Lil Wayne Biography, Career, Net Worth, And Other Interesting Facts

Lil Wayne is an American rapper born on September 27, 1982. He’s widely considered one of the best rappers of all time and was signed to Cash Money Records by Birdman when he was just eleven years old making him the youngest member of the label.

Lil Wayne started his career in a duo with B.G. in 1994 and later joined the group Hot Boys with Juvenile and Turk. They gained fame with their albums “Get It How U Live!” and “Guerrilla Warfare” especially their hit “Bling Bling.” After some members left Cash Money Records Lil Wayne continued as a solo artist releasing successful albums like “Tha Block Is Hot”, “Lights Out”, and “500 Degreez.”

His solo career skyrocketed with albums like “Tha Carter”, “Tha Carter II”, and “Tha Carter III” which sold over one million copies in its first week and won a Grammy. Despite some experimental projects and legal troubles he continued to release music including albums like “Rebirth” “I Am Not a Human Being” and “Tha Carter IV” which sold nearly a million units in its debut week.

Throughout his career, Lil Wayne has sold over 120 million records worldwide and won numerous awards including five Grammys and eleven BET Awards. He’s also known for founding Young Money Entertainment which has signed popular artists like Drake, Tyga, and Nicki Minaj.

Lil Wayne’s Early Life and Education

Dwayne Michael Carter Jr., known as Lil Wayne was born on September 27, 1982, and spent his early years in Hollygrove a poor neighborhood in Uptown New Orleans, Louisiana. His mom who worked as a cook had him when she was 19. His parents split up when he was two and his dad left them for good. When asked why he goes by Wayne instead of his full name Dwayne he explained that he dropped the “D” because he’s named after his father who wasn’t around.

Instead, he prefers just Wayne. When asked if his dad knew he said “He does now.” Wayne considers his stepdad Reginald “Rabbit” McDonald who passed away to be his real father and even has a tattoo in his memory.

Wayne was in the gifted program at Lafayette Elementary School and later attended Eleanor McMain Secondary School where he excelled academically and was part of the drama club. He even played the Tin Man in their production of The Wiz. However, he left Marion Abramson Senior High School when he was 14 to focus on his music career.

Wayne wrote his first rap song when he was just eight years old. In the summer of 1991 at the age of nine he met Bryan “Baby” Williams a rapper and co-founder of Cash Money Records (now known as Birdman). Williams mentored Wayne and nurtured his love for hip-hop including him in Cash Money tracks and even letting him record freestyle raps on his answering machine.

At the age of 12 in 1994 Wayne accidentally shot himself in the chest in a near-fatal incident. Initially, he claimed it was an accident but years later he revealed it was a suicide attempt after his mother told him he had to stop rapping. Wayne credits an off-duty police officer named Robert Hoobler who he calls “Uncle Bob” with saving his life by rushing him to the hospital in a police car which was quicker than waiting for an ambulance.

Career

In 1997, Lil Wayne joined the Hot Boys group alongside rappers Juvenile B.G. and Turk. He was only 14 years old making him the youngest member at the time. Their first album “Get It How U Live!” came out that same year. Then in 1999, they released “Guerrilla Warfare” their major-label debut which topped the Billboard Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart and reached No. 5 on the Billboard 200. During their time together the Hot Boys had two hit singles: “We on Fire” from their debut album and “I Need a Hot Girl” from “Guerrilla Warfare.” Lil Wayne also featured on Juvenile’s track “Back That Azz Up” which became a significant hit.

After the Hot Boys disbanded a compilation album titled “Let ‘Em Burn” featuring unreleased tracks from 1999 and 2000 was released in 2003. It reached No. 3 on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart and No. 14 on the Billboard 200.

Lil Wayne’s first solo album “Tha Block Is Hot” dropped when he was 17 years old. It debuted at No. 3 on the Billboard 200 and quickly went platinum certified by the RIAA within two months of release. This album earned Lil Wayne a nomination for “Best New Artist” from Source magazine in 1999. His standout single from the album was “Tha Block Is Hot.” Following this success he was featured on the track “Bling Bling” alongside B.G. Juvenile and Big Tymers.

His second album “Lights Out” released in 2000 didn’t match the success of his debut but still achieved gold certification from the RIAA. Critics noted that his lyrical narratives hadn’t fully matured compared to his Hot Boys peers. The album’s lead single “Get Off the Corner” showed improvement in his style. Around this time he also collaborated on the single “Number One Stunna” with Big Tymers and Juvenile.

In 2002, Lil Wayne released his third album “500 Degreez” which also went gold but didn’t reach the heights of his debut. The title was a nod to Juvenile’s “400 Degreez.” The lead single “Way of Life” didn’t match the success of his earlier singles. Following this album Lil Wayne appeared on 3LW’s single “Neva Get Enuf.”

In 2004, Lil Wayne’s fourth studio album “Tha Carter” marked a significant evolution in his rapping style and themes earning critical acclaim. The album included the hit single “Go DJ” which reached the Top 5 on the R&B/Hip-Hop chart. Around this time he featured on Destiny’s Child’s single “Soldier” reaching number 3 on the Billboard Hot 100.

“Tha Carter II” released in 2005 saw Lil Wayne step away from his longtime producer Mannie Fresh. It sold over 238000 copies in its first week debuted at No. 2 on the Billboard 200 and eventually sold 2000000 copies worldwide. The lead single “Fireman” became a hit in the US. Other notable singles from the album included “Hustler Musik” and “Shooter” featuring Robin Thicke.

Instead of immediately releasing another solo album Lil Wayne focused on mixtapes and guest appearances on various pop and hip hop tracks. His mixtapes “Dedication 2” and “Da Drought 3” gained significant attention, especially for tracks like “Georgia Bush” where he critiqued President George W. Bush’s response to Hurricane Katrina.

During this period Lil Wayne appeared as a featured artist on numerous hit singles including Chris Brown’s “Gimme That” Fat Joe’s “Make It Rain” and DJ Khaled‘s “We Takin’ Over.” These collaborations consistently charted within the top 20 on the Billboard Hot 100 and other charts.

By 2007, Lil Wayne’s mixtape work had earned him widespread acclaim with Vibe ranking his verse on DJ Khaled’s “We Takin Over” as the best of the year. He was named “Hottest MC in the Game” by MTV and “Rapper of the Year” by The New Yorker. Rolling Stone named him “Best MC” in 2008 highlighting his creative output during this period.

In 2007, Lil Wayne announced plans to reunite with Hot Boys and release an album after B.G.’s solo project. His album “Tha Carter III” was originally set for 2007 but got postponed due to song leaks. Instead, he released an EP called “The Leak” in December 2007. “Tha Carter III” finally dropped in June 2008 and sold over 1 million copies in its first week. It featured hits like “Lollipop” and “Got Money” winning Lil Wayne four Grammy Awards. The album was certified double platinum by July 2008.

After the success, Lil Wayne talked about re-releasing “Tha Carter III” with new tracks. He also collaborated widely in 2008 appearing on various singles across R&B rap and pop genres.

In 2009, Lil Wayne continued his momentum with more achievements, performances, and awards. He re-signed with Cash Money Records after “Tha Carter III” became the best-selling album of 2008. Lil Wayne also expanded into film and documentary production during this time.

His next projects included “Rebirth” in 2010 and collaborations on Young Money’s “We Are Young Money” album. He toured extensively and made notable appearances cementing his status as a leading figure in hip hop.

From 2010 to 2013, Lil Wayne released “I Am Not a Human Being” and worked on “Tha Carter IV”. The latter was delayed to 2011 due to Lil Wayne starting fresh recordings post-prison. It debuted strongly marking his third number-one album.

In 2014, Lil Wayne faced delays with “Tha Carter V” due to disputes with Cash Money Records. He released the mixtape “Sorry 4 the Wait 2” and sued the label. Eventually “Tha Carter V” came out in 2018 debuting at number one on the Billboard 200.

Lil Wayne has been quite busy with his music career. He released his album “Funeral” in early 2020 which quickly hit number one on the Billboard 200 chart. Critics generally liked the album. He also appeared on “The Masked Singer” and collaborated with Lil Baby on the song “Forever.”

Later in 2020, Lil Wayne started his radio show called “Young Money Radio”. He also re-released his album “Free Weezy Album” to mark its fifth anniversary. His album “Funeral” got a deluxe edition with additional tracks featuring artists like Doja Cat and Lil Uzi Vert.

In 2020, he also brought back his old mixtape “No Ceilings” and dropped new music with ASAP Ferg. He was featured on YoungBoy Never Broke Again‘s album with a verse that critics praised.

In 2020 and beyond, Lil Wayne continued to stay active. He released a deluxe edition of his album “Tha Carter V” and dropped a new mixtape called “No Ceilings 3.” He also announced plans for his next projects including an album with Juelz Santana and another mixtape with Rich the Kid.

In 2023, Lil Wayne released his first greatest hits album titled “I Am Music” and has been working on “Tha Carter VI.” Recently he collaborated on a remix with Ciara and Chris Brown.

Looking forward Lil Wayne has teased several potential projects including the long-awaited collaboration album “I Can’t Feel My Face” with Juelz Santana and an album of love songs titled “Devol.”

Net Worth

Lil Wayne has an estimated net worth of $170 Million, according to Celebrity Net Worth. The main source of Lil Wayne’s net worth comes from his career as a rapper, songwriter, and entrepreneur. He earns money from selling millions of albums, touring around the world, and business ventures like his own music label and clothing line.

Personal life

Lil Wayne has four kids. His first child Reginae was born when he was 16 to his high school sweetheart Toya Johnson. They got married in 2004 but divorced in 2006. In 2008, there were false rumors that Reginae had died in a car accident which Wayne quickly clarified.

His other children are Dwayne III born in 2008 to Sarah Vivan, Cameron born in 2009 to Lauren London, and Neal born in 2009 to Nivea.

Wayne’s love life has been quite public. He was linked with Christina Milian in 2014 and confirmed their relationship in 2015. Their romance faced criticism from their ex-partners but ended in 2015 after collaborations in music and appearances together.

He was engaged to La’Tecia Thomas but called off the engagement in 2020. Shortly after he started dating model Denise Bidot but they reportedly broke up in November 2020 due to Wayne’s support for Donald Trump. They later reconciled briefly before breaking up again in early 2022.

In terms of beliefs, Wayne has spoken about his Catholic faith and belief in God and Jesus which he expressed during his performances and interviews.

Wayne has faced health challenges including seizures that required hospitalization. He has been open about his medical issues including incidents in 2012, 2013, and 2016 related to seizures.

On the education front, Wayne enrolled at the University of Houston in 2005 but left due to scheduling conflicts. He later pursued online courses in psychology at the University of Phoenix.

In terms of interests, Wayne has shared his love for music influences like Nirvana. He’s also known for his extensive tattoos which include meaningful phrases and symbols across his body.

Wayne has also been involved in philanthropy including establishing the One Family Foundation to support students at his former school.

Legal issues

On July 22, 2007, Lil Wayne was arrested in New York City after a show at the Beacon Theatre. Police found him and another person smoking marijuana near their tour bus. During the arrest, officers discovered a .40 caliber pistol near him registered to his manager. He faced charges for having both the gun and marijuana.

Later that year on October 5, 2007, Carter was arrested again in Boise Idaho on charges related to drugs. This arrest turned out to be a misunderstanding and the charges were dropped.

In January 2008, Lil Wayne and two others were arrested when Border Patrol agents searched his tour bus near Yuma Arizona. They found drugs (marijuana cocaine ecstasy) and cash. He was charged with serious offenses including drug possession and illegal weapons possession.

In March 2010, Lil Wayne faced sentencing for a weapons charge but it was delayed multiple times due to dental surgery and a courthouse fire. Eventually, he was sentenced to one year in jail which he served at Rikers Island.

Throughout this time Wayne faced several other legal issues including being detained in Texas for marijuana found on his tour buses and pleading guilty in 2009 to attempted possession of a weapon.

In December 2020, Wayne pleaded guilty to a federal charge for possessing a loaded handgun on his private jet resulting in a conviction that barred him from having firearms. He was pardoned by President Trump in January 2021.

Besides legal troubles, Wayne has been involved in various lawsuits. These include copyright disputes over his music such as allegations of using copyrighted material without permission and lawsuits from producers claiming unpaid royalties for their work on his albums.