The 5 Most Iconic 50 Cent Music Videos
It’s been nearly 20 years since rapper 50 Cent‘s 2003 hit “In Da Club” topped the charts and left the musician as one of America’s most recognizable hip-hop artists. Since then, 50 Cent has tried his hand at other forays into different parts of the entertainment world, including getting in front of the cameras and behind the scenes for series like Power.
Let’s take a moment to reflect on five of the star’s most iconic music videos that helped get him where he is today.
5. ‘In Da Club’
IMVDb shows a long list of hit songs for 50 Cent, but the 2003 hit “In Da Club” is the only one of 50’s numerous singles to make it to the top of the charts. It is also the song responsible for launching him into superstar status. The video opens up with a snazzy vehicle traversing deserted roads “Somewhere . . .” before taking us inside a futuristic bunker where an Eminem video is playing on the wall. Soon after, Eminem and Dr. Dre are seen watching on as robot surgeons finish up operations on an unconscious (or deactivated) 50 Cent.
The rest of the video takes us through the song with its iconic “it’s your birthday” line. While the lyrics are a pretty simple reflection on getting drunk and having sex, the video has a deeper meaning where the “birthday” is the creation day for this futuristic 50 Cent, who is simultaneously announcing his “birth” onto the mainstream hip-hop scene.
4. ‘P.I.M.P’ (Snoop Dogg Remix)
What could be more iconic of music in 50 Cent’s heyday than the iPod with the click wheel? That’s how this YouTube video opens up.
What starts as a fairly typical hip-hop trope of the artist surrounded by scantily clad women takes a turn for the absurd as the scene cuts to the ‘Pimp Legion of Doom Headquarters,’ a decked-out space with a line of men (Snoop Dogg playing a character at the center) in a caricatured array of ‘pimp’ wear. As they consider whether or not to let newcomer 50 Cent into the Legion, 50 holds up his magic stick, a shiny gold cane.
At that point, the skit cuts back to the song and Snoop Dogg’s verse. While 50 Cent has seen many interesting collaborations over the years, this playful take on being a ‘pimp’ could only be pulled off with Snoop.
3. ’21 Questions’
“21 Questions” takes a foray into the storytelling mode for music videos that became increasingly popular during its 2003 release. The video opens with 50 Cent as a drug dealing character happily counting his money at home with his partner when the police bust through the door. As the two try to flush the drugs and hide the cash, it’s clear they’re not getting away with it.
The scene cuts to 50 Cent in the back of a police cruiser with several other men, and he croons the lyrics — a song about whether or not the singer’s girlfriend would still love him if he wasn’t rich. The video also has a twist ending that you should check out if you haven’t watched it before!
2. ‘Many Men (Wish Death)’
Another video that takes a filmmaking approach to its subject matter, “Many Men (Wish Death)” opens with a voiceover as the narrator takes the viewers back to “start from the beginning.” As 50 Cent’s character is the victim of a drive-by shooting, the song starts, and the lyrics focus on 50 being the target of “many men.” The song’s entire vibe is in touch with an era of gangsta rap that 50 Cent has since spoken out about as a lost art of sorts.
The rest of the song cuts through a series of scenes of revenge, police investigations, and a tale of “two street kids, now men,” who ended up in a vicious feud.
1. ‘Just a Lil Bit’
“Just a Lil Bit” is another video where 50 Cent plays a character. This time he’s named El Jefe. Flanked by a trio of gorgeous women, El Jefe and his group have traveled to another country to go on a spree that ends with a bag full of money and multiple crime scenes.
As the women each help El Jefe take out his rivals through the power of seduction, the entire video has a kind of Bonnie and Clyde meets gangsta rap feel.
