"Many Men (Wish Death)" is a song by American rapper 50 Cent from his debut album Get Rich or Die Tryin' (2003). The song was produced by Darrell "Digga" Branch, Eminem and Luis Resto.[2] Despite the song charting and having a music video, it was only released as a promotional single.
"Many Men (Wish Death)" | |
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Promotional single by 50 Cent | |
from the album Get Rich or Die Tryin' | |
A-side | "21 Questions" |
Released | May 6, 2003 |
Recorded | 2002 |
Genre | Gangsta rap |
Length | 4:16 |
Label | |
Songwriter(s) |
|
Producer(s) | |
Music video | |
"Many Men (Wish Death)" on YouTube |
Background and recording
editDarrell "Digga" Branch began working on the instrumental that eventually became "Many Men (Wish Death)" around "two or three years" prior to its official release. He developed it whilst working with The Diplomats on early material for their debut album Diplomatic Immunity (2003); however, the group never completed this song.[3] The instrumental was then offered to Nas during the recording of his 2002 album God's Son by his A&R Lenny "Linen" Nicholson; Nas recorded vocals over the instrumental (along with his cousin and Bravehearts member Nashawn), but also never finished the song as according to Nicholson it "was a track that he just fell out of love with".[4]
50 Cent first became aware of the instrumental when hearing it during a Nas session where he was present; he liked it and asked Nicholson to send him a copy to record to.[3] With Nas' permission, Nicholson agreed, since he knew that "50 was looking for something just to stay busy and to keep writing".[4] Once 50 Cent had finished his recording in Sha Money XL's basement studio, Sha Money XL travelled to Detroit and gave the recording to Eminem, where the pair "spent about a week or two" mixing the track and adding additional sound effects; co-producer Luis Resto also provided a guitar section.[3] Sha Money XL finally played the completed song to Digga via telephone, and after hearing it again in his lawyer's office he was satisfied that it sounded "exactly what I wanted it to be, as far as having that gritty, dirty type feeling".[3]
Music video
editThe video was directed by Jessy Tererro and produced by Jill Hardin and Darrell "Digga" Branch.[5] The song's music video is about 50 Cent's shooting from May 24, 2000, when he was shot nine times in Queens, New York. Mekhi Phifer appears in the video as 50's hitman. Adam Rodriguez and Rory Cochrane, both stars of CSI: Miami at the time of production, appear as detectives. Gabriel Casseus appears as a person who is allied with the person that shoots 50 Cent. Tommy Lister appears as one of 50 Cent's associates. G-Unit members Lloyd Banks and Young Buck make cameo appearances.[6]
The music video on YouTube has received nearly 600 million views as of March 2025. [7]
Commercial performance
editThe song peaked at number 11 on the US Bubbling Under R&B/Hip-Hop Singles in 2003.[8] On June 14, 2006, "Many Men" was certified Gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), for selling 500,000 copies in the United States of America.[9] On January 19, 2023, it was certified three times platinum by the RIAA, indicating 3 million copies sold.[10] While the song was a commercial success, 50 Cent commented in an interview years later the song was his least favorite in Get Rich or Die Tryin', largely in part to it being the slowest song of the album.[11]
Legacy
editAmerican rapper Pop Smoke interpolated the song on his 2020 track, "Got It on Me",[12] and producer Metro Boomin sampled the song on his and 21 Savage's 2020 track "Many Men".[13]
Vietnamese-American writer Ocean Vuong repeatedly references the song in his novel On Earth We're Briefly Gorgeous. As Vuong explained in an interview, "50 Cent's song was ubiquitous in the early aughts, where so much of this book takes place. It also marked the last era of gangsta rap, whose cultural framework provided men and boys a means of performing masculinity while also reducing it to erroneous tropes of misogyny and violence."[14]
Following the 2024 attempted assassination of Donald Trump, the track resurged in popularity, placing in the top 10 on the US iTunes sales chart,[15] and rising in sales by 250% on other streaming platforms.[16] 50 Cent responded to the rise popularity by posting on social media "Trump gets shot and now I'm trending 🤷🏽♂️", alongside an edited version of the album cover for Get Rich or Die Tryin' with Trump's face placed over his own.[11][17] 50 Cent further performed "Many Men" with the edited cover photo the night of the attempted assassination during a concert in Boston.[17] The edited album cover consequently made the song more popular, spreading on the internet through memes, including an AI cover of "Many Men" performed by Trump.[18] However, Digga told TMZ that whilst happy about the song's renewed popularity, he did not want Trump using it on the campaign trail.[19]
Charts
editChart (2003) | Peak position |
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US Bubbling Under R&B/Hip-Hop Singles (Billboard)[20] | 11 |
Certifications
editRegion | Certification | Certified units/sales |
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Brazil (Pro-Música Brasil)[21] | Gold | 30,000‡ |
Denmark (IFPI Danmark)[22] | Gold | 45,000‡ |
Italy (FIMI)[23] | Gold | 50,000‡ |
United Kingdom (BPI)[24] | Platinum | 600,000‡ |
United States (RIAA)[25] | 3× Platinum | 3,000,000‡ |
United States (RIAA)[26] Mastertone |
Gold | 500,000* |
* Sales figures based on certification alone. |
References
edit- ^ "Get Rich or Die Tryin' - 50 Cent | Credits | AllMusic" – via www.allmusic.com.
- ^ Birchmeier, Jason. "Get Rich or Die Tryin' - 50 Cent". AllMusic. Retrieved June 18, 2014.
- ^ a b c d Koi, Ricerca (February 6, 2023). "The Secret History Of 50 Cent's 'Get Rich or Die Tryin''". Okayplayer. Retrieved April 11, 2025.
- ^ a b Kennedy, John (September 27, 2017). "The Beat For 50 Cent's "Many Men" Was Originally A Nas Track". Mass Appeal. Archived from the original on October 3, 2017. Retrieved April 11, 2025.
- ^ "50 Cent - Many Men (Wish Death)". Retrieved March 19, 2015 – via Vevo.
- ^ "50 Cent: Many Men (Wish Death) (2003 Music Video): Full Cast & Crew". IMDb. Retrieved August 1, 2024.
- ^ 50 Cent - Many Men (Official Video).YouTube
- ^ "50 cent Top Songs". musicvf.com. Retrieved March 19, 2015.[unreliable source?]
- ^ "American single certifications – 50 Cent". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved June 18, 2014.
- ^ "Gold & Platinum". Recording Industry Association of America.
- ^ a b Iasimone, Ashley (July 13, 2024). "50 Cent Posts Get Rich or Die Tryin Album Cover With Trump's Face Following Shooting at the Former President's Rally". Billboard. Retrieved August 1, 2024.
- ^ Schwartz, Danny (July 6, 2020). "Pop Smoke's Endless Summer Continues on 'Shoot for the Stars Aim for the Moon'". Rolling Stone. Retrieved February 23, 2021.
- ^ "21 Savage & Metro Boomin Sample A 50 Cent Classic On "Many Men"". Genius. Retrieved April 3, 2021.
- ^ Quong, Spencer (June 5, 2019). "Survival as a Creative Force: An Interview with Ocean Vuong". The Paris Review.
- ^ RapTV [@Rap] (July 15, 2024). "50 Cent's "Many Men (Wish Death)" entered the US iTunes top 10 following the attempted assassination of Donald Trump" (Tweet). Retrieved July 15, 2024 – via Twitter.
- ^ Denis, Kyle; Lipshutz, Jason; Robinson, Kristin; Unterberger, Andrew (July 17, 2024). "50 Cent's 'Many Men' Up 250% in Streams Following Donald Trump Assassination Attempt". Billboard. Retrieved August 1, 2024.
- ^ a b Whitman, Sara (July 14, 2024). "50 Cent puts Donald Trump's face on album cover while performing 'Many Men' after assassination attempt". Page Six. Retrieved August 1, 2024.
- ^ Ardrey, Taylor (July 15, 2024). "Internet explodes with 50 Cent 'Many Men (Wish Death)' memes following Donald Trump attack". USA Today. Retrieved July 15, 2024.
- ^ "50 Cent's 'Many Men' Producer Distances Song From Trump Shooting, Campaign". TMZ. July 21, 2024. Retrieved April 11, 2025.
- ^ "50 Cent – Chart History: Bubbling Under R&B/Hip-Hop Songs". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved March 15, 2016.[permanent dead link ]
- ^ "Brazilian single certifications – 50 Cent – Many Men (Wish Death)" (in Portuguese). Pro-Música Brasil. Retrieved December 10, 2023.
- ^ "Danish single certifications – 50 Cent – Many Men (Wish Death)". IFPI Danmark. Retrieved November 10, 2022.
- ^ "Italian single certifications – 50 Cent – Many Men (Wish Death)" (in Italian). Federazione Industria Musicale Italiana. Retrieved April 30, 2024.
- ^ "British single certifications – 50 Cent – Many Men (Wish Death)". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved February 17, 2023.
- ^ "American single certifications – 50 Cent – Many Men (Wish Death)". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved January 20, 2023.
- ^ "American single certifications – 50 Cent – Many Men (Wish Death)". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved March 6, 2023.