Additional production is provided by Mike Elizondo, Sha Money XL (who also executive produced the album), Mr. Porter, Rockwilder, Dirty Swift, Megahertz, and more.
The album also contains guest appearances from Eminem, Young Buck, and Nate Dogg, as well as features from G-Unit co-members Lloyd Banks and Tony Yayo.
Prior to the release of his first studio album, titled Power of the Dollar, 50 Cent was shot nine times in Queens, New York, on May 24, 2000.
Seeking to avoid another encounter with his shooter, 50 Cent traveled out to Westbury, Long Island at the invitation of producer Sha Money XL and began recording mixtapes there.
[6] According to 50 Cent in March 2002, he was already in talks with J, Universal, and Jive Records to release his debut album titled Get Rich or Die Tryin' via his own then imprint, Rotten Apple Entertainment.
It featured his own 8 Mile single, "Wanksta" (in addition to appearances on three other tracks from the album), which was later put on Get Rich or Die Tryin'.
"Wanksta" began to attract attention from radio DJs throughout the United States, building hype for 50 Cent's forthcoming album.
His songs also featured rappers within G-Unit such as Lloyd Banks ("Don't Push Me"), Tony Yayo ("Like My Style"), or Young Buck ("Blood Hound").
Featuring a shirtless 50 Cent standing behind a broken glass pane, it has been described as "among the most recognizable [album covers] in rap history".
[12] On the whole, the writing on the album has been described as "smooth[ing] out" the feel of his mixtapes into a more generally accessible format; tracks such as "In da Club" show 50 Cent particularly aiming to depict widely relatable experiences.
[16] The song reached number one in Denmark, Germany, Ireland, and Switzerland and the top five in Austria, Belgium, Finland, Greece, Norway, Sweden, the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom.
[citation needed] Its second single, "21 Questions", which was released to digital download on March 4 of that same year, became 50 Cent's second chart topper on the Billboard Hot 100, where it remained for four non-consecutive weeks.
", which was released to urban contemporary radio on June 24, was shipped with a remix featuring rapper Snoop Dogg and trio-group G-Unit.
[17] In his review for USA Today, Steve Jones believed that the album is worthy of the hype 50 Cent had attracted because of how he "delivers, in vivid detail, stories of the violent life he led as a crack dealer and speaks with the swagger of one who has been shot nine times and lived to tell about it.
[18] Rolling Stone magazine's Christian Hoard praised the album's production and 50 Cent's "thug persona" and rapping ability.
[25] Brett Berliner of Stylus Magazine felt that he is versatile as a rapper and wrote that, "while not even close to perfection, [the album] is one of the freshest to come out in years.
[27] Kelefa Sanneh of The New York Times wrote that 50 Cent is "an appealing, mischievous character" whose talent for threatening raps aimed toward rivals is also limiting thematically.
[32] In December 2009, Billboard magazine ranked Get Rich or Die Tryin' at number 12 on its list of the Top 200 Albums of the Decade.
[48] Get Rich or Die Tryin' is credited with restoring gangsta rap to prominence in an era when prevailing trends favored "slick, flashy ladies-man rappers" and radio-friendly R&B collaborations.
[51] Neil Kulkarni of Crack states that Get Rich or Die Tryin' combined "Southern-style textures with gritty East Coast lyrical content" in a way that many succeeding artists would strive to replicate, and argues that the album's success paved the way for future gangsta rap artists including Jeezy, Rick Ross, and the Game.
Sha Money XL credits the album's success to the memorability of 50 Cent's background: A lot of rappers, they just come out with a song.