Hailing from Queens, New York, rapper 50 Cent had already garnered a grass-roots reputation as one of the hottest MCs around when he was tapped in the early 2000s by hip-hop golden boy Eminem for inclusion on the soundtrack to his film 8 MILE and a place of his own on the Detroit rapper's Shady label. The combination of 50 Cent's hard-edged rhyming skills, infamy due to high-profile trouble with the law, and Eminem's sponsorship gave 50 Cent all the exposure a rapper could ask for, resulting in a huge single ("Wanksta") in 2002 and a Number One album the following year.




![Before I Self-Destruct (EXPLICIT) [12/9] (Vinyl) ~ 50 Cent (Artist) Cover Art](http://i43.tower.com/images/ss112923649/before-i-self-destruct-50-cent-vinyl-cover-art.jpg)















![Before I Self-Destruct (EXPLICIT) [12/9] (CD) ~ 50 Cent (Artist) Cover Art](http://i43.tower.com/images/ss112923633/before-i-self-destruct-50-cent-cd-cover-art.jpg)









