New York, August 9 – Security wasn’t as tight as we expected at the Virgin Megastore on Union Square when rapper 50 Cent signed copies of his autobiography, From Pieces to Weight. Mr. Cent has been shot and has been involved in disputes with rivals, and was surrounded by black-suited security guards while he sat at a table and greeted fans. We did hear some talk of an arrest outside the store while we were still inside with Fitty and fans, but we’re still trying to obtain details.

The superstar, who is sometimes called 50 Pence in England, came out, posed for a few photos, said a few words and then sat down to sign books. One enterprising young woman got Mr. Cent’s attention by wearing a pink G-unit t-shirt. G-unit is the name of his group, as well as his line of clothing and shoes.

He was dressed simply in jeans and white t-shirt, with a backward baseball cap over a white doo rag. As Mr. Cent proceeded across the room, we couldn’t take our eyes off of his long diamond neck chain with a diamond-encrusted cross hanging from it. When he sat down, we noticed his matching diamond rings and bracelet. He’s had a hard life, according to the book.