50 Cent sat down with Men's Heath for the publication's starry "Hip-Hop Is Life" issue, where he remembered how almost losing his life in the early aughts resulted in him getting fit.
The mogul said he started "working out to get myself stronger, 'cause who's to say you're not gonna get hit again?"
The 48-year-old recalled how, after being shot nine times in 2000, he was restricted to a liquid diet for six weeks. As a result of his recovery, he had a defined physique, which was especially evident in his popular video for "In Da Club."
50 told writer Bonsu Thompson that he took inspiration from D'Angelo's famously steamy "Untitled (How Does It Feel)" music video, noticing many women's reactions to the singer's chiseled body.
"They were talking about a Brad Pitt line! I'm like, 'Wait, what's that?! Oh, nah, that's important," Fif said.
When it came to "In Da Club," 50 Cent said, "I put the gym in the middle of the video because, to me, that's where I looked the coolest. That's where I learned strong is not all muscle; it's about being mentally and physically strong."
The prolific TV/film producer also shared the importance of working out as he ages. "It's more important to get back in shape now than it was then. Simply because I am getting older. It's harder."
After 50's appearance at the 2022 Super Bowl halftime show, his weight was up for discussion. "I'm bigger than I was in the original video [for 'In Da Club'], but damn, I ain't fat," he joked last year. "After the Super Bowl was over, I've been hungry since."
In the new magazine profile, he mentioned that the reason behind the weight gain was a role on For Life. "I put more weight on for the role on the ABC show," he revealed. "I was eating everything to get as big as possible. Because it was a jailhouse [role], so it didn't matter if I wasn't cut up."
The Men's Health cover package—which celebrates hip-hop's 50th anniversary—also includes interviews with Wiz Khalifa, Method Man, Common, Busta Rhymes, and Ludacris. Give those a read here.
