50 Cent: Rapper, Actor and… Young Adult Book Author?

You may know hip hop artist 50 Cent for his rap music career and you may even be familiar with him as an actor (ever heard of Get Rich or Die Tryin’?) – but did you know he’s also an author?

Yes, you read that right. It’s not a typo. Previously, 50 Cent made the nonfiction bestseller list with his book “From Pieces to Weight,” a memoir on his rise as a drug dealer to a famous rapper, and “The 50th Law,” a book on success that he collaborated on with author Robert Greene. Now 50 is trying his hand at a different genre: young adult fiction.

Cue the chorus of “HUH?”s.

Media Bistro reports that Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson will pen a semi-autobiographical young adult novel about bullying called “Playground.” The novel stars a “thirteen-year-old schoolyard bully who finds redemption as he faces what he’s done.” “Playground” is set to be released in January 2012 through Penguin Group’s Razorbill.

“I wanted to explore how a kid becomes a bully. 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,” 50 said.

If anyone knows bullying firsthand, it’s definitely 50 Cent. After all, the man WAS shot nine times.

Watch out Stephanie Meyer – 50 Cent could be a major “P.I.M.P.” in the young adult publishing world!

Do you think 50 Cent should be featured in bookstores – or should he be kept strictly “in da club”?