Lil Wayne
Born 1982 · Age 43
American rapper, record executive and cultural figure. Rose from New Orleans hip-hop scene as a Cash Money Records signee and Hot Boys member; founded Young Money Entertainment; multiple Grammy winner and multi-platinum selling artist.
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Life & Career Timeline
Birth
Dwayne Michael Carter Jr. born in New Orleans, Louisiana (Hollygrove neighborhood).
Met Bryan 'Birdman' Williams (Birdman)
Met Cash Money co-founder Birdman who mentored him and encouraged his rap career; began hanging around the label.
Signed to Cash Money Records
Discovered by Birdman and signed to Cash Money Records at age 11.
Near-fatal gunshot wound
Suffered a near-fatal self-inflicted gunshot wound to the chest at age 12 (later described as accidental, later claimed as suicide attempt).
Placed in duo the B.G.'z
Paired with labelmate B.G. (Lil Doogie/Baby D era) as the duo the B.G.'z.
Released 'True Story' (B.G.'z)
Album True Story (credited to the duo) released; Carter (then Baby D) appears on a handful of tracks.
Co-founded Hot Boys
Formed Southern hip-hop group Hot Boys with Juvenile, B.G., and Turk; Carter was the group's youngest member.
Released 'Get It How U Live!' (Hot Boys)
Hot Boys debut album released (1997), regional success and growing profile.
Source magazine 'Best New Artist' nomination
Tha Block Is Hot earned him a 1999 Source magazine nomination for Best New Artist.
Featured on B.G.'s 'Bling Bling' and Juvenile's 'Back That Azz Up'
Hot Boys members appeared together on notable singles; Carter contributed to high-profile tracks boosting his mainstream recognition.
Released 'Guerrilla Warfare' (Hot Boys)
Hot Boys' major-label album Guerrilla Warfare (1999) reached #1 on Billboard Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums and #5 on Billboard 200.
Released debut solo album 'Tha Block Is Hot'
Solo debut Tha Block Is Hot released; debuted at #3 on Billboard 200 and certified platinum by December 1999.
Released 'Lights Out'
Second studio album Lights Out released (Dec 19, 2000); later certified gold in June 2001.
Released '500 Degreez'
Third studio album 500 Degreez released (Aug 2002) and certified gold; did not match debut's success.
Hot Boys compilation 'Let 'Em Burn' released
Compilation of unreleased Hot Boys tracks (recorded 1998–2000) released March 2003; reached #3 R&B/Hip-Hop albums chart.
Married Toya Johnson
Married high-school girlfriend Toya Johnson in 2004 (later divorced in 2006).
Released 'Tha Carter'
Fourth studio album Tha Carter released; seen as artistic leap and helped establish his signature look (dreadlocks); sold ~878,000 copies in US.
Named president of Cash Money Records and founded Young Money Entertainment
Appointed president of Cash Money and launched Young Money Entertainment as an imprint of Cash Money/Universal.
Signed notable Young Money artists (label-building)
As founder of Young Money (2005) signed and developed artists who would bring major success (notably Drake, Nicki Minaj, Tyga among others over subsequent years).
Released 'Tha Carter II'
Fifth studio album Tha Carter II released (Dec 6, 2005); debuted at #2 with ~238,000 first-week sales and went on to sell ~2,000,000 worldwide.
Released mixtape 'Dedication 2'
Dedication 2 (with DJ Drama) released; included controversial track 'Georgia Bush' criticizing government response to Hurricane Katrina.
Released 'Like Father, Like Son' with Birdman
Collaborative album with Birdman; lead single 'Stuntin' Like My Daddy' reached #21 on Billboard Hot 100.
Divorced Toya Johnson
Divorced Toya Johnson (divorce finalized 2006).
Released 'Da Drought 3' mixtape
Da Drought 3 released and widely acclaimed; credited with revolutionizing the mixtape scene in the 2000s.
Stepped back from label management
Reportedly stepped down from direct management of Cash Money and Young Money by late 2007, handing Young Money management to Cortez Bryant.
Named 'Hottest MC' and 'Rapper/Workaholic' by media
MTV poll named him 'Hottest MC in the Game'; The New Yorker 'Rapper of the Year'; GQ 'Workaholic of the Year'.
Released EP 'The Leak'
The Leak EP released digitally (Dec 25, 2007) to compile leaked Carter III tracks.
Re-signed multi-album deal with Cash Money Records
After success of Tha Carter III, re-signed with Cash Money for a multi-album deal.
Headlined major festivals and televised award shows
Performed at Voodoo Experience (Oct 2008), Virgin Mobile Music Fest, MTV Video Music Awards and Saturday Night Live in 2008; nominated for 12 BET Hip Hop Awards and won 8.
Singles from Tha Carter III chart success
'Lollipop' reached #1 on Billboard Hot 100 (first solo #1); 'A Milli' and 'Got Money' were top-10 hits.
Released 'Tha Carter III' (major breakthrough)
Tha Carter III released June 10, 2008; first-week domestic sales over 1 million; became the best-selling record of 2008 with over 3 million sold.
Tha Carter III certified 2× Platinum
RIAA certified the album two-times platinum on July 14, 2008.
First hip-hop act to perform at CMA Awards
Performed with Kid Rock at the Country Music Association Awards (Nov 11, 2008).
Won 4 Grammy Awards (Tha Carter III era)
At the 51st Grammys he won Best Rap Album (Tha Carter III), Best Rap Song ('Lollipop'), Best Rap Solo Performance ('A Milli'), and Best Rap Performance by a Duo/Group (appearance on 'Swagga Like Us').
Released 'We Are Young Money' compilation
Label compilation We Are Young Money released Dec 23, 2009; lead single 'Every Girl'; later certified gold on May 24, 2010 (>500,000 copies).
Released 'Rebirth' (rock experiment)
Seventh studio album Rebirth released Feb 2, 2010; experimented with rap-rock and received generally negative reviews.
Began 8‑month jail sentence at Rikers Island
Started serving an 8-month sentence for criminal possession of a weapon (incident from 2007); incarceration began about a month after Rebirth's release.
Released 'I Am Not a Human Being' while incarcerated
Eighth studio album released on his 28th birthday (Sept 27, 2010); spawned single 'Right Above It' (peaked #6); album later reached #1 on Billboard 200.
Released single '6 Foot 7 Foot'
Lead single for Tha Carter IV featuring Cory Gunz released Dec 15, 2010.
Released 'Tha Carter IV'
Ninth studio album Tha Carter IV released Aug 29, 2011; debuted at #1 with first-week sales of 964,000 copies.
Surpassed Elvis Presley on Hot 100 entries
On his 30th birthday (Sep 27, 2012) became the first male artist to surpass Elvis Presley with the most entries on the Billboard Hot 100 (109 songs at that time).
Released 'I Am Not a Human Being II'
Tenth studio album released Mar 26, 2013; debuted at #2 with 217,000 first-week sales.
Dropped by PepsiCo (Mountain Dew spokesperson deal ended)
Pepsi (Mountain Dew) ended endorsement due to offensive lyrics referencing Emmett Till on a remix (May 3, 2013).
Released 'Dedication 5' mixtape
Fifth installment of Dedication mixtape series released Sept 1, 2013 (29 tracks).
Announced & delayed 'Tha Carter V' (ongoing label dispute)
Declared the album would be released but faced long delays and financial/legal disputes with Cash Money Records beginning around 2014–2015.
Released 'Sorry 4 the Wait 2' mixtape
Self-released sequel mixtape to compensate fans for delay of Tha Carter V (Jan 20, 2015).
Joined TIDAL as artist-owner and released 'Glory'
Joined Jay-Z's TIDAL as an artist-owner (June 2015) and released single 'Glory' exclusively on the platform.
Released 'Free Weezy Album' exclusively on TIDAL
Free Weezy Album released July 4, 2015 via TIDAL under Young Money/Republic.
Published memoir 'Gone Til' November: A Journal of Rikers Island'
Published a memoir recounting his Rikers Island incarceration experience (2016).
Announced signing with Roc Nation (later clarified)
Announced he had signed with Jay-Z's Roc Nation in 2017, though later stated no official paperwork was signed.
Released 'Dedication 6' mixtape (part 1)
Dedication 6 released on Christmas Day 2017 (Gangsta Grillz series); part two released Jan 26, 2018.
Chart achievement: every song from Tha Carter V charted
Every song on Tha Carter V charted on the Billboard Hot 100; the album charted multiple songs in the top 10 simultaneously.
Released from Cash Money; cleared to release 'Tha Carter V'
Announced his release from Cash Money Records (June 7, 2018) and that Tha Carter V would be released via Young Money/Republic.
Released 'Tha Carter V'
Tha Carter V released on his 36th birthday (Sept 27, 2018); debuted at #1 with 480,000 album-equivalent units (140,000 pure sales) and ~433M streams in the week.
Publicly revealed 'Funeral' release date and artwork
Announced Funeral's release date and art (Jan 23, 2020).
Released 'Funeral'
Thirteenth studio album Funeral released Jan 31, 2020; debuted at #1 on Billboard 200 with 139,000 album-equivalent units.
Competed on The Masked Singer ('Robot')
Appeared as 'Robot' on season 3 of The Masked Singer (Feb 2, 2020); first eliminated.
Launched 'Young Money Radio' on Apple Music 1
Launched his Apple Music 1 radio show Young Money Radio (Apr 24, 2020).
Released 'No Ceilings 3' mixtape and announced I Am Not a Human Being III
No Ceilings 3 released Nov 27, 2020; announced I Am Not a Human Being III (not released in 2021 as planned).
Pled guilty to gun offense and later pardoned
Pleaded guilty in 2020 to taking a handgun/ammunition on a private plane (arrest Dec 2019); pardoned by President Donald Trump in Jan 2021 shortly before sentencing.
Released 'Trust Fund Babies' collaborative mixtape with Rich the Kid
Collaborative mixtape Trust Fund Babies released Oct 1, 2021; took ~6 weeks to record.
Released greatest-hits 'I Am Music'
Dropped first-ever greatest hits compilation I Am Music (Mar 31, 2023), included unreleased 'Kant Nobody' ft. DMX.
Inducted into Billboard's Hip‑Hop Hall of Fame
Billboard inducted Lil Wayne into its Hip-Hop Hall of Fame (Aug 2023).
Released 'Welcome 2 Collegrove' with 2 Chainz
Collaborative album Welcome 2 Collegrove with 2 Chainz released Nov 2023; credited as co-lead artist (previously could not be credited on predecessor).
Cumulative sales and awards milestone (public totals)
Career totals cited: over 120 million records sold worldwide (25M albums, 95M digital tracks in U.S.) and multiple major awards (five Grammys per aggregate reports).
Announced 'Tha Carter VI' release date
During a Cetaphil advert (Feb 6, 2025) announced Tha Carter VI would be released on June 6, 2025.
Released 'Tha Carter VI'
Fourteenth studio album Tha Carter VI released June 6, 2025 (features many collaborators); met mixed reviews per outlets.
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