Lil Wayne

Real Name: Dwayne Michael Carter, Jr.
D.O.B.: September 27, 1982 New Orleans, Louisiana

Label: Cash Money/Young Money/Universal

Dwayne Michael Carter Jr. was born to Jacida "Cita" Carter and Dwayne Michael Turner. Jacida Carter was 19 at the time, in the process of graduating from high school, and involved in an abusive relationship with Turner. Turner abandoned the family soon after Dwayne's birth. Jacida later became involved with Reginald "Rabbit" McDonald, who moved the family from Hollygrove neighbourhood of New Orleans' 17th Ward to East New Orleans. It was around the time of the move that Dwayne Carter began to get involved more deeply in rap music, signing with Cash Money at the age of 11. A year after his move to East New Orleans, Carter accidentally shot himself in the chest with McDonald's .44 Taurus Magnum, he would subsequently be on life support for two weeks. A year later, Jacida would demand Carter stay away from Brian "Baby" Williams, having gone to school with his older brother Ronald "Slim" Williams, both founders of Cash Money. The separation would only last a year, as Carter returned to Cash Money after the death of Reginald McDonald on March 7, 1997.

At the age of 16, Wayne had a daughter named Reginae Carter with Antonia "Toya" Johnson, his high school sweetheart. The two later divorced. It is confirmed that Lil Wayne was at one time engaged to Kim Kardashian, but the wedding was cancelled. Wayne is now rumoured to be engaged to Lauren London.

Lil Wayne later enrolled at and is currently attending the University of Houston in Houston, Texas since early 2005, where he is majoring in political science. According to the Cash Money Records website, Wayne later switched his major to psychology.

On July 22, 2007, Lil Wayne was arrested in New York City following a performance at the Beacon Theater. NYPD discovered Wayne and another man smoking marijuana near a tour bus on 61st and Columbus. After taking Wayne into custody, police discovered a pistol on his person, and he was charged with criminal possession of a weapon and marijuana.

On October 5, 2007, Lil Wayne was arrested in Boise, Idaho, following a performance at Qwest Arena. Wayne was arrested on felony fugitive charges after Georgia authorities accused the rapper of possessing a controlled substance. Wayne was freed on $20,000 bond. The incident was later described as a "mix-up" and the fugitive charges were dropped.

On January 23, 2008, Lil Wayne was arrested alongside two others. His tour bus was stopped by Border Patrol agents near Yuma, Arizona. Lil Wayne had a .44 calibre pistol. A K-9 Unit recovered 105 grams of marijuana (3.7 ounces), almost 29 grams of cocaine (1.02 ounces), 41 grams of Ecstasy (1.05 ounces) and $22,000 dollars in cash. It was released that he has his Concealed Weapons License, completed for the state of Florida; however the power of jurisdiction falls under state ruling, and his legitimacy of possessing a firearm in the state of Florida holds no significance in Arizona. He has since been released on bail of $10,185.

Wayne's first contact with hip-hop was listening to local Cash Money Records artists like Pimp Daddy and U.N.L.V., whom he would later credit as his earliest influences. Wayne began rapping at block parties as a child. His performance at one of the parties caught the ear of Lil Slim, a Cash Money rapper from the neighbourhood, who gave Lil Wayne his phone number. He went to an autograph-signing session with Lil Slim, and there met the Williams brothers, but they were initially reluctant to sign him. Eleven-year-old Wayne started to record freestyles on Baby's answering machine and would frequently visit Cash Money offices. When Baby saw so much enthusiasm in the young rapper, he signed him. Wayne was later hooked up with another newcomer, Lil' Doogie (who would later become as famous as B.G.), to form The B.G.'z. The group released their first and only album, True Story, in 1995.

In 1997, Wayne formed the Hot Boys along with Juvenile, Turk, and B.G., and they released their seminal début CD Get It How You Live. The record's success earned fans throughout the South and Midwest. He further distinguished himself on the Hot Boys' multi platinum-selling Universal début, Guerrilla Warfare, which was released in 1998 and was followed by their 2003 release, Let Em Burn.

In 2005, Wayne was named president of Cash Money, and in the same year he founded Young Money Entertainment as an imprint of Cash Money. However, as of late 2007, Wayne reports that he has stepped down from the management of both labels and has handed management of Young Money over to Cortez Bryant.

Wayne's début solo album featured significant contributions from the Hot Boys and went double platinum, climbing to #3 on the Billboard album charts. The album earned Wayne a 1999 Source award nomination for "Best New Artist". The title track became a Top Ten hit. Other notable tracks included "Fuck tha World"--a rare instance of Wayne using profanity in his early career--in which he describes the pressures that accompany having a daughter at age 16.
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