TORONTO -- On Wednesday evening, rapper 50 Cent might have had a hunch Aerosmith would be playing Hamilton's Copps Coliseum the following night. As a result, to use one of their song titles, he let the music do the talking.

The New York protege of Eminem and his cohorts in G-Unit, who are in the middle of a cross-Canada tour that wraps up in Saint John, tore through roughly 20 songs for over an hour in a show light on props and heavy on "gangsta" rap.

Opening with Whattup Gangsta from last year's smash album Get Rich Or Die Tryin', 50 Cent rarely minced words during rhymes about guns, girls and weed. The younger male-dominated crowd of roughly 7,000 seemed to lap up songs such as Wanksta and P.I.M.P., either by waving their hands in the air or completing certain lyrics.

50 Cent also mixed his solo material with songs from G-Unit's Beg For Mercy album. Poppin' Them Thangs and Stunt 101 were G-Unit highlights as bandmates Young Buck and Lloyd Banks assisted the headliner.

Perhaps the biggest plus to the set, though, was the barren stage. On his first visit to Toronto last year at the Molson Amphitheatre, 50 Cent's stage design was a miniature version of the Big Apple, complete with risers and various gadgets. While there was a lot of sizzle, the show was more a production than a concert.

This time, only the black banner behind him and the occasional sounds of bullets entering a gun chamber distracted fans from the music and his rapid-fire delivery. There were the obligatory gunshot sounds, but generally there was more substance on songs like Patiently Waiting and 21 Questions.

The only drawback might have been the amount of time it took the headliner to start his set. Because he arrived 25 minutes late, there was a 40-minute break between acts. During this time, a fight between two women in the crowd broke up the monotony for most.

Wearing a baseball cap, blue jeans, white tank top and matching bandanna, 50 Cent rarely spent much time addressing the crowd. He did take time early on to give kudos to Eminem and also Dr. Dre.

The highlight of the night was his signature tune In Da Club. But he had easily won the dancing crowd over before then.

While 50 Cent was the consummate performer, supporting act David Banner was the consummate showman.

The bare-chested Mississippi native opened his 45-minute set doing cartwheels and a backflip before opening with Mississippi.

Kardinal Offishall and Melanie Durant also performed earlier in the evening.

JAM! Rating: 3.5 out of 5