Dwayne Michael Carter, Jr. (born September 27, 1982 in New Orleans, Louisiana, United States), better known by his stage name Lil Wayne, is an American rapper. He met the Cash Money Records collective as a teenager and eventually recorded for the label. He was a member of the rap group, Hot Boys.
In 1997, Wayne formed the group Hot Boys along with rappers Juvenile, Turk, and B.G., who released their debut CD Get It How You Live that year. In 1998, the group's major-label debut Guerrilla Warfare was released; it was followed in 2003 by Let Em Burn.
His solo career began with The Block is Hot in 1999. After releasing the albums Lights Out in 2000 and 500 Degreez in 2002 to little success, in 2004 he released the bestseller Tha Carter and eventually was featured in the popular song "Soldier" by the R&B group Destiny's Child. Tha Carter II followed in 2005.
In 2006, he collaborated with rapper Birdman for the album Like Father, Like Son. He later featured on Fat Joe's single "Make it Rain" that year. In 2007, he also appeared on the R&B single "You" by singer Lloyd, among 864 recording appearances and verses he recorded that year alone.
In 2007, an MTV poll selected Lil Wayne as 'Hottest MC in the Game.' The same year, he was named one of the "Men Of The Year" for Workaholic by GQ Magazine, and in 2008 he was named "Best Rock Star Alive" by Blender Magazine. In Rolling Stone's Best of Rock 2008 issue, Wayne was named the "Best MC".
In 2008, he released the first single from his upcoming Tha Carter III album, entitled "Lollipop", which would bring him a level of commercial success he had never before seen: going on to become his first number one single on the Billboard Hot 100.
