No, he was a father at 16
Dwayne Michael Carter Jr. (born September 27, 1982), better known by his
stage name Lil Wayne, is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, record executive, entrepreneur, and actor. He is regarded by many contemporaries as one of the most influential hip hop artists of his generation, and often cited as one of the greatest rappers of all time. His career began in 1996, at the age of 13, when he was discovered by
Birdman and joined
Cash Money Records as the youngest member of the label. He joined the
southern hip hop group
Hot Boys, with Cash Money label-mates
Juvenile and
Turk, in 1997, who became popular following the release of the album
Guerrilla Warfare (1999) and the song "
Bling Bling". For many years, Lil Wayne was the flagship artist of Cash Money Records, before ending his long-tenured deal with the company in June 2018.
1997–1999: Career beginnings and Hot Boys
In 1997, Carter joined the
Hot Boys along with rappers
Juvenile,
B.G., and
Turk. At age 14, Carter was the youngest member at the time. Hot Boys' debut album
Get It How U Live! was released the same year, followed in 1999 by the group's major-label debut
Guerrilla Warfare, which reached No. 1 on the
Billboard Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart and No. 5 on the
Billboard 200.
[22] During their career, the Hot Boys had two charting singles, "
We on Fire" from
Get It How U Live! and "
I Need a Hot Girl" from
Guerrilla Warfare. Carter was also featured on Juvenile's single "
Back That Azz Up", which reached No. 18 on the
Billboard Hot 100 and No. 5 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks.
Let 'Em Burn, a compilation album of unreleased tracks recorded during 1999 and 2000, came out in 2003, several years after the group disbanded. It reached No. 3 on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart and No. 14 on the
Billboard 200.