50 Cent in court, says his bling is a borrowed piece of jewelry

Rapper 50 Cent, ranked by Forbes as one of hip-hop’s five
richest artists, downplayed his wealth on Tuesday as he
testified in court about his finances, business deals and the
media attention surrounding his recent bankruptcy filing,
reports Times Magazine .
The multiplatinum-selling artist, born Curtis Jackson III,
appeared in Manhattan state Supreme Court in a proceeding
to decide possible additional punitive damages in an
invasion-of-privacy lawsuit. A jury has already ordered him
to pay $5 million in damages in a lawsuit brought by a
woman who said he didn’t have her permission when he
released a sex tape she made with a boyfriend.
Questioned by an attorney for the woman, Lastonia
Leviston, the musician-actor denied owning many luxury
items — including expensive cars and flashy jewelry —
saying he rents, borrows and leases instead.
“It’s a borrowed piece of jewelry from the jeweler,” he told
Leviston’s lawyer, Philip Freidin, when asked about a photo
of a 65-karat ring he posted on his Instagram account.
Leviston sued the “Get Rich or Die Tryin’” rapper after a 13-
minute video appeared online showing a wig-wearing 50
Cent crudely narrating and taunting his rival Rick Ross, who
was not in the video but has a daughter with Leviston. At
the time the video surfaced, Ross and 50 Cent were trading
barbs via video, lyrics and interviews.
Jackson has said Leviston’s then-boyfriend gave him the
2008 tape and that, while he didn’t actually post it online, the
boyfriend said she didn’t mind if he did.
“I’m sorry if you feel like I hurt you,” he told Leviston, who
was sitting in the gallery.
Days after the jury ordered he pay $5 million, Jackson filed
for personal bankruptcy protection in Connecticut. That
filing lists his assets and liabilities between $10 million and
$50 million.
On Tuesday, his lawyer, James Renard, said he was worth
$4.4 million.
Under questioning from Freidin, Jackson said he has been
paid as much as $100,000 for appearing at a nightclub and
in the movie “Spy.” But he was less revealing about how
much he earned from various partnerships, licensing
agreements and business deals with larger corporations
such as The Walt Disney Co., Intel and Reebok.
“You have to ask my accountant,” he said when asked
whether he earned $100 million when vitaminwater was
purchased by The Coca-Cola Co. in 2007.
The 40-year-old said he’d never done anything to deny
Forbes’ valuation of his net-worth at $155 million.