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How to play 12 Bells
50 Cent previewed the project on Instagram on Sept. 17, 2026, framing the venture as the long-overdue legitimization of a game that always played by its own rules.
“For a hundred years this game lived on the corner,” he said in TCS/JOHNHUXLEY’s press release. “Now it’s got a dealer, a pay table and a seat at the table in a real casino. Same dice, new floor.”
Cee-lo—derived from sì wǔ liù (Chinese for “four-five-six”)—is played with three six-sided dice. Popular among Chinese-American players as early as 1893, it was adopted by hip-hop culture in the late 1970s and became a fixture on the street corners of Harlem, Brooklyn, and the Bronx.
Nas, the Notorious B.I.G., and Jadakiss all referenced the game in their music. Kool G Rap called his 1995 album 4,5,6, and its title track included the line “Headcrack, time to get the bread”—the lyric that most likely inspired 50 Cent’s casino adaptation.
How to play 12 Bells
“And what better place to demonstrate that commitment than through player protection? The Africa Safer Gambling Week is our collaboration in action.”
On Monday, the AiA announced it had signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Association of Nigerian Bookmakers to establish closer ties on matters both in Nigeria and across Africa.
The MoU will explore opportunities for collaboration on areas such as safer gambling, player protection and taxation.
How to play 12 Bells
The methods allegedly used by the duo mirror those employed by organized crews in a wave of burglaries targeting gaming establishments across the state, particularly in the Chicago suburbs.
Police allege Heckman and Ziemer typically gained entry through the roof, cut the power, and used sledgehammers and crowbars to smash or remove ATMs.
Their targets included Nellie’s Tavern in Decatur, where an ATM was stolen July 17, and Debbie’s Gaming, also in Decatur, where thieves failed to pry an ATM from the floor July 30.