Rapper Fat Joe talks mental health, growing up in the South Bronx and new memoir
CBSN
Before the platinum hit records, Grammy Award nomination and acclaim, Fat Joe was Joseph Antonio Cartagena from the Bronx. In his new memoir, "The Book of Jose," he details the toll of his upbringing, mental health and becoming a rapper.
He described his childhood to CBS News as beautiful, saying, "We didn't have nothing. We didn't have no money. We grew up on welfare. We grew up in the projects but we didn't know what we were missing."
Born in New York City's South Bronx to Puerto Rican and Cuban parents, Cartegena said he struggled to fit in as an overweight kid with blonde hair and green eyes. He recalled getting beat up "every single day" while growing up.
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