20 Fun Facts About Lil Wayne

Lil Wayne used several stage names before choosing the one we know now. His real name is Dwayne Michael Carter Jr., which sounds like an accountant or insurance salesman, not a hardcore rapper. Before becoming Lil Wayne, he called himself Shrimp Daddy, a nod to Cash Money rapper Pimp Daddy, and he mocked his short height. He also used the nickname Baby D for a time, but that name faded.Cash Money rapper.Pimp Daddy, and also made fun of his short stature. For a while, he also used the nickname Baby D, but that one eventually fizzled out.

Lil Wayne might be lil, but his bank account is huge. This rapper has $150 million. The 5'6" rapper earned this. He released chart-topping albums after chart-topping albums. He reinvented the mixtape game. He invested his earnings well. He is the first rapper to have an album drop at #1 since Tupac in the early '90s.

Lil Wayne freestyled 10,000 bars in 2002, and he hasn't written down his lyrics since. He thinks writing rhymes makes them false. He explained this idea in an interview with GQ.GQ:

p>"But you could read what’s on the paper, right? So basically anybody that could read could recite it. That takes something away from it. But if I walk up to a guy and say “Rap for me,” he’s going to say something. His characteristics or whatever. I’m going to get what I love about him, just from his presence. That’s why you never saw me rap no TV shows. Other rappers have to rap after an interview. So can you spit something for us? They never ask me to do that because the interview is so compelling that they actually got Lil Wayne."

I always tell people that’s why I am good, that’s why I’m okay; I’m being me, I’m doing me. Now, the day I have to write stuff down—no one believes what is written. For example, if I told you I had a mansion around the corner with three Bentleys and twenty-eight naked women waiting for me, you wouldn't believe it. I would say, 'You stink, get out my face, give him $100.'

But if there was a book saying there was a bum with a mansion and twenty women in it, you would try to use it for real life. That is why I don’t write anything down. That is why I don’t believe the Bible or anything written, because nothing written is meant to be believed.

During an interview with Katie Couric, Lil Wayne revealed he dropped the "D" from Dwayne because"I'm a junior and my father is livin' ... he's never been in my life, so I don't wanna be Dwayne, I'd rather be Wayne." When she asked if his father knew this, Lil Wayne answered, "He knows now."

Lil Wayne and his biological father did not have a good relationship. He sees his stepfather, Rabbit, as his real dad. Sadly, Rabbit was killed before Lil Wayne became famous. To honor Rabbit, Lil Wayne got a tattoo dedicated to him.

Between 1997 and 2012, Lil Wayne recorded 597 guest tracks on other artists' albums. He has recorded more guest tracks than any musician, living or dead.

At age 12, Lil Wayne almost died after accidentally shooting himself in the chest. He returned from school early on report card day and found a .9mm handgun on his bed. He played with it and shot himself. The bullet missed vital organs, but he began bleeding out fast. An off-duty police officer, Robert Hoobler, responded to the 911 call and saved Lil Wayne's life.

Lil Wayne became friends with Lil Slim and Birdman when he was nine. Both signed to his favorite record label. Lil Wayne was not scared when they asked him to rap on the spot. His confidence and rhymes impressed them, so they signed him to Cash Money Records.

After signing with Cash Money Records at age nine, he wrote and produced "True Story." The album dropped under the name "The B.G.'z," a mini rap group featuring Lil Wayne (then Baby D) and BG (aka Lil' Doogie). Lil Wayne was only 11 when this album released.

Source: Dat Piff

Lil Wayne has advocated for guns since he was eleven. He carried a gun from age 11; his first weapon was a .32 Derringer, costing him only a quarter per bullet. Recently, he speaks more openly about gun violence. He said in an interview, "Y"You mentioned that in 2010, I was locked up for a weapon. If I could change anything in my life, it would be that. Sandy Hook Elementary, my heart goes out to you.

Lil Wayne's health issues have been a major news story for years. He has been hospitalized many times, and headlines question if he took the Sizzurp too far this time. Some health issues stem from his lifestyle, but he also has long-standing medical problems. In 2013, he made a statement to clarify things.

He said, “The thing is, man, the bad news is, I’m an epileptic, so I’m prone to seizures.” “This isn’t my first, second, third, fourth, fifth, sixth, seventh seizure. I’ve had many seizures; y’all just never hear about it. This time it got really bad because I had three in a row, and on the third one, my heart rate dropped to like 30 percent. Basically, I could have died soon. That’s why it was so serious.”

Lil Wayne served 242 days of his yearlong sentence at Rikers Island for weapons charges. He served his time well and was released early for good behavior. He credits the popular card gameUNO helped him pass time in lockup.

Prison wasn't easy for Lil Wayne, but he adjusted. He said, "Not to use the word 'easy'—but it wasn't difficult as people think. There is difficulty—mentally, just waking up every day in that hell. But once you get over that, it's all good."

Katie Couric asked Lil Wayne how and why he left school and how leaving early helped him pursue other things.

"Yeah. I had an album out; I was platinum already. Thank God, I was still trying to go to regular public school. My mom saw me getting ready for school one day; she walked past the room and saw me putting my gun in my backpack. She asked, 'You gotta bring that to school with you?' I asked her, 'You don’t want me to bring it?' She thought, then she said, 'I do.' So I put it back in my bag. She bought it for me for protection. She said you need it. She was on the phone and walked back to my room, saying, 'You don’t go to school anymore. You’re getting a GED if that’s the way you gotta go to school.' So I got a GED and went to college."

Lil Wayne's first solo album is...Tha Block Is HotThis album dropped in 1999 with very few swear words. Most rap albums don't have this. Lil Wayne's mother made him promise to watch his language. The cover says "Parental Advisory," but that is only because Lil Wayne was a minor then.

By age 15, Lil Wayne led a better life than many people live to forty. He got his GED, survived shooting himself in the chest, became a platinum rap artist, and toured often. Because he toured so much, his mom started having empty nest syndrome and wanted her baby back home. She convinced him to have a child with his high school sweetheart, Antonia "Tonya" Wright. They had a child, Reginae, and Lil Wayne's mom helped raise her.

Retiring at 35 seems young, but Lil Wayne worked hard for years. He started working at nine. By his mid-thirties, he will have put in decades of hard work. Lil Wayne is 33 in 2015, leaving two more years to enjoy his music.

He said, "This is what happens when you work very hard. People think working hard means putting in two extra hours. This is my life. That’s why retiring at 35 would be a life lived; this music thing is my life."

Lil Wayne's closest experience with punching a clock was as an unpaid summer camp counselor in his youth. Signing with a major rap label at age 11 gave him perks; he has never had to work a day job.

In 2005, reports confirmed Lil Wayne would replace Young Jeezy in Boyz N Da Hood. The new lineup included T.I., Trick Daddy, Sean Paul, and Lil Wayne. Months later, the plan failed, and Lil Wayne left the group. He stated the plan aimed to copy a southern version of Wu-Tang Clan. What could have happened?

Lil Wayne has four children with four different women. He values fatherhood as the main part of his life and tries to stay involved in his kids' lives. His first daughter, Reginae, was born to his high school sweetheart, Toya Wright, at age 15. His son, Dwayne Carter III, was born in 2009 to radio broadcaster Sarah Vivian. Actress Lauren London gave birth to his second son, Cameron Carter, in 2009. His youngest child, Neal Carter, arrived later in 2009 from singer Nivea.

Lil Wayne started the One Family Foundation to aid underprivileged urban youth. The One Family Foundation also renovates Harrell Park in Hollygrove, Louisiana, after Hurricane Katrina destroyed it.

Lil Wayne got his G.E.D. after dropping out of high school, making him eligible to return to school in 2005. He attended the University of Houston in Texas, studying psychology. Lil Wayne said he was not "going back to school." This was just the start.

He admitted, "I’m really going to school for the first time."

The University of Houston's class schedule complicated things while he toured. He chose an online degree from the University of Phoenix instead.