.

50 Cent to Pen Anti-Bullying Book For Teens

Rapper wants to have a positive influence on kids

June 20, 2011 4:19 PM ET
50 Cent to Pen Anti-Bullying Book For Teens
Chris Scott/Getty Images

Despite his history of violence and initiating beefs with fellow rappers, 50 Cent has signed on to pen a young adult novel titled Playground that takes a stand against bullying. The semi-autobiographical book, which will be published by Penguin Young Reader Group, is expected to hit stores in January.

"I had a strong desire to write Playground because I wanted to explore how a kid becomes a bully," the rapper said in a statement announcing the book's release. "I drew on events from my own childhood and adolescence, but was excited to see the story take on its own life. This book would have been very helpful for me growing up and now that I have a teenage son, it is my goal that this will have a positive influence on all teenagers."

Choose Rolling Stone's Cover: The Sheepdogs vs. Lelia Broussard. Vote Now!

Playground will be 50 Cent's debut as a novelist. He published a memoir titled From Pieces to Weight in 2005 and co-wrote a self-help book called The 50th Law with The 48 Laws of Power author Robert Greene in 2009.

To read the new issue of Rolling Stone online, plus the entire RS archive: Click Here

prev
Music Main Next

blog comments powered by Disqus
Stay Connected

Sign up to get Rolling Stone's daily newsletter.

Song Stories

“Baby Got Back”

Sir Mix-a-Lot | 1992

While watching a Budweiser commercial during the Super Bowl, Sir Mix-a-Lot thought the skinny female models in the ad didn’t represent reality. So he wrote this ode to ample bottoms, featuring its famous to-the-point lyric: “I like big butts and I cannot lie.” MTV banished the video, featuring shaking booties and sexually suggestive fruit, to 9 p.m. or later. “I thought my career was over,” he told Rolling Stone. “Then I called Rick Rubin, and I told him the video was banned, and he was like, 'Great!' We sold another 2 million records.”

More Song Stories entries »