A few years back, the hip hop industry recognized 50 Cent as one of its wealthiest rappers, only second to the iconic Jay-Z who is now a billionaire. 50 Cent’s fortune was pegged at $155 million at the peak of his music career and he made the Forbes’ yearly Hip Hop’s Wealthiest Artists list. Besides, he has been making the list every year since 2007 that it was incepted.
However, poor business investments, several lawsuits, and a faltering music career plummeted the artist’s fortune; this forced 50 Cent into declaring bankruptcy with a debt of approximately $32.5 million hanging on his neck. For someone who was considered the pin-up hip hop superstar of the 2000s, releasing hits such as In da Club and Candy Shop, and who equally created and built a remarkable investment portfolio in millions of dollars, the tale of how 50 fell from grace to grace is quite astonishing.
The Circumstances Surrounding His Bankruptcy
50 Cent was brought to the brink of bankruptcy by some unfavourable business investments. Made bold by the level of success recorded by his fellow rapper Dre, Jackson on Beats, 50 went into collaboration with a company known as Sleek Audio; their business agreement was to produce a line of headphones. Though the deal later blew up, the rapper didn’t heed the warning signs and still proceeded to launch his own brand. At the end of the day, 50 Cent was slapped with an expensive lawsuit from Sleek Audio who was later awarded a compensation of $17 million, digging a deep hole in the pocket of the hip hop rapper.
As if that was not enough, the New York native had to face yet another expensive lawsuit, this time coming from a woman Lastonia Leviston. According to the details of the case, 50 Cent was instrumental in damaging her reputation when he made a sex tape involving her public. Important to note that Lastonia is a baby mama to Rick Ross – 50 Cent’s rival in the rap business. The lady finally had her way when the court awarded her the sum of $7 million for damages.
50 Cent’s Extravagant Lifestyle and His Most Recent Financial Status
As of 2020, several reliable sources estimated 50 Cent’s net worth to be $30 million. This is quite a plummet from his fortune in recent years that was pegged at $150,000 by the likes of Forbes.
The popular rapper’s fortune includes his vehicles comprising of a fleet of expensive automobiles with a total estimate of $500,000. His fleet includes Chevrolet Suburban vehicles of 2003, 2005, and 2015 models, a 1966 Chevrolet Coupe, a Rolls-Royce Phantom, a 2008 Dodge Sprinter, a 2012 Suzuki Kizashi Sport, and more.
50 Cents also spends on landed properties, he purchased the home of the ex-World Heavyweight Boxing Champion Mike Tyson in 2003, the mansion located in Connecticut was the last word in luxury with an 8-car garage, 21 bedrooms, a home movie theatre, and a racquetball court. Though he had to put the house on the market for the price of $8 million when the going got tough, the famous rapper was previously spending $70,000 for maintenance of three homes which include his Long Island and Atlanta investment properties, in addition to Tyson’s former home. 50 Cent equally leases an apartment in New Jersey.
His bankruptcy documents stated that he had a backlog of $855,091 to settle with ex-lover Daphne Narvaez; the money was meant to take care of child support. His monthly expenses plus home upkeep came to a total of $108,000 which goes out of his pocket monthly.
How 50 Came Out of the Bankruptcy; His Route to Solvency
It was on the 5th of February 2017 that the United States Bankruptcy Court, District of Connecticut, discharged 50 Cents from bankruptcy after he paid his debts up to the tune of $23 million. In June the previous year, the court ordered him to pay $23.4 million out of his debt of $32.5 million for over a period of five years. However, he managed to conclude all payments ahead of time through some smart moves on his part.
In another development, 50 Cent alleged that his law firm was responsible for ill-advising him on the sex tape case, thus, he decided to sue them for negligence, malpractice, and misrepresentation. In the lawsuit, the rapper was claiming a total of $32 million, including $7 million for the award in the sex tape suit, in addition to an extra $25 million in damages. Luck seemed to be on his side because, by December 2016, 50 Cent was awarded $14.5 million from that lawsuit; he used $13.6 million of the money for debt settlement. That was definitely a big boost to the rapper’s repayment plan.
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How 50 Cent is Building his Net Worth Back With TV Shows Like ‘Power’
When Power premiered with 50 Cent as its executive producer, fans actually expressed doubts on the viability of the show. Knowing 50 Cent as a rapper, the viewing public was eager to see how he would pull-off this gigantic production credit successfully. Subsequently, the artist allayed their fears by approaching his new role from a creative viewpoint.
According to the famous rapper, his project is not the conventional on-set production; he keeps communications with the talents open which encourage bonding. Participants are free to speak up about any perceived problem and not bottle it up to create additional issues.
His approach appears to have paid off because not long afterwards, he went into a four-year multi-million deal with Starz. According to the agreement by the two parties, the artist will continue creating series for the network – both scripted and unscripted, using the G-Unit Film & Television, Inc. banner. Another part of the deal is a three-series commitment with the use of discretionary funds for the development of his projects. Reports from Variety said that the money worth for the deal is up to $150 million.
Apart from the Starz deal, 50 Cent is making some tidy sum from Power, though the exact amount is not yet known. Glassdoor stated that television executive producers earn $146,538 on average, but when you consider the fact that 50 Cent also plays a major on-screen role on the show, that amount won’t be anywhere near what he will actually be earning
