgraceland as a production of Double Elvis. The stories about

2
00:00:13,640 --> 00:00:18,400
Speaker 1: Curtis fifty cent Jackson are insane. He was a crack

3
00:00:18,520 --> 00:00:22,360
Speaker 1: dealer before he hit puberty. He was convicted of possessing crack,

4
00:00:22,520 --> 00:00:26,760
Speaker 1: heroin and guns just after his nineteenth birthday, and at

5
00:00:26,800 --> 00:00:31,240
Speaker 1: twenty five he was shot nine times in the legs, hands,

6
00:00:31,360 --> 00:00:37,040
Speaker 1: and face and survived. He survived because Curtis Jackson had

7
00:00:37,080 --> 00:00:39,960
Speaker 1: a mantra that kept him going, that took all the

8
00:00:40,000 --> 00:00:43,400
Speaker 1: fucked up fuel of his circumstances and propelled him to

9
00:00:43,520 --> 00:00:48,520
Speaker 1: rise above, get rich or die trying. And he would

10
00:00:48,600 --> 00:00:53,800
Speaker 1: get rich, but not from dealing drugs, from making great music,

11
00:00:54,920 --> 00:00:58,560
Speaker 1: music that topped the charts, defined two thousands hip hop

12
00:00:59,000 --> 00:01:03,200
Speaker 1: and spoke bluntly about American street life. Unlike that loop

13
00:01:03,240 --> 00:01:04,920
Speaker 1: I played for you at the top of the show

14
00:01:05,440 --> 00:01:08,920
Speaker 1: that wasn't great music. That was a preset loop for

15
00:01:09,040 --> 00:01:15,320
Speaker 1: my melotron called Waltzing Priscilla MK one. I played you

16
00:01:15,319 --> 00:01:18,040
Speaker 1: that loop because I can't afford the rights to Maria

17
00:01:18,080 --> 00:01:22,800
Speaker 1: Maria by Santana featuring the product GMP. And why would

18
00:01:22,840 --> 00:01:26,200
Speaker 1: I play you that specific slice of West Side story

19
00:01:26,240 --> 00:01:31,160
Speaker 1: flashbacking cheese? Could I afford it because that was the

20
00:01:31,240 --> 00:01:34,720
Speaker 1: number one song in America on May sixth, two thousand,

21
00:01:35,319 --> 00:01:37,440
Speaker 1: and that was the day of b for the rival

22
00:01:37,520 --> 00:01:40,960
Speaker 1: hustler came back on Curtis Jackson by way of nine

23
00:01:41,040 --> 00:01:44,920
Speaker 1: bullets in the World's Worst wake up Call, one that

24
00:01:44,959 --> 00:01:50,320
Speaker 1: would change his life forever. On this episode Crack Cocaine,

25
00:01:50,600 --> 00:01:55,040
Speaker 1: police raids, high speed motorcycle chases, a nine bullet wake

26
00:01:55,120 --> 00:02:00,320
Speaker 1: up call in fifty cent. I'm Jake Brennan and this

27
00:02:01,040 --> 00:02:34,600
Speaker 1: is Disgraceland. There was a little more than a gramma

28
00:02:34,639 --> 00:02:38,000
Speaker 1: cocaine on the scale. To the dealer, the extra bit

29
00:02:38,280 --> 00:02:42,079
Speaker 1: was negligible, but ten year old Curtis Jackson, the boy

30
00:02:42,120 --> 00:02:45,320
Speaker 1: he would one day know as fifty cent, that little

31
00:02:45,320 --> 00:02:49,480
Speaker 1: extra bit of blow was everything. The dealer stood in

32
00:02:49,480 --> 00:02:52,080
Speaker 1: his bedroom in front of a stack of cardboard boxes,

33
00:02:52,680 --> 00:02:55,560
Speaker 1: each containing a brand new pair of sneakers and a

34
00:02:55,600 --> 00:02:59,280
Speaker 1: closet filled with fresh clothes, most of which still even

35
00:02:59,280 --> 00:03:03,000
Speaker 1: had the tags on. Curtis could practically taste his envy.

36
00:03:04,000 --> 00:03:06,440
Speaker 1: His sneakers were so old they needed tape to cover

37
00:03:06,520 --> 00:03:09,960
Speaker 1: the holes. His clothes were handed down from his uncles

38
00:03:10,000 --> 00:03:13,920
Speaker 1: and dated back to New York's disco era. But the dealer.

39
00:03:14,240 --> 00:03:19,000
Speaker 1: Sincere he was cool to Curtis, older, wiser than flush

40
00:03:19,080 --> 00:03:22,720
Speaker 1: with cash. He'd occasionally take Curtis shopping, bring him to

41
00:03:22,760 --> 00:03:25,720
Speaker 1: the mall, buy him some new kicks, which was way

42
00:03:25,760 --> 00:03:28,920
Speaker 1: more than his uncles would do for him. Curtis's uncles

43
00:03:28,919 --> 00:03:31,400
Speaker 1: and his aunts, all eight of them, the family he

44
00:03:31,440 --> 00:03:34,960
Speaker 1: shared a leaky roof with himself Jamaica Queen's did little

45
00:03:34,960 --> 00:03:39,840
Speaker 1: for Curtis. His grandmother tried, his grandfather was indifferent, his

46
00:03:39,880 --> 00:03:42,880
Speaker 1: mom was dead, and he never knew his father. The

47
00:03:42,920 --> 00:03:46,920
Speaker 1: house was packed with people, but little else. Money, as

48
00:03:46,960 --> 00:03:50,040
Speaker 1: it was with most of Curtis's neighbors, was tight. The

49
00:03:50,120 --> 00:03:52,400
Speaker 1: house was cold, and the cupboards were missing any kind

50
00:03:52,440 --> 00:03:54,600
Speaker 1: of food a ten year old would actually want to eat,

51
00:03:54,640 --> 00:03:57,120
Speaker 1: and dressing up trying to look fresh for school meant

52
00:03:57,280 --> 00:03:59,800
Speaker 1: raiding one of your unemployed uncle's closets, which meant you

53
00:03:59,800 --> 00:04:01,960
Speaker 1: were likely getting your ass beat down on the block

54
00:04:02,040 --> 00:04:06,200
Speaker 1: for looking out of style. Curtis watched as Sincere packaged

55
00:04:06,240 --> 00:04:09,360
Speaker 1: the powder into five equal parts. As he did so,

56
00:04:09,920 --> 00:04:14,640
Speaker 1: Sincere casually ran down the neighborhood drama for Curtis. Sincere's

57
00:04:14,680 --> 00:04:17,120
Speaker 1: grandfather got kidnapped by a couple older guys from the

58
00:04:17,160 --> 00:04:20,400
Speaker 1: block held him from ransom until Sincere paid for his release.

59
00:04:21,040 --> 00:04:23,200
Speaker 1: A friend of Sincere's who ran a little blow on

60
00:04:23,200 --> 00:04:25,919
Speaker 1: one of the blocks, his house was raided and the

61
00:04:26,000 --> 00:04:28,120
Speaker 1: robbers shot his mother in the head right there in

62
00:04:28,160 --> 00:04:31,159
Speaker 1: his friend's living room. Two other cats took to bank

63
00:04:31,240 --> 00:04:34,560
Speaker 1: robbing in broad daylight, total takeover, as they called them,

64
00:04:34,839 --> 00:04:37,360
Speaker 1: brazen raids at the local banks, emptying them of their

65
00:04:37,400 --> 00:04:42,080
Speaker 1: safes and leaving bodies behind if necessary. These desperate moves

66
00:04:42,120 --> 00:04:45,040
Speaker 1: were done out of necessity. Even at ten years old,

67
00:04:45,360 --> 00:04:48,120
Speaker 1: Curtis knew this. Most of the young men in his

68
00:04:48,160 --> 00:04:52,480
Speaker 1: neighborhood shared the same sense of desperation, desperation born out

69
00:04:52,480 --> 00:04:56,320
Speaker 1: of a lack of opportunity. Jobs in South Jamaica queen's

70
00:04:56,360 --> 00:05:00,240
Speaker 1: for uneducated men were basically non existent beyond making three

71
00:05:00,240 --> 00:05:02,400
Speaker 1: dollars and thirty five cents an hour at a fast

72
00:05:02,440 --> 00:05:05,599
Speaker 1: food restaurant. And where was the future in that, even

73
00:05:05,600 --> 00:05:07,880
Speaker 1: if he could get beyond the indignity of wearing those

74
00:05:07,920 --> 00:05:12,080
Speaker 1: stupid McDonald's visors and uniforms. Curtis wondered how his mother

75
00:05:12,160 --> 00:05:15,200
Speaker 1: did it. She went her own way, left Curtis behind

76
00:05:15,240 --> 00:05:18,640
Speaker 1: at his grandmother's and blazed her own path. She visited

77
00:05:18,720 --> 00:05:22,600
Speaker 1: him infrequently, but occasionally took him into her world. Curtis

78
00:05:22,600 --> 00:05:28,280
Speaker 1: couldn't believe what he saw Old South Road in Queen's

79
00:05:28,680 --> 00:05:31,919
Speaker 1: Michael Jackson, Rick James huk a KHM blasting out of

80
00:05:31,920 --> 00:05:35,760
Speaker 1: boomboxes and passing car stereos, little kids racing by on

81
00:05:35,880 --> 00:05:38,960
Speaker 1: beat up bicycles, men and women hustling in and out

82
00:05:38,960 --> 00:05:41,599
Speaker 1: of the local storefronts, and a steady flow of locals

83
00:05:41,640 --> 00:05:45,320
Speaker 1: intent on grabbing Curtis's mother's attention. For quick passing seconds

84
00:05:45,360 --> 00:05:48,320
Speaker 1: at a time, the locals would approach her, share a

85
00:05:48,320 --> 00:05:51,560
Speaker 1: couple of words, exchange a quick handslap, and beyond their way.

86
00:05:52,120 --> 00:05:55,440
Speaker 1: One after the other. People treated his mother with something

87
00:05:55,440 --> 00:05:58,600
Speaker 1: that seemed like deference, and she carried herself differently than

88
00:05:58,640 --> 00:06:02,039
Speaker 1: other young women her age. She was in complete control

89
00:06:02,120 --> 00:06:06,240
Speaker 1: of her situation, a trait Curtis would later recognize and sincere,

90
00:06:06,640 --> 00:06:08,760
Speaker 1: and one he would view his lacking in his uncle's.

91
00:06:09,640 --> 00:06:12,840
Speaker 1: But what really made Curtis's mom stand out was how

92
00:06:12,920 --> 00:06:15,880
Speaker 1: older men in the neighborhood treated her. And not just

93
00:06:16,200 --> 00:06:20,800
Speaker 1: any older men players. These men were clearly on their

94
00:06:20,839 --> 00:06:24,320
Speaker 1: own trip. They were different from anyone or anything on

95
00:06:24,360 --> 00:06:26,760
Speaker 1: the block. They rolled up on the corner to talk

96
00:06:26,800 --> 00:06:29,400
Speaker 1: to Curtis's mom and their brand new Cadillac Fleetwoods and

97
00:06:29,440 --> 00:06:34,360
Speaker 1: Pontiac Bonneville's big sleds with lush interiors and white wall tires,

98
00:06:34,960 --> 00:06:38,839
Speaker 1: fresh colorful paint jobs that blasted an unfair reflection back

99
00:06:38,920 --> 00:06:42,359
Speaker 1: onto the ghetto streets. They'd step out of their cars

100
00:06:42,360 --> 00:06:45,440
Speaker 1: with spit shine shoes, fresh press three piece suits, and

101
00:06:45,560 --> 00:06:48,800
Speaker 1: perfect hair, hand Curtis's mom a brown paper bag in

102
00:06:48,880 --> 00:06:51,560
Speaker 1: exchange for a stack of bills, and be on their way.

103
00:06:52,560 --> 00:06:55,640
Speaker 1: Curtis noticed the way they treated his mother with respect

104
00:06:56,080 --> 00:07:02,560
Speaker 1: as an equal. Two years later, Curtis wondered if Sincere

105
00:07:02,760 --> 00:07:04,840
Speaker 1: was more like the men in the fresh press suits

106
00:07:04,960 --> 00:07:08,120
Speaker 1: or more like his mother somewhere in between. He guessed

107
00:07:08,480 --> 00:07:11,920
Speaker 1: it didn't matter, though his mom was gone dead in

108
00:07:11,960 --> 00:07:16,160
Speaker 1: the ground, murdered two years back. So much for respect,

109
00:07:17,120 --> 00:07:19,560
Speaker 1: the pain hurting away. A ten year old is incapable

110
00:07:19,600 --> 00:07:23,440
Speaker 1: of processing, but it was quickly obscured by more pressing needs,

111
00:07:24,040 --> 00:07:26,680
Speaker 1: like how to afford clothes that wouldn't get you beat down.

112
00:07:28,200 --> 00:07:32,120
Speaker 1: As Sincere wrapped the measured cocaine into tinfoil, he explained

113
00:07:32,160 --> 00:07:35,240
Speaker 1: the coming revolution. This is the last of the powder,

114
00:07:35,360 --> 00:07:39,160
Speaker 1: he said. Curtis looked at him inquisitively. Why would Sincere

115
00:07:39,240 --> 00:07:42,600
Speaker 1: stop dealing. He's clearly getting by your uncle's to be

116
00:07:42,640 --> 00:07:44,240
Speaker 1: on the rock like the rest of the block. Next

117
00:07:44,240 --> 00:07:47,160
Speaker 1: time you come see me this, he held up a

118
00:07:47,200 --> 00:07:50,040
Speaker 1: bag of powder. This shit is dead as disco. It's

119
00:07:50,080 --> 00:07:54,560
Speaker 1: all about the rock right now and forever. Curtis didn't understand.

120
00:07:55,480 --> 00:07:58,640
Speaker 1: Sincere explained that Richard pryor motherfuckers didn't need to be

121
00:07:58,680 --> 00:08:01,560
Speaker 1: setting themselves on fire, no more trying to freebase cocaine.

122
00:08:02,000 --> 00:08:06,000
Speaker 1: It was all about the rock. Crack cocaine, crack two

123
00:08:06,080 --> 00:08:10,920
Speaker 1: parts cocaine, one part baking soda. The scientific combination meant

124
00:08:10,920 --> 00:08:13,720
Speaker 1: that less product was used and more profit was made.

125
00:08:14,120 --> 00:08:16,160
Speaker 1: Making it even better for the dealers was the fact

126
00:08:16,200 --> 00:08:20,720
Speaker 1: that crack, compared to cocaine, was highly addictive. As little

127
00:08:20,760 --> 00:08:23,360
Speaker 1: as one hit and you were hooked, And that meant

128
00:08:23,400 --> 00:08:26,640
Speaker 1: dealers had new customers for life, fiends who visited them

129
00:08:26,720 --> 00:08:30,360
Speaker 1: multiple times per day for their cheap high. Right now,

130
00:08:30,400 --> 00:08:33,840
Speaker 1: as they spoke, quote unquote, processing plants all over the

131
00:08:33,880 --> 00:08:37,920
Speaker 1: city were buzzing with action. Apartments jammed with neighborhood women

132
00:08:37,920 --> 00:08:41,079
Speaker 1: who to ensure no theft of the product. Were completely

133
00:08:41,200 --> 00:08:44,120
Speaker 1: naked over long tables stacked high with many mountains of

134
00:08:44,200 --> 00:08:48,080
Speaker 1: cocaine that had recently been turned into crack. They cut

135
00:08:48,080 --> 00:08:51,600
Speaker 1: the processed product down from little bowlders into pebbles, then

136
00:08:51,679 --> 00:08:55,320
Speaker 1: inserted the rocks into vials, then capped them for distribution

137
00:08:55,480 --> 00:08:58,920
Speaker 1: throughout the city. The vials almost always had some unique

138
00:08:58,960 --> 00:09:02,480
Speaker 1: quality to separate them from the competition. Blue Caps were

139
00:09:02,480 --> 00:09:06,319
Speaker 1: popular in Jamaica Queen's The Blue Caps brand was synonymous

140
00:09:06,360 --> 00:09:09,720
Speaker 1: with big, powerful rocks. They went fast on the block

141
00:09:09,800 --> 00:09:12,479
Speaker 1: once the street level dealers got their hands on them.

142
00:09:12,880 --> 00:09:19,199
Speaker 1: Quality and quantity control, manufacturing, branding, and distribution. He didn't

143
00:09:19,240 --> 00:09:22,520
Speaker 1: know it yet, but young Curtis Jackson was learning lessons

144
00:09:22,520 --> 00:09:25,520
Speaker 1: he would use later in life, lessons that would bring

145
00:09:25,640 --> 00:09:29,400
Speaker 1: him unimaginable riches. But for right now, at the age

146
00:09:29,400 --> 00:09:33,120
Speaker 1: of ten, all he needed was a new pair of sneakers,

147
00:09:33,800 --> 00:09:37,839
Speaker 1: sincere wasn't buying them many though. Nope, that's why he

148
00:09:37,920 --> 00:09:40,840
Speaker 1: was weighing out the last of his powder. He separated

149
00:09:40,840 --> 00:09:44,560
Speaker 1: it into five tinfoil packages. They called the little packages

150
00:09:44,559 --> 00:09:48,560
Speaker 1: of Cocaine fat Alberts out in the neighborhood. Fat Alberts

151
00:09:48,600 --> 00:09:50,960
Speaker 1: contained enough coke to get high on the weekend, but

152
00:09:51,000 --> 00:09:53,160
Speaker 1: not enough to keep his supply twenty four to seven.

153
00:09:53,880 --> 00:09:56,520
Speaker 1: Curtis's uncles partied with them on the regular and ran

154
00:09:56,559 --> 00:09:59,000
Speaker 1: little Curtis down to Sinceres to keep them supplied and

155
00:09:59,080 --> 00:10:02,400
Speaker 1: keep the party back at the house bumping. Sincere told

156
00:10:02,440 --> 00:10:05,240
Speaker 1: Curtis that he wasn't buying him anymore sneakers. They're just

157
00:10:05,280 --> 00:10:06,640
Speaker 1: going to get dirty and then you're just going to

158
00:10:06,679 --> 00:10:10,520
Speaker 1: come back here looking for another handout. Instead, he gave

159
00:10:10,559 --> 00:10:13,599
Speaker 1: Curtis the five little bags of cocaine. Take these to

160
00:10:13,640 --> 00:10:15,760
Speaker 1: your uncles and bring me back one hundred dollars and

161
00:10:15,880 --> 00:10:17,480
Speaker 1: keep whatever you make on top of that and buy

162
00:10:17,520 --> 00:10:21,600
Speaker 1: your own goddamn sneakers. In a world of hand me downs,

163
00:10:21,679 --> 00:10:25,959
Speaker 1: leaky roofs and murdered and unknown parents, opportunity had struck

164
00:10:26,640 --> 00:10:29,840
Speaker 1: and ten year old Curtis Jackson had just gotten himself

165
00:10:30,520 --> 00:10:58,559
Speaker 1: a job. The rival hustler stood Curtis Jackson up against

166
00:10:58,640 --> 00:11:01,920
Speaker 1: the wall. He shoved his nine millimeter hard into the

167
00:11:01,920 --> 00:11:04,600
Speaker 1: side of his cheek and spit street wisdom into Curtis's

168
00:11:04,679 --> 00:11:08,600
Speaker 1: face from inches away. This was not how grown men

169
00:11:08,640 --> 00:11:12,440
Speaker 1: did business. This was not how hustlers treated one another,

170
00:11:12,800 --> 00:11:15,120
Speaker 1: and this was not how he survived on the street.

171
00:11:16,200 --> 00:11:18,600
Speaker 1: Curtis shoved his attacker off of him and onto the ground.

172
00:11:18,920 --> 00:11:21,320
Speaker 1: He kicked a nine millimeter from his hand, stepped on

173
00:11:21,320 --> 00:11:23,400
Speaker 1: the husler's chest, and took aain with his own weapon.

174
00:11:24,120 --> 00:11:27,600
Speaker 1: This was it, the moment of truth, kill or be killed.

175
00:11:28,120 --> 00:11:30,040
Speaker 1: He knew the dealing Crack on the streets of Queens

176
00:11:30,040 --> 00:11:33,760
Speaker 1: would lead to this moment. Curtis focused his aim, squeezed

177
00:11:33,800 --> 00:11:43,120
Speaker 1: the trigger and nothing, no shots, no bullets. His gun

178
00:11:43,200 --> 00:11:45,520
Speaker 1: wasn't a gun at all. It was his beeper, and

179
00:11:45,600 --> 00:11:48,679
Speaker 1: it signaled weakly into the night before fear rocketed up

180
00:11:48,679 --> 00:11:50,960
Speaker 1: his throat from his belly and startled him upright and

181
00:11:51,000 --> 00:11:54,400
Speaker 1: awake in his bed. The dream was always the same,

182
00:11:54,880 --> 00:11:58,079
Speaker 1: more or less. Sometimes the attacker changed, but he was

183
00:11:58,120 --> 00:12:00,920
Speaker 1: always fearsome, and the end result was always Curtis being

184
00:12:00,960 --> 00:12:04,720
Speaker 1: startled awake with terror rushing through his veins. And the

185
00:12:04,760 --> 00:12:09,520
Speaker 1: fear was always there. Now, sincere was right, Crack had

186
00:12:09,559 --> 00:12:11,960
Speaker 1: taken over the ghetto. It had been creeping in all

187
00:12:12,000 --> 00:12:14,560
Speaker 1: across nineteen eighty five, when The New York Times first

188
00:12:14,679 --> 00:12:17,560
Speaker 1: named the drug in print, and by nineteen eighty seven

189
00:12:17,800 --> 00:12:22,240
Speaker 1: it was everywhere. Over three years, US hospitals reported cocaine

190
00:12:22,280 --> 00:12:27,440
Speaker 1: related emergencies nationwide increased by almost four hundred percent, and

191
00:12:27,559 --> 00:12:32,080
Speaker 1: crack had taken over Curtis Jackson too. Hustling what he

192
00:12:32,160 --> 00:12:35,120
Speaker 1: and everyone he knew called dealing drugs had been almost

193
00:12:35,200 --> 00:12:37,680
Speaker 1: too good to be true. The money to be made

194
00:12:37,800 --> 00:12:40,439
Speaker 1: was more than anything he could have dreamed. Degenerating Legitimately,

195
00:12:40,480 --> 00:12:43,720
Speaker 1: at the age of twelve, in his mind, Curtis had

196
00:12:43,760 --> 00:12:45,800
Speaker 1: made it. He had a new pair of sneakers in

197
00:12:45,800 --> 00:12:47,800
Speaker 1: a fresh track suit for every day of the week.

198
00:12:48,320 --> 00:12:52,600
Speaker 1: In Curtis's mind, powered work paid off, because that's exactly

199
00:12:52,640 --> 00:12:56,160
Speaker 1: what hustling was to him. Work. But the fear of

200
00:12:56,200 --> 00:12:59,640
Speaker 1: being caught, arrested, and sentenced to prison time was ever

201
00:12:59,720 --> 00:13:03,760
Speaker 1: press In nineteen eighty six, Congress passed the first round

202
00:13:03,800 --> 00:13:07,600
Speaker 1: of mandatory minimum sentences for drug offenses. The guidelines for

203
00:13:07,679 --> 00:13:09,760
Speaker 1: crack were one hundred times as severe as those for

204
00:13:09,800 --> 00:13:13,200
Speaker 1: powder cook came by weight. Beyond prison, there was the

205
00:13:13,240 --> 00:13:16,280
Speaker 1: ever present threat of an early death. The rules had

206
00:13:16,360 --> 00:13:20,320
Speaker 1: changed in New York too by nineteen eighty six. In June,

207
00:13:20,360 --> 00:13:23,000
Speaker 1: on the opposite side of Queen's from Upstart, Curtis a

208
00:13:23,080 --> 00:13:26,000
Speaker 1: rookie NYPD patrolman was chasing an arm perp into an

209
00:13:26,040 --> 00:13:29,560
Speaker 1: alley when the gunman opened up seven eight nine bullets.

210
00:13:29,760 --> 00:13:32,760
Speaker 1: When the rookie returned fire, emptied his six rounds and

211
00:13:32,800 --> 00:13:34,880
Speaker 1: then took a shot to the forehead while reloading his

212
00:13:34,960 --> 00:13:39,559
Speaker 1: service pistol. The whole NYPD was full of fury and adrenaline.

213
00:13:39,600 --> 00:13:42,960
Speaker 1: Now an army of drug warriors went and freshly upgraded

214
00:13:43,000 --> 00:13:46,000
Speaker 1: to speedloaders and semi automatics for side arms so that

215
00:13:46,040 --> 00:13:49,200
Speaker 1: it wouldn't happen again. The cop killer was found and

216
00:13:49,280 --> 00:13:52,200
Speaker 1: convicted for both the officer's death and a drug burn

217
00:13:52,280 --> 00:13:56,080
Speaker 1: slang the previous year. But to young Curtis, all this

218
00:13:56,160 --> 00:14:01,080
Speaker 1: news boiled down to it was more danger at work. However,

219
00:14:01,520 --> 00:14:06,280
Speaker 1: like most work, it all becomes routine and Curtis got sloppy.

220
00:14:06,480 --> 00:14:08,680
Speaker 1: He showed up at school one day and was randomly

221
00:14:08,720 --> 00:14:11,880
Speaker 1: searched by a security guard. The guard found a package

222
00:14:11,920 --> 00:14:14,439
Speaker 1: of green Top crack files and Curtis's backpack that he'd

223
00:14:14,480 --> 00:14:18,800
Speaker 1: forgotten about. He was arrested for possession. The judge went

224
00:14:18,880 --> 00:14:22,880
Speaker 1: easy on him eighteen months probation, and Curtis went right

225
00:14:22,920 --> 00:14:26,960
Speaker 1: back to work. He was suspended from school and intent

226
00:14:27,040 --> 00:14:29,320
Speaker 1: on using the opportunity. This afforded him to hit the

227
00:14:29,320 --> 00:14:32,560
Speaker 1: street and hustle even harder. He stood on his corner

228
00:14:32,640 --> 00:14:34,880
Speaker 1: night and day, leaving only to hit the kitchen he

229
00:14:34,920 --> 00:14:36,960
Speaker 1: rented from a friend of his to cook more crack.

230
00:14:37,880 --> 00:14:41,520
Speaker 1: He power napped on city street benches, rarely showered or ate,

231
00:14:41,840 --> 00:14:45,760
Speaker 1: and grind it full time. The work was all consuming

232
00:14:45,840 --> 00:14:49,880
Speaker 1: until Curtis caught a glimpse of himself in the mirror, disheveled, griming,

233
00:14:50,120 --> 00:14:54,400
Speaker 1: almost possessed, just like the crack fiends he serviced. Something

234
00:14:54,560 --> 00:14:59,440
Speaker 1: had to give. Two un marked police cars sirens on

235
00:14:59,480 --> 00:15:03,320
Speaker 1: their dash. Two cops per car bounded out onto the sidewalk,

236
00:15:03,360 --> 00:15:05,760
Speaker 1: guns drawn, screaming at Curtis and two of his friends

237
00:15:05,760 --> 00:15:08,960
Speaker 1: to get on their knees. They had them dead to rights,

238
00:15:09,280 --> 00:15:12,600
Speaker 1: their whole operation caught on tape. The lookout, the hustler,

239
00:15:12,840 --> 00:15:14,760
Speaker 1: the duodoo man the package and made the handoff to

240
00:15:14,800 --> 00:15:18,880
Speaker 1: the customer. The funny thing was Curtis wasn't even involved

241
00:15:18,880 --> 00:15:21,520
Speaker 1: in this steal. He was just hanging out talking to

242
00:15:21,560 --> 00:15:23,560
Speaker 1: some of his friends who were caught up in a transaction.

243
00:15:24,360 --> 00:15:27,280
Speaker 1: Didn't matter. The cops sting netted him as well in

244
00:15:27,360 --> 00:15:29,600
Speaker 1: this bus on the heels of a failed drug test

245
00:15:29,760 --> 00:15:32,360
Speaker 1: due to the fact that Curtis was processing so much

246
00:15:32,520 --> 00:15:34,960
Speaker 1: crack that the drug had seeped into the pores of

247
00:15:35,000 --> 00:15:37,360
Speaker 1: his skin and into his system and caused him to

248
00:15:37,360 --> 00:15:40,600
Speaker 1: fail the drug test. This second bust landed him in

249
00:15:40,640 --> 00:15:43,560
Speaker 1: front of another judge, for whom probation would most definitely

250
00:15:43,600 --> 00:15:46,960
Speaker 1: not be enough of a punishment. Young Curtis Jackson was

251
00:15:47,000 --> 00:15:51,720
Speaker 1: sentenced to two years in a court mandated drug program.

252
00:15:51,960 --> 00:15:54,360
Speaker 1: He did his two years standing on his head. It

253
00:15:54,440 --> 00:15:57,840
Speaker 1: was easy compared to real time. Curtis bullshitted his way

254
00:15:57,880 --> 00:16:00,680
Speaker 1: through mandatory group therapy sessions and up to the false

255
00:16:00,760 --> 00:16:02,960
Speaker 1: role of being a degenerate drug addict in an effort

256
00:16:02,960 --> 00:16:04,920
Speaker 1: to work his way through the program, back onto the

257
00:16:04,920 --> 00:16:08,000
Speaker 1: streets and back to work. Behind one of the program

258
00:16:08,160 --> 00:16:11,720
Speaker 1: counselor's desks, I'm a plaque, it read the price of

259
00:16:11,760 --> 00:16:14,800
Speaker 1: success is hard work and an unremitting devotion to see

260
00:16:14,800 --> 00:16:18,800
Speaker 1: the things you want to see happen. No shit. Curtis

261
00:16:18,840 --> 00:16:21,080
Speaker 1: could get with that if he could only get out

262
00:16:21,120 --> 00:16:25,120
Speaker 1: of this damn program, which he did eventually, and when

263
00:16:25,160 --> 00:16:27,960
Speaker 1: he did, he was recommitted to his work no more.

264
00:16:28,080 --> 00:16:30,520
Speaker 1: Sloppiness on the street or in school. He was going

265
00:16:30,560 --> 00:16:33,240
Speaker 1: to become a real hustler. Enough of this dangerous street

266
00:16:33,320 --> 00:16:36,720
Speaker 1: level stuff. Curtis Jackson had designs on working his way

267
00:16:36,720 --> 00:16:40,600
Speaker 1: into a management position. Sure the risks were greater, but

268
00:16:40,720 --> 00:16:44,720
Speaker 1: so were the rewards. He needed cash, and a lot

269
00:16:44,760 --> 00:16:48,000
Speaker 1: of it, the kind of cash that convergiuse, weight enough

270
00:16:48,040 --> 00:16:49,840
Speaker 1: product to put out on the street to low level

271
00:16:49,920 --> 00:16:52,080
Speaker 1: hustlers who work for you while you sit back and

272
00:16:52,120 --> 00:16:55,920
Speaker 1: bring product him from the Columbia connect. To get that cash,

273
00:16:56,120 --> 00:17:00,720
Speaker 1: Curtis hit the street and hustled, but once again another

274
00:17:00,760 --> 00:17:06,600
Speaker 1: street bust for possession, and then over the goddamn door,

275
00:17:06,640 --> 00:17:09,879
Speaker 1: we're knocking it down. A house arraid while out on parole,

276
00:17:09,880 --> 00:17:11,919
Speaker 1: where the cops found two hundred and eighty grams of

277
00:17:11,920 --> 00:17:16,720
Speaker 1: crack cocaine and fifteen thousand dollars in cash. Remarkably, the

278
00:17:16,800 --> 00:17:19,680
Speaker 1: judge went easy on Curtis, deeming him a prime candidate

279
00:17:19,720 --> 00:17:23,160
Speaker 1: for rehabilitation as part of the new Monterey Shock incarceration

280
00:17:23,280 --> 00:17:26,280
Speaker 1: program in beaver Dam's, New York. What could have been

281
00:17:26,320 --> 00:17:28,880
Speaker 1: a nine year sentence for possession was now a six

282
00:17:28,920 --> 00:17:31,119
Speaker 1: month trip up state to a boot camp posing as

283
00:17:31,160 --> 00:17:36,440
Speaker 1: a hybrid reheb summer camp slash outdoor prison. The rehab

284
00:17:36,520 --> 00:17:39,840
Speaker 1: was mostly physical in demanding. He was awake at five

285
00:17:39,880 --> 00:17:43,240
Speaker 1: am every day, thrust into workouts, and taught to maximize

286
00:17:43,280 --> 00:17:46,800
Speaker 1: his effort in time. When Curtis was eventually released, he

287
00:17:46,920 --> 00:17:49,840
Speaker 1: was anything but rehabilitated from the drug gamp. He was

288
00:17:49,880 --> 00:17:52,919
Speaker 1: inspired to push himself into the game even further, and

289
00:17:52,960 --> 00:17:57,360
Speaker 1: he was in shape, lean, mean, and ready to get

290
00:17:57,440 --> 00:18:04,520
Speaker 1: back to work. We'll be right back after this. We're, We're, We're.

291
00:18:13,000 --> 00:18:16,600
Speaker 1: The Suzuki gsx R seven to fifty motorcycle was built

292
00:18:16,600 --> 00:18:20,399
Speaker 1: for speed, and it whipped down the block. Curtis Jackson

293
00:18:20,480 --> 00:18:24,080
Speaker 1: was traveling light out of rehab and on parole back

294
00:18:24,119 --> 00:18:26,720
Speaker 1: to dealing, but not stupid enough to speed through Queen's

295
00:18:26,720 --> 00:18:30,560
Speaker 1: on his bike while holding product. Still, that didn't stop

296
00:18:30,640 --> 00:18:33,720
Speaker 1: him from speeding off when the cops approached him. Any

297
00:18:33,800 --> 00:18:36,800
Speaker 1: arrest while on parole could lead to hard time, and

298
00:18:36,880 --> 00:18:38,399
Speaker 1: when the cop rolled up next to him at the

299
00:18:38,400 --> 00:18:40,840
Speaker 1: stop sign on guy Our Brewer Boulevard to ask him

300
00:18:40,840 --> 00:18:43,280
Speaker 1: a question, before he even got it out of his mouth,

301
00:18:43,720 --> 00:18:49,040
Speaker 1: Curtis gunned him. The Suzuki's engine screamed. The police cruiser's

302
00:18:49,119 --> 00:18:52,760
Speaker 1: lights went into a frantic fit, its siren howled, and

303
00:18:52,840 --> 00:18:55,560
Speaker 1: Curtis blasted down the boulevard and the bank two hard rights,

304
00:18:55,560 --> 00:19:00,159
Speaker 1: disappearing from the cops momentarily into the Baisley Projects. He

305
00:19:00,200 --> 00:19:03,240
Speaker 1: exited the projects onto a main street, accelerated to one

306
00:19:03,320 --> 00:19:05,320
Speaker 1: hundred miles per hour, and let up on the throttom.

307
00:19:06,040 --> 00:19:08,840
Speaker 1: He cruised for a moment, seemingly safe from the cops.

308
00:19:09,560 --> 00:19:12,119
Speaker 1: Thinking he was in the clear, Curtis turned and headed

309
00:19:12,160 --> 00:19:14,640
Speaker 1: back to the block to laugh off the incident with friends.

310
00:19:15,359 --> 00:19:18,439
Speaker 1: Then an unmarked cruiser sped up tight next to him

311
00:19:18,480 --> 00:19:20,639
Speaker 1: on his right side, and the cop yelled out of

312
00:19:20,680 --> 00:19:25,360
Speaker 1: his window. Curtis yanked on the accelerator, the bike rocketed

313
00:19:25,359 --> 00:19:28,200
Speaker 1: ahead with the cruiser. The cruiser accelerated and quickly caught

314
00:19:28,280 --> 00:19:31,639
Speaker 1: up to the bike. Curtis slowed, banged quick right, steadied

315
00:19:31,680 --> 00:19:33,159
Speaker 1: his foot on the street off of the bike to

316
00:19:33,200 --> 00:19:35,520
Speaker 1: better handle the sharp turn, straightened his bike in the

317
00:19:35,520 --> 00:19:38,400
Speaker 1: opposite direction of the cruiser, and sped away from the cops.

318
00:19:39,359 --> 00:19:43,720
Speaker 1: Cyanara suckers. Curtis had escaped, but then the sound of

319
00:19:43,720 --> 00:19:46,480
Speaker 1: another siren from a second cruiser that was somehow right

320
00:19:46,560 --> 00:19:49,320
Speaker 1: behind him Curtis heard the sound of the original cruiser

321
00:19:49,359 --> 00:19:52,439
Speaker 1: now as well. It blasted in unison as it rapidly

322
00:19:52,440 --> 00:19:56,520
Speaker 1: gained speed, catching up behind him. Two cars, four cops,

323
00:19:56,680 --> 00:20:00,400
Speaker 1: one bike, one hustler on parole. Curtis steered the Suzuki

324
00:20:00,560 --> 00:20:02,560
Speaker 1: up onto the sidewalk and sped through a crowd of

325
00:20:02,600 --> 00:20:05,480
Speaker 1: surprise pedestrians. He scurried away from the bike to safety.

326
00:20:05,960 --> 00:20:08,440
Speaker 1: Curtis was running out of sidewalk. He hit the street

327
00:20:08,520 --> 00:20:10,960
Speaker 1: again and the cruiser was right there beside it and keeping

328
00:20:11,040 --> 00:20:15,840
Speaker 1: pace down the boulevard. Curtis did no such thing. He

329
00:20:15,880 --> 00:20:20,159
Speaker 1: accelerated up ahead. A third cruiser appeared. This one headed

330
00:20:20,200 --> 00:20:23,400
Speaker 1: straight toward Curtis and the cruiser to his side. Curtis

331
00:20:23,480 --> 00:20:26,200
Speaker 1: jammed his brakes skid it to his stop. The cruiser

332
00:20:26,200 --> 00:20:28,200
Speaker 1: to his left did the same, stopping next to him.

333
00:20:28,320 --> 00:20:31,320
Speaker 1: The third cruiser kept speeding straight toward them both, and

334
00:20:31,359 --> 00:20:33,240
Speaker 1: the cop in the car at Curtis's left reached up

335
00:20:33,280 --> 00:20:36,520
Speaker 1: his hand and grabbed his motorcycle's handlebar. Curtis yanked it away,

336
00:20:36,840 --> 00:20:39,240
Speaker 1: pulled the throttle and mounted the jerk and bike back

337
00:20:39,320 --> 00:20:41,520
Speaker 1: up onto the sidewalk and away into the crowd, and

338
00:20:41,560 --> 00:20:44,400
Speaker 1: eventually back on the guy ar brew of boulevard, going

339
00:20:44,440 --> 00:20:47,680
Speaker 1: the other direction away from the copse. On the straight away,

340
00:20:47,920 --> 00:20:49,919
Speaker 1: he pushed the bike as fast as it would go,

341
00:20:50,240 --> 00:20:53,040
Speaker 1: reaching a speed of one hundred and twenty miles per hour.

342
00:20:53,800 --> 00:20:56,359
Speaker 1: He needed to get off the street, ditched the bike,

343
00:20:56,480 --> 00:20:59,560
Speaker 1: and back to his grandmother's house, but that wasn't going

344
00:20:59,600 --> 00:21:02,560
Speaker 1: to happen so easily. As he raced through traffic, he

345
00:21:02,600 --> 00:21:04,960
Speaker 1: could hear it sounded like as many as five cruisers,

346
00:21:04,960 --> 00:21:08,639
Speaker 1: now speeding behind him and getting closer. The traffic got heavier.

347
00:21:09,000 --> 00:21:11,440
Speaker 1: It provided an obstacle course for Curtis to weave through

348
00:21:11,520 --> 00:21:13,760
Speaker 1: with his bike, and an obstacle course that the cruisers

349
00:21:13,760 --> 00:21:16,640
Speaker 1: could not penetrate. Curtis ended up on the other side

350
00:21:16,680 --> 00:21:18,920
Speaker 1: of the congested boulevard, ahead of the traffic on his bike,

351
00:21:18,920 --> 00:21:21,280
Speaker 1: while the cops sputtered behind the cars and their cruisers.

352
00:21:21,920 --> 00:21:24,120
Speaker 1: It was now or never. Time to make his move

353
00:21:24,160 --> 00:21:26,800
Speaker 1: and escape for real. Curtis banged the left off the

354
00:21:26,800 --> 00:21:29,920
Speaker 1: main boulevard and onto his side street. He quickly stopped,

355
00:21:30,080 --> 00:21:32,800
Speaker 1: turned the bike around, and idled on the side street

356
00:21:32,800 --> 00:21:36,679
Speaker 1: while he faced the boulevard. He waited. Soon enough, the

357
00:21:36,720 --> 00:21:38,879
Speaker 1: cruisers caught up and turned off to the boulevard and

358
00:21:38,960 --> 00:21:41,080
Speaker 1: onto the side street. They saw Curtis turn on too,

359
00:21:41,280 --> 00:21:43,919
Speaker 1: where he waited. As soon as he saw them, he

360
00:21:44,080 --> 00:21:47,359
Speaker 1: blasted off straight toward the approaching police cruisers, passed it

361
00:21:47,520 --> 00:21:50,560
Speaker 1: and away into traffic. The cruisers screeched to a halt

362
00:21:50,560 --> 00:21:52,760
Speaker 1: and made a clumsy effort to turn around, but it

363
00:21:52,880 --> 00:21:55,679
Speaker 1: was too late. Curtis was off. He pulled off of

364
00:21:55,680 --> 00:21:59,000
Speaker 1: Guy R. Brewer onto Rockaway Boulevard and beneath an overpass.

365
00:21:59,280 --> 00:22:03,399
Speaker 1: The shaking hit him almost immediately. His handlebars vibrated, his

366
00:22:03,520 --> 00:22:06,480
Speaker 1: ribcage rattle, the lining of his stomach rolled. What the

367
00:22:06,600 --> 00:22:09,399
Speaker 1: fuck was happening? Curtis turned off her rock Away out

368
00:22:09,400 --> 00:22:12,040
Speaker 1: from underneath the overpass, looked up and there it was

369
00:22:12,400 --> 00:22:15,399
Speaker 1: a fucking police helicopter, keeping pace with his bike and

370
00:22:15,480 --> 00:22:18,600
Speaker 1: bearing down on him. Curtis had no time to think,

371
00:22:18,880 --> 00:22:22,040
Speaker 1: He just raced. He managed to duck off onto another

372
00:22:22,119 --> 00:22:25,560
Speaker 1: side street, momentarily escaping the smothering chopper, and ditched his

373
00:22:25,600 --> 00:22:28,399
Speaker 1: bike in her friend's backyard. From there, it was a

374
00:22:28,440 --> 00:22:31,240
Speaker 1: stealth foot race through the alleys and yards of his neighbors,

375
00:22:31,480 --> 00:22:34,600
Speaker 1: over fences, away from the jaws of snarling dogs, and

376
00:22:34,760 --> 00:22:37,200
Speaker 1: up the side of his grandmother's porch, through her window

377
00:22:37,280 --> 00:22:39,879
Speaker 1: into his house and up and hidden away in the attic,

378
00:22:42,800 --> 00:22:44,920
Speaker 1: he heard the sharp bang of the police billy clubs

379
00:22:44,920 --> 00:22:48,280
Speaker 1: on the front door. Almost immediately his grandmother opened the

380
00:22:48,280 --> 00:22:51,320
Speaker 1: door and he listened. He could hear both cops clear

381
00:22:51,359 --> 00:22:54,679
Speaker 1: as day, one white, one black. They spoke in a

382
00:22:54,680 --> 00:23:00,600
Speaker 1: rehearsed rhythm. Was Curtis Jackson their grandson? Yes? They lived there? Yes?

383
00:23:01,080 --> 00:23:04,080
Speaker 1: Was he home? No? Could they come in? Hell? No,

384
00:23:04,359 --> 00:23:06,520
Speaker 1: not without a warrant. When was the last time they

385
00:23:06,560 --> 00:23:09,119
Speaker 1: saw Curtis? That sounded like a question for a lawyer

386
00:23:09,160 --> 00:23:11,760
Speaker 1: to answer, Well, if you see him, will you contact us?

387
00:23:11,920 --> 00:23:14,800
Speaker 1: Why the hell would we do that? Because your grandson,

388
00:23:15,040 --> 00:23:22,560
Speaker 1: Curtis Jackson is wanted for murder. Murder, no worse than that,

389
00:23:23,040 --> 00:23:27,439
Speaker 1: a double homicide. How the hell did this happen? He

390
00:23:27,480 --> 00:23:30,680
Speaker 1: didn't kill anyone, but the cops didn't know that. They

391
00:23:30,720 --> 00:23:33,679
Speaker 1: believed he killed two people, and that's all that mattered,

392
00:23:34,320 --> 00:23:36,280
Speaker 1: at least on the day of that high speed chase,

393
00:23:36,680 --> 00:23:40,840
Speaker 1: a day when he could have easily died. Curtis Jackson

394
00:23:40,880 --> 00:23:43,040
Speaker 1: wasn't yet twenty one years old, and because of his

395
00:23:43,119 --> 00:23:45,840
Speaker 1: chosen line of work, he was nearly dead or about

396
00:23:45,960 --> 00:23:49,880
Speaker 1: to spend his life in prison. Making matters worse. His

397
00:23:49,920 --> 00:23:52,119
Speaker 1: girlfriend was telling him he was about to be a father.

398
00:23:52,920 --> 00:23:54,920
Speaker 1: He didn't want his child growing up without a dad

399
00:23:55,040 --> 00:23:58,840
Speaker 1: like he did, so the choice was easy. No more hustling,

400
00:23:59,240 --> 00:24:02,639
Speaker 1: no more high be death defying chases, no more street

401
00:24:02,680 --> 00:24:07,320
Speaker 1: bus no more cord order rehabilitation or worse, incarceration. His

402
00:24:07,320 --> 00:24:09,800
Speaker 1: parole officer knew he was innocent on the double murder

403
00:24:09,880 --> 00:24:13,200
Speaker 1: rap and got him off. Curtis now needed a new gig.

404
00:24:15,840 --> 00:24:18,439
Speaker 1: He heard his future blasting out of the boomboxes on

405
00:24:18,480 --> 00:24:23,040
Speaker 1: the block, the notorious Big, a Brooklyn hustler who'd gone

406
00:24:23,080 --> 00:24:25,639
Speaker 1: straight by weaving his street rhymes into hip hop gold.

407
00:24:26,280 --> 00:24:29,119
Speaker 1: Curtis could get with Big. His shit was the only

408
00:24:29,119 --> 00:24:31,919
Speaker 1: shit in the rap game that rang true. It was authentic,

409
00:24:32,119 --> 00:24:35,000
Speaker 1: and it provided Curtis for the path. If Big could

410
00:24:35,040 --> 00:24:38,639
Speaker 1: do it, so could he. It was audacious, but fuck it.

411
00:24:38,920 --> 00:24:41,359
Speaker 1: The entire notion of making any life for yourself and

412
00:24:41,359 --> 00:24:43,399
Speaker 1: a place as fucked up as a crack torn Jamaica

413
00:24:43,480 --> 00:24:47,560
Speaker 1: queens in nineteen ninety six was audacious. Hell, just believing

414
00:24:47,560 --> 00:24:50,240
Speaker 1: you could survive in the streets was audacious. If you

415
00:24:50,240 --> 00:24:52,560
Speaker 1: could make thousands of dollars a week and outrun angry

416
00:24:52,560 --> 00:24:55,159
Speaker 1: cops and high speed chases throughout the neighborhood. If you

417
00:24:55,200 --> 00:24:58,119
Speaker 1: could dodge a double murder rap, why couldn't he actually rap?

418
00:24:58,560 --> 00:25:02,080
Speaker 1: How hard could that shit be? Anyway, Curtis started writing

419
00:25:02,119 --> 00:25:04,080
Speaker 1: rhymes in his head and he envisioned a new authentic

420
00:25:04,080 --> 00:25:06,760
Speaker 1: persona for himself. He took the name from an old

421
00:25:06,760 --> 00:25:09,800
Speaker 1: school local street hustler named fifty cent Got it Too.

422
00:25:10,440 --> 00:25:13,040
Speaker 1: Someone introduced him to local queen's legend jam master j

423
00:25:13,240 --> 00:25:15,439
Speaker 1: of R on DMC, who signed fifty cent to a

424
00:25:15,440 --> 00:25:18,480
Speaker 1: production deal, but that didn't move fast enough for him.

425
00:25:18,760 --> 00:25:21,640
Speaker 1: Fifty cent had a baby on the way. Fifty Cent

426
00:25:21,920 --> 00:25:25,199
Speaker 1: hustled not on the block in the rap game. His

427
00:25:25,359 --> 00:25:29,200
Speaker 1: wraps were pure authentic. He rapped about real hustlers and

428
00:25:29,280 --> 00:25:31,719
Speaker 1: real situations, and it rang true and resulted in an

429
00:25:31,760 --> 00:25:34,480
Speaker 1: invitation to record with the track masters, who were two

430
00:25:34,480 --> 00:25:37,720
Speaker 1: of the hottest producers in the game. The studio was

431
00:25:37,800 --> 00:25:41,320
Speaker 1: overrun with other rappers, their posses, hangers on girls, local

432
00:25:41,359 --> 00:25:44,359
Speaker 1: hustlers coming in and out. There was a party. Everyone

433
00:25:44,400 --> 00:25:48,520
Speaker 1: was just hanging around getting fucked up, blunts, alcohol, an

434
00:25:48,520 --> 00:25:51,240
Speaker 1: occasional beat queued up on the monitors to entice some

435
00:25:51,320 --> 00:25:54,800
Speaker 1: inspiration from one of the attendant rappers, but was ultimately wasted.

436
00:25:54,840 --> 00:25:58,679
Speaker 1: Like those hanging out, fifty Cent saw his opportunity and

437
00:25:58,760 --> 00:26:01,800
Speaker 1: he took it. Rap wasn't about hanging around and getting

438
00:26:01,840 --> 00:26:04,520
Speaker 1: fucked up. It was just like the street, except with

439
00:26:04,600 --> 00:26:08,080
Speaker 1: less cops and less bullets. It was about work. He

440
00:26:08,200 --> 00:26:11,760
Speaker 1: stayed there at the trackmaster's studio for eighteen days. He

441
00:26:11,880 --> 00:26:15,240
Speaker 1: left with thirty six songs for his demo. Thirty six

442
00:26:15,760 --> 00:26:18,840
Speaker 1: that's two completed songs a day and unheard of clip.

443
00:26:19,600 --> 00:26:22,000
Speaker 1: The track masters signed him to their production deal and

444
00:26:22,040 --> 00:26:26,160
Speaker 1: then transferred fifty cents contract to Columbia Records. Fifty Cent

445
00:26:26,240 --> 00:26:28,639
Speaker 1: was now signed to a major label, which is like

446
00:26:28,680 --> 00:26:31,800
Speaker 1: with jam Master Jay. Columbia wasn't moving fast enough for

447
00:26:31,920 --> 00:26:34,960
Speaker 1: fifty Cent. The release of his record was stalled, and

448
00:26:35,000 --> 00:26:37,639
Speaker 1: with a kid on the way, he wasn't making money.

449
00:26:37,720 --> 00:26:43,160
Speaker 1: He had no choice. Back to hustling crack, fifty Cent

450
00:26:43,240 --> 00:26:45,560
Speaker 1: made his new presence on the street felt with authority.

451
00:26:46,040 --> 00:26:48,320
Speaker 1: He came back strong and intent on taking over the

452
00:26:48,320 --> 00:26:51,080
Speaker 1: strip in Jamaica, Queen's all for himself and making as

453
00:26:51,160 --> 00:26:53,360
Speaker 1: much money as possible in the shortest amount of time.

454
00:26:54,000 --> 00:26:57,440
Speaker 1: He brought him muscle from Brooklyn. Employed old school queen's roughnecks,

455
00:26:57,440 --> 00:27:00,680
Speaker 1: recently out of prison. He hustled hard during the day,

456
00:27:01,040 --> 00:27:04,560
Speaker 1: stack cash and recorded in the studio at night. Burning

457
00:27:04,560 --> 00:27:08,520
Speaker 1: the candle at both ends led to sloppiness. Fifty disrespected

458
00:27:08,520 --> 00:27:11,399
Speaker 1: the wrong rival hustler. A sit down was arranged to

459
00:27:11,400 --> 00:27:14,040
Speaker 1: squash the beef before street violence overtook the strip and

460
00:27:14,080 --> 00:27:18,280
Speaker 1: disrupted business. Fifty blew off the sit down he had

461
00:27:18,320 --> 00:27:21,639
Speaker 1: a recording session booked. It would prove to be a

462
00:27:21,680 --> 00:27:51,960
Speaker 1: near fatal decision. The phrase putting in work can be

463
00:27:52,000 --> 00:27:56,600
Speaker 1: interpreted in two ways. The first interpretation is the literal one,

464
00:27:57,080 --> 00:28:00,480
Speaker 1: to apply one's efforts toward a task in exchange for money,

465
00:28:00,800 --> 00:28:05,280
Speaker 1: to have a job, to work simple. The second interpretation,

466
00:28:05,680 --> 00:28:08,879
Speaker 1: the street interpretation of putting in work, means to do

467
00:28:08,960 --> 00:28:11,840
Speaker 1: the deed no one wants to do, but will if

468
00:28:11,840 --> 00:28:14,280
Speaker 1: the pay is right or the tensions and emotions are

469
00:28:14,359 --> 00:28:18,800
Speaker 1: high enough. To put in work means to kill, usually

470
00:28:18,840 --> 00:28:22,080
Speaker 1: in the murder for higher sense. Fifty cent knew this.

471
00:28:22,800 --> 00:28:24,960
Speaker 1: What he didn't know was that, due to the unresolved

472
00:28:25,000 --> 00:28:28,359
Speaker 1: beef with the rival, hustler, a street assessin was hired

473
00:28:28,800 --> 00:28:33,840
Speaker 1: to put in some work. Fifty cent never saw it coming.

474
00:28:34,280 --> 00:28:37,000
Speaker 1: The first bullet blasted through the backseat car window and

475
00:28:37,040 --> 00:28:40,200
Speaker 1: tore through the flesh of his leg. Immediately, the adrenaline

476
00:28:40,240 --> 00:28:44,520
Speaker 1: lit his insides up. Two more shots in legs, more adrenaline.

477
00:28:44,640 --> 00:28:47,480
Speaker 1: The pain set his legs on fire. He outstretched his

478
00:28:47,520 --> 00:28:50,240
Speaker 1: hands to block the shooter. The shooter squeezed the trigger

479
00:28:50,280 --> 00:28:54,440
Speaker 1: five more times. Five bullets ripped through fifty cents hands.

480
00:28:55,320 --> 00:28:59,120
Speaker 1: A final shot, this one exploded through fifty cents face,

481
00:29:00,080 --> 00:29:04,360
Speaker 1: nine bullets, nine gunshot wounds. The shooter's work was done,

482
00:29:04,800 --> 00:29:13,160
Speaker 1: so too, it seemed, was fifty cent when he awoke

483
00:29:13,200 --> 00:29:16,880
Speaker 1: in the hospital room, miraculously alive. None of the bullets

484
00:29:16,920 --> 00:29:20,400
Speaker 1: had hit any major arteries or organs. Even the gunshot

485
00:29:20,440 --> 00:29:23,320
Speaker 1: to the face merely only took out a tooth. Fifty

486
00:29:23,360 --> 00:29:28,040
Speaker 1: cents fear overtook his physical pain quickly. However, that fear

487
00:29:28,160 --> 00:29:32,120
Speaker 1: was overrun by aggression, and fifty cent transferred that aggression

488
00:29:32,120 --> 00:29:35,440
Speaker 1: into purpose the only way he knew how, through work.

489
00:29:36,240 --> 00:29:40,360
Speaker 1: Because that's the great promise of work. Purpose. It gives

490
00:29:40,400 --> 00:29:44,239
Speaker 1: a man's life meaning something. Fifty cent desperately needed when

491
00:29:44,280 --> 00:29:45,840
Speaker 1: he was an aimless ten year old out on the

492
00:29:45,880 --> 00:29:48,600
Speaker 1: streets of Jamaica Queen's and it was what he needed

493
00:29:48,640 --> 00:29:53,400
Speaker 1: now to overcome his pain and rehabilitate. The workouts started slow,

494
00:29:53,720 --> 00:29:58,560
Speaker 1: first physical therapy but with consistency, then walks outside the hospital.

495
00:29:59,000 --> 00:30:01,720
Speaker 1: Before long, he was in the pool stretching those legs

496
00:30:01,720 --> 00:30:05,920
Speaker 1: with light resistance, then finally into the gym, work in

497
00:30:05,960 --> 00:30:11,400
Speaker 1: the Nautilus machine, squats, shoulder presses, biceps and shoulders. Before long,

498
00:30:11,440 --> 00:30:14,360
Speaker 1: fifty Cent was jumping rope, back in the rings, sparring

499
00:30:14,400 --> 00:30:18,720
Speaker 1: for cardio wind sprints, long runs through the streets of Queens.

500
00:30:19,400 --> 00:30:22,080
Speaker 1: The entire way he plodded his way back into the

501
00:30:22,160 --> 00:30:24,600
Speaker 1: rap game and off of the streets for good. He

502
00:30:24,720 --> 00:30:27,600
Speaker 1: relied on what he knew for inspiration. He thought back

503
00:30:27,640 --> 00:30:31,520
Speaker 1: to sincere in the Blue Cap crack files, packaging and marketing.

504
00:30:31,840 --> 00:30:34,800
Speaker 1: It inspired him toward creating CD and mixtape covers that

505
00:30:34,840 --> 00:30:37,960
Speaker 1: would stand out. He recalled all the street level hustlers

506
00:30:37,960 --> 00:30:40,840
Speaker 1: who peddled his product and created ways to inspire the

507
00:30:40,840 --> 00:30:44,240
Speaker 1: bootleggers and radio DJs to push his new product his music.

508
00:30:44,720 --> 00:30:47,920
Speaker 1: After all, they were all the same, just mentalman. He

509
00:30:47,960 --> 00:30:49,920
Speaker 1: could never forget the beef with the rival hustler that

510
00:30:50,040 --> 00:30:52,640
Speaker 1: led to his shooting. It was singed into his brain

511
00:30:53,280 --> 00:30:55,640
Speaker 1: that dude would ultimately end up in prison for life

512
00:30:55,640 --> 00:30:58,360
Speaker 1: and the trigger man six feet under, but the damage

513
00:30:58,360 --> 00:31:01,560
Speaker 1: they did to him was an everlasting lefe. Never again

514
00:31:01,600 --> 00:31:05,760
Speaker 1: would fifty cent be so dismissive of power. So when

515
00:31:05,880 --> 00:31:07,880
Speaker 1: M and M and Doctor Dre, two of the most

516
00:31:07,880 --> 00:31:11,120
Speaker 1: powerful players in the rap game, came calling, fifty Cents

517
00:31:11,160 --> 00:31:13,760
Speaker 1: snapped to attention and paid them the respect they deserved.

518
00:31:14,400 --> 00:31:18,720
Speaker 1: When talent recognizes talent, and game recognizes game. When real

519
00:31:18,760 --> 00:31:23,840
Speaker 1: hustlers recognize real hustlers, real work gets done. Fifty cents

520
00:31:23,880 --> 00:31:27,360
Speaker 1: first album, Get Rich or Die Trying, recorded under the

521
00:31:27,360 --> 00:31:30,840
Speaker 1: guidance of it in collaboration with Dre and M, sold

522
00:31:30,840 --> 00:31:33,840
Speaker 1: over one point five million copies in two weeks and

523
00:31:33,920 --> 00:31:35,840
Speaker 1: twelve million by the end of two thousand and three.

524
00:31:36,520 --> 00:31:38,680
Speaker 1: It launched a career in hip hop for fifty Cent.

525
00:31:38,880 --> 00:31:41,239
Speaker 1: That is nothing short of an empire, and it can

526
00:31:41,280 --> 00:31:45,440
Speaker 1: all be traced back to one thing, work which, no

527
00:31:45,480 --> 00:31:51,720
Speaker 1: matter the environment, can always lead from disgrace. I'm Jake Brennan,

528
00:31:52,560 --> 00:32:09,280
Speaker 1: and this is disgrace. Land Disgraceland was created by Yours

529
00:32:09,320 --> 00:32:12,680
Speaker 1: Truly and is produced in partnership with Double Elvis. Credits

530
00:32:12,720 --> 00:32:14,880
Speaker 1: for this episode can be found on the show notes

531
00:32:14,920 --> 00:32:18,400
Speaker 1: page at disgracelampod dot com. If you're listening as a

532
00:32:18,440 --> 00:32:21,680
Speaker 1: Disgraceland All Access member, thank you for supporting the show.

533
00:32:21,760 --> 00:32:24,480
Speaker 1: We really appreciate it, and if not, you can become

534
00:32:24,520 --> 00:32:27,880
Speaker 1: a member right now by going to disgracelampod dot com

535
00:32:27,920 --> 00:32:32,160
Speaker 1: Slash Membership. Members can listen to every episode of disgracelan

536
00:32:32,400 --> 00:32:36,280
Speaker 1: ad free, plus you'll get one brand new exclusive episode

537
00:32:36,360 --> 00:32:40,560
Speaker 1: every month, weekly unscripted bonus episodes, special audio collections, and

538
00:32:40,640 --> 00:32:45,480
Speaker 1: early access to merchandise and events. Visit disgracelampod dot com

539
00:32:45,480 --> 00:32:48,680
Speaker 1: slash Membership for details, Rate and review the show, and

540
00:32:48,720 --> 00:32:52,760
Speaker 1: follow us on Instagram, TikTok, Twitter, and Facebook at disgracelampod

541
00:32:52,880 --> 00:32:56,760
Speaker 1: and on YouTube at YouTube dot com slash at disgracelampod.

542
00:32:57,760 --> 00:33:02,440
Speaker 1: Rock a rolla, He's a baddard Man,