Dwayne Michael Carter, Jr. (born September 27, 1982), better known by his stage name Lil Wayne, is an American rapper. Formerly of the rap group Hot Boys, he joined the Cash Money Records collective as a teenager. He worked with B.G. (rapper) on the album True Story and eventually recorded for the label. Get It How U Live, released in 1997, was Lil Wayne's first album with Hot Boys, and Tha Block is Hot, his solo debut, came out 1999. Block debuted in the top ten on the American Billboard 200 chart and Lil Wayne was nominated for "Best New Artist" from The Source magazine the same year. Following this success, Wayne soon featured on other rappers' singles, including "Bling Bling" by B.G. and "#1 Stunna" by the Big Tymers in 2000.
After his hit debut album "Tha Block Is Hot" and two albums released with little promotion, Lil Wayne reached higher popularity with 2004's Tha Carter and its two subsequent albums Tha Carter II (2005) and Tha Carter III (2008). During that period, he appeared on several mixtapes and singles of other artists.
In 1997, Lil Wayne formed the group Hot Boys along with rappers Juvenile, Turk, and B.G., Wayne being the youngest member. Hot Boys' debut album, Get It How You Live, was released the same year. In 1998, the group's major-label debut Guerrilla Warfare was released. Lil Wayne was also featured on the song "Back That Azz Up" by Juvenile. The group released its final album, Let Em Burn, in 2003.