Lil Wayne Biography
Lil Wayne was originally born Dwayne Michael Carter Jr. born on September 27 1982 in New Orleans, Louisiana, USA. Popularly known as Lil Weezy, Weezy Baby, Birdman Jr., he is an American hip-hop, platinum-selling artist associated with big names like Young Money Entertainment and Cash Money Records. His mother, a chef raised him by herself after divorcing from Wayne’s father who had abandoned them. Wayne made his debut in 1993 after signing on with Cash Money Records at an early age 9, making him the youngest artist on the record label.
Wayne was raised in Hollygrove, New Orleans and attended Lafayette Elementary School and later Eleanor McMain Secondary School. A gifted, ‘A’ student, Wayne joined the drama club at his high school but despite his academic talent he never felt that his passion lay in books. He dropped out of school at 14 to pursue music and joined with rapper B.G to release their first album ‘True Story’. His next album ‘Guerilla Warfare’, produced for the trio-group of rappers Lil, B.G, and Turk, was released in 1999 and went platinum toping the billboard charts in the United States.
In the same year Lil released his first solo project titled ‘Tha Block is Hot’. The album topped music charts and went multi-platinum. In the same year he was also given the ‘Best New Artist Award’ by Source Magazine. Lil’s second and third albums, ‘Lights Out’ and ‘500 Degreez’ were released in 2000 and in 2002 respectively. They were not well received as the first and critics blamed it on his lacking maturity and poor expression in the song verses. However the albums were certified Gold by the Recording Industry Association of America, RIAA.
Following album releases by the rapper sold millions of copies after his songs became more mature. Lil brought freshness to rap in his 2004 album, ‘Tha Carter’ and its follow up album ‘Tha Carter II’, released in 2007. He was now a recognised name in the U.S and beyond and sold over 2 million copies worldwide. In 2010 Lil released his much awaited album ‘Carter III’ and sold over 1 million copies in the first week only. The album also won the ‘Best Rap Album Award’ in the same year.
Wayne’s career has risen to become one of the greatest in the United Sates and the rest of the world. His works have earned numerous fame, respect and money throughout the years. In 2008 he was named ‘MTV Man of the Year’ and received a total of eight MTV nominations, the most received by any artist in a year. Lil had 12 nominations for the 2008 BET Hip Hop Awards and he won seven of those plus an additional ‘MVP’ title.
Despite his success his life has not always been a happy one. He accidentally shot and nearly killed himself at the age of 13. Later on in 2001 he was shot through a bus window but survived. In addition, his early life was spent without a father as he had abandoned them. It is for this reason that the rapper dropped the ‘D’ from the name Dwayne so as to separate himself from his father. Lil was also a victim of the 2005 Hurricane Katrina and he had to flee his home.
The rapper was once married to high school love, Antonia Carter. The two have a daughter named Reginnae but have since separated. He has three other children named Dwayne III, Samuel Lennox, and Neal.
Wayne studied psychology at the University of Phoenix and released his rock album, ‘Rebirth’ in 2010.
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