50 Cent Isn't The Only Musician Who Has Had To File For Bankruptcy

US rapper 50 Cent surprised nearly everyone with today's announcement that the hip-hop artist has filed for bankruptcy. 

According to BBC the 40-year-old, real name Curtis Jackson is reported to have assests and debts between $10-50 million US dollars, amid a sex tape trial in which he has been ordered to pay five million dollars in damages to a woman he claimed to feature in the video. 

It comes as a massive shock after Forbes announced earlier this year that Jackson had an estimated net worth of $155 million. But he isn't the first artist to run out of money and we highly doubt he'll be the last — here are five other famous artists who have been forced to file for bankruptcy over the years. 

meatloaf

The US singer's second studio album, Bat Out Of Hell, released in 1977 is one of the best selling of all time having sold more than 43 million records worldwide. But his success didn't go as smoothly as many hoped and after getting into a heated incident with his managers in 1981, who sued Meatloaf for breach of contract and froze the artist's assets, he had no option but to file for bankruptcy in 1983 and again in 1986 with debts of up to $1.6 million. 

mc hammer

Possibly one of the most popular riches-to-rags stories, the Can't Touch This singer blew his fortune in spectacular fashion — the rapper, real name Stanley Burrell reportedly had an entourage of up to 200 people with him at a time that cost him $500,000 a month in expenses. The massive success of his third album Please Hammer, Don't Hurt Em' in 1990 saw him own a net worth of over $30 million, however that soon fizzled out by 1996 when Burrelll discovered he was $13 million in debt. Following low album sales and unpaid loans, he filed for bankruptcy in April that year.

cyndi lauper

Unlike most musician bankruptcy stories, Cyndi Lauper's is interesting to note specifically because it happened to her before she hit the big time as a solo artist. The now hugely successful US singer sung in the retro band, Blue Angel in the late 70's who were very popular in the New York music scene. After the rockabilly outfit split in 1982, it left Lauper with no financial support, and forced her to file for bankruptcy. This didn't have an unhappy ending however — the very next year Lauper released her worldwide hit debut album She's So Unusual that include the hit songs Time After Time and Girls Just Want To Have Fun. Talk about a comeback. 

vanilla ice

If you think you don't know the song Ice Ice Baby then you are lying to yourself. After signing to SBK Records to release his debut album To The Extreme in 1989 which also featured the hit song, Vanilla Ice shot to fame with the track becoming the first song to hit number one on the Billboard music charts. However just as quickly as he rose to fame, the rapper hit rock bottom after his following albums bombed with critics and fans alike — he filed for bankruptcy by the mid 90's.

toni braxton

She was considered one of the biggest breakout singers of the 90's and by 1996 she had sold over 20 milion copies of her album. However, after not receiving financial rewards and launching an unsuccessful lawsuit against her record company, Braxton filed for bankruptcy that year for debts of up to nearly $4 million. In 2010 the R&B singer again filed for bankruptcy after experiencing health issues that forced her to cancel a string of headline shows in Las Vegas which left her in considerable debt. In brighter news though, the 47-year-old has gotten back on her feet again and is even heading to Australia for the first time ever this September.