Jussie Smollett is focused on his art and passionate causes, rebuilding his career after the legal system cleared his name. His $50,000 donation to Building Brighter Futures Center for the Arts shows he's committed to giving back to Chicago communities rather than dwelling on a painful chapter.
Insiders say Smollett's team has been quietly shopping him around for acting gigs since his conviction was overturned in late 2024, but major studios remain skittish about the reputational risk. Word is Karamo Brown's public defense actually helped legitimize the performance among LGBTQ+ circles who were on the fence.
Smollett was convicted in 2021 for staging a hate crime; his conviction was overturned in November 2024 after a lengthy appeal. He reached a settlement with the City of Chicago in 2025, agreeing to make a $50,000 charitable donation to Building Brighter Futures Center for the Arts.
The internet remains deeply divided over whether Smollett deserves redemption — and 50 Cent's relentless mockery shows this saga is far from over. Whether you see him as a cautionary tale or someone who served his time, one thing's certain: Jussie Smollett hasn't gone quietly into the night.
Fifty Cent just handed us all the entertainment we didn't know we needed this Pride weekend. The rapper — never one to let a grudge go cold — took to Instagram on Sunday to mock Jussie Smollett's first major public performance since the actor's 2021 conviction for staging a hate crime was overturned in late 2024. In a video clip showing Smollett performing at Harlem Pride's "17 Shades of Pride" celebration, 50 Cent wrote alongside it: "See I told you 'POWER' was the s—, but No you want to watch 'Empire.' Now look this its all your fault.
LOL." The post was vintage Curtis Jackson — leveraging their years-long TV rivalry between his show "Power" and Smollett's "Empire" to take another shot at an actor he clearly still despises. But 50 Cent wasn't alone in his assessment, and that's where things get messy. Social media erupted with criticism of Smollett's singing, with one X user writing flatly: "Glad he ain't hurt no more but he's out here hurting our ears." Another asked the question many are clearly still wrestling with: "Have we forgiven him yet?" Someone else piled on: "He was thinking this moment is gonna fix everything.
Nope." The backlash was swift, relentless, and very online — exactly what you'd expect when you pair a high-profile Pride event with one of entertainment's most controversial figures attempting a comeback. Not everyone was ready to bury him, though. "Queer Eye" star Karamo Brown came to Smollett's defense in the comments section of 50 Cent's post, writing: "I was at this PRIDE event and Jussie killed it.
F—k off for using one clip from the entire 30 min show to try bring someone down!" Other supporters echoed that sentiment, with one fan noting that Smollett "looks healthy, like he's been working out," while another offered what sounded almost like a prayer: "I pray over these years, he has also gotten the spiritual & mental healing he needed as well. Cheers to better days!" The divide was stark — redemption arc for some, unforgivable fraud for others.
Here's where it gets expensive. Smollett reached a settlement with the City of Chicago in 2025 that required him to make a $50,000 charitable donation to Building Brounder Futures (BBF) Center for the Arts, a local nonprofit serving Chicago youth, to have the civil lawsuit against him dismissed. The city had originally filed that suit in April 2019 in an attempt to recoup investigation costs after initially buying into his story about being attacked by two men wearing ski masks — a claim that later unraveled spectacularly under police scrutiny.
Smollett spoke at length to Fox News Digital following the settlement, maintaining his innocence. "Over six years ago, after it was reported I had been jumped, city officials in Chicago set out to convince the public that I willfully set an assault against myself," he said. "This false narrative has left a stain on my character that will not soon disappear." He also took a subtle shot at 50 Cent through his representative, who told Fox News: "Given the complexities of his own personal life, 50 Cent might be better served tending to matters closer to home rather than taking public shots at Jussie." The Harlem Pride performance marked Smollett's most significant public appearance since the scandal broke in early 2019 — when he infamously referred to himself as the "gay Tupac" during a radio interview, a comment 50 Cent had previously mocked him for.
Whether this performance signals the beginning of an actual career resurrection or just another chapter in years of ongoing drama remains to be seen. But if there's one thing we've learned about Jussie Smollett, it's that he refuses to disappear quietly — no matter how loud the criticism gets.
