By Larry Nager
The Cincinnati Enquirer

The good news about Tuesday's controversial concert by gangsta rapper 50 Cent at the Next Level in Over-the-Rhine: the show went off without major problems, other than a few dozen fistfights quickly quashed by the club's efficient security staff.

But the bad news was that, although 50 Cent, a second-generation crack dealer who survived being shot nine times, makes plenty of headlines, he's not ready to be a headliner.

After paying as much as $100 for VIP tickets ($35 for general admission) and being thoroughly frisked for weapons, the crowd of 300 or so milled around the club waiting for the star.

But when 50 Cent took the stage at 12:25, it didn't take long for the crowd to begin milling around again. Only the frequent fights in the crowd seemed to draw their attention.

Spotlights were minimal and his posse of five, only two of whom had microphones, were often better lit than the star.

To make matters worse, the club's house lights had come on around 11:35, after two particularly large brawls in front of the stage. They stayed on throughout his show, further detracting from his performance.

50 Cent didn't seem to mind, rapping with a wicked grin on his face and bragging that the barfights wouldn't scare him out of the club.

Here to promote his new debut album, Get Rich or Die Tryin', on Eminem's new Shady label, 50 Cent (born Curtis Jackson), opened the show in his trademark bulletproof vest. He soon stripped down to his bare chest, which momentarily drew the interest of the female members of the crowd.

And though he did fairly complete versions of many of his songs, including "P.I.M.P.," he never rapped a complete "In Da Club," only tossing out a couple of snippets of the hit and its insidiously catchy chorus, "Go Shorty, it's your birthday."

There was little spontaneity to the show, which was performed to prerecorded tracks -- no live band or even live DJ.

50 Cent is an effective rapper in the recording studio. But the title of his hit song notwithstanding, when it came time to deliver in the club, 50 Cent short-changed his fans.