Lil Wayne

Dwayne Michael Carter Jr., known professionally as Lil Wayne, is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, and record executive. Born on September 27, 1982, in New Orleans, Louisiana, he was raised in the Hollygrove neighborhood. He wrote his first rap song at age eight and met Cash Money Records co-founder Bryan "Baby" Williams (Birdman) in 1991. Carter was signed to Cash Money Records at age eleven, serving as a flagship artist for the label until 2018.

Carter began his recording career in 1994 as part of the duo B.G.'z with labelmate B.G., releasing the album True Story. In 1997, he joined the Southern hip-hop group Hot Boys alongside B.G., Juvenile, and Turk. The group released their debut album Get It How U Live! in 1997, followed by Guerrilla Warfare in 1999, which achieved mainstream commercial success. Carter also featured on major tracks during this period, including the group collaboration "Bling Bling" and Juvenile's single "Back That Azz Up."

Carter launched his solo career with his debut studio album, Tha Block Is Hot (1999), which achieved commercial success and earned him a nomination for Best New Artist from Source magazine. He followed this with Lights Out (2000) and 500 Degreez (2002). During the mid-2000s, he achieved further critical and commercial advancement with Tha Carter (2004) and Tha Carter II (2005), both debuting in the top five of the Billboard 200. In 2005, Carter founded his own record label imprint, Young Money Entertainment, which later signed artists such as Drake, Tyga, and Nicki Minaj.

Throughout the mid-2000s, Carter gained significant attention through a series of prominent mixtapes, including Dedication 2 (2006) and Da Drought 3 (2007), alongside numerous guest appearances on pop, R&B, and hip-hop singles. In 2006, he also released the collaborative album Like Father, Like Son with Birdman, featuring the hit single "Stuntin' Like My Daddy."

Carter's sixth album, Tha Carter III (2008), marked a career pinnacle, selling over one million copies in its first week domestically. Supported by his first Billboard Hot 100 number-one single "Lollipop" as well as the top-ten singles "A Milli" and "Got Money," the project won Best Rap Album at the 51st Annual Grammy Awards. His subsequent releases include the rock-influenced Rebirth (2010), I Am Not a Human Being (2010), Tha Carter IV (2011), Tha Carter V (2018), Funeral (2020), and Tha Carter VI (2025).

Having sold over 120 million records worldwide, Carter is one of the world's best-selling music artists. In September 2012, he became the first male artist to surpass Elvis Presley for the most entries on the Billboard Hot 100, reaching 109 charting songs. Over his career, Carter's accolades include five Grammy Awards, eleven BET Awards, four Billboard Music Awards, two MTV Video Music Awards, and eight NAACP Image Awards.