50 Cent spotlights Houston youth entrepreneurship through G-Unity program

Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson used Houston as the backdrop for a youth entrepreneurship push that is now moving from classroom lessons to real business pitches, seed money, and mentorship for Houston ISD students.

The G-Unity Business Lab, run through the G-Unity Foundation, is a yearlong program built for Houston ISD high school students and described by the foundation as the first of its kind in the country. It launched in 2021 with students from Kashmere, Wheatley and Worthing high schools, when 75 students were chosen through a rigorous application process. The program expanded in 2022 to add Booker T. Washington, Jack Yates and Madison high schools.

For students and families in those campuses, the lab is more than a motivational talk. The foundation says the course teaches the basics of entrepreneurship, including how to launch a business, manage it and keep the finances in order. Students also work with mentors and coaches from Chase Bank, Microsoft, Exotic Pop and She’s Happy Hair, giving them contact with people who know how businesses actually start and grow.

That work leads to Hustle Tank, a Shark Tank-style competition at NRG Arena where students pitch ideas directly to Jackson and a panel of Houston business leaders. In the 2026 competition, more than 800 students applied for a chance to participate, and students from six HISD high schools made the final stage. Judges included leaders from the Astros Foundation, METRO, CenterPoint and the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo, tying the event to Houston’s civic and business networks.

The payoff can be immediate and concrete. Winners receive seed money and resources to help turn ideas into real companies, and the foundation says the Houston model is designed to build business acumen, confidence and generational wealth for students in high-need communities. In 2025, Worthing High School’s GDC Vital Vending won $100,000 in seed money, showing that the contest can move beyond a one-night showcase into actual startup support.

HISD officials have framed the program as a response to equity gaps in the neighborhoods served by the participating campuses. Students have echoed that broader aim in personal terms: Genesis Rodriguez said the process builds confidence and shows students they can find their place in the world. For Houston families, the test is no longer whether young people can dream big. It is whether programs like G-Unity keep converting that ambition into training, mentorship and businesses that can last.