The Story of Cash Money Records
One Label. Two brothers. +1 billion records sold.
On Wednesday, the crew behind Verzuz revealed that they’ll be back for the first time since the Pandemic.
The relaunch takes place at ComplexCon and with a legendary matchup — a New Orleans classic, if you will.
In one corner, we’ve got the Colonel of the Tank from Magnolia Projects & his soldiers: No Limit Records.
In the other corner, we have a label that is still going strong, 30 years later, and its legacy isn't one to be overlooked. It was started by those two brothers, Bryan and Ronald, mentioned at the beginning. We’ve come to know that label as Cash Money Records.
With the upcoming match between the two less than a month away, this week is all about the legacy of Cash Money.
Let’s get it.
I. THE BEGINNINGS
Everything starts with the two brothers, Bryan and Ronald, aka Birdman and Slim. In the late eighties, the brothers were hustlers in New Orleans, with Birdman already being a millionaire by the age of 15.
Birdman wanted to transition out of the streets after serving a stint in prison, and together with Slim, they had a vision for a record label.
He came up with the name Cash Money (Loosely based on the Cash Money Brothers in New Jack City), and from there, he and Slim took off.
In 1992, Cash Money released its debut project, an album by Kilo G, their cousin, titled “Sleep Walker.” That same year, they would go on to sign another local group making noise in the city named “U.N.L.V.”
In 1993, U.N.LV. Dropped their debut album on Cash Money entitled “6th & Baronne,” and with that, the label’s buzz in New Orleans began to grow. Cash Money was a legitimate label with a modicum of success.
After the success of U.N.L.V., Cash Money continued to expand its roster, signing a female artist named Ms. Tee, who dropped her debut with the label “Female Baller” in 1996; Other signings in the early Cash Money empire include Pimp Daddy (with whom Miss Tee’s first feature with the label was), and Lil Slim.
Ms. Tee eventually left Cash Money after her last album, “Female Baller,” and Pimp Daddy passed away. Still, their work also helped set the foundation for Cash Money Records. 1
Moreover, at the center of each artist and the label’s success is the production that came to define it.
II. THE CASH MONEY SOUND
If Baby & Slim are the architects of Cash Money, then Mannie Fresh was its foundation. He produced the bulk of all Cash Money projects by himself. Literally.
This includes solo projects, group albums, and records he would later produce as part of the “Big Tymers,” among others. Again, literally EVERYTHING.
Fresh is a second-generation New Orleans DJ raised by local legend DJ Sabu, who cut his teeth DJ’ing school dances and clubs in the late ’80s before Birdman recruited him in the early ’90s to be Cash Money’s in-house producer.
His initial start with the label was working with acts like U.N.L.V., and as Cash Money’s roster grew and gained prominence, he was the sound that built the label.
III. THE COME UP
After a run of successful indie projects, Baby and Slim paired four young emcees together to form a group. As for the name? It was inspired by a real-life robbing crew that was notorious in New Orleans (it was also New Orleans slang for someone who was fly).
This new group called themselves “The Hot Boys” — consisting of rappers Juvenile, B.G., Turk & Lil Wayne.
I. JUVENILE
Before getting with Cash Money, Juvenile was already a rapper with local buzz in New Orleans. In 1995, he dropped his first solo album, “Being Myself,” on Warlock Records, but eventually left the label after creative differences with the founder.
He went back to working a regular job when he had a chance encounter with Birdman at a bus stop. After impressing him and Mannie Fresh, he signed with Cash Money and released his second album, “Solja Rags,” through the label.l
II. B.G.
B.G. (formerly known as Lil Doogie) started rapping at a young age and effectively jumped off the porch at 12 after the passing of his father. A chance meeting with Birdman at a local barbershop led him to sign with Cash Money. Together with Lil Wayne, they formed the B.G.’z, and released their first project on the label “True Story” in 1995.
III. TURK
Turk was the fourth pillar of the Hot Boys and was introduced to Birdman by another budding New Orleans emcee named Magnolia Shorty. He brought a raw, project-corner urgency to Cash Money’s rise, popping up across Juvenile’s 400 Degreez and then landing a Top-10 debut with Young & Thuggin’
IV. LIL WAYNE
Originally rapping under the name Baby G, Wayne was the youngest of the group, having been discovered by Baby at just 12 years old (courtesy of an introduction by Lil Slim, an original Cash Money artist) 2
IV. THE COME UP
The formation of The Hot Boys marked a significant turning point for Cash Money as a label. On October 28, 1997, they dropped their debut album, “Get It How U Live” independently, and it sold over 400k.
For the Williams brothers and the Hot Boys alike, the success of their first album confirmed that they had something special.
The level of indie success Cash Money was experiencing attracted major labels to them, and things changed when they received the backing of Universal Music Group.
Not only did Universal help make The Hot Boys a household name that would change Southern Hip-hop forever, but the deal that Baby & Slim negotiated with the label was one of the best in music history.
Because Cash Money had seen so much success already, and because of people like Wendy Day, they were able to negotiate an 80/20 Joint Venture with the lion's share going to Cash Money.
Just like the label’s name, they started printing cash in the late 90s.
Their first album with Universal, powered by “We On Fire” & “I Need a Hot Girl,” debuted at #5 on the Billboard charts and helped solidify the group on a national level.
But that was just the beginning.
V. THE SOLO PROJECTS
I. B.G.
Many OG fans of the Hot Boys note that B.G. was their favorite, and his solo project gave rise to a word that not only became slang, but also eventually became a word in the Oxford dictionary.
In 1998, B.G. released his debut solo album, “Chopper City In the Ghetto,” which included the standout single, Bling, Bling, that solidified him and Cash Money on a national level.
II. JUVENILE
Just a few months after B.G. dropped his debut solo album, Juvenile dropped his 3rd album (2nd with Cash Money), and it also became a certified classic.
400 Degreez was unlike anything else in Hip-hop at the time, and Mannie Fresh’s production, paired with Juve’s flow, and Cash Money’s brand presence, pushed its impact to the next level.
According to sources, 400 Degrees is still the highest-selling album of Juvenile’s career. And, of course, “Back That Azz Up” has become a cross-generational anthem, considered by many to be one of the best Hip-hop songs of all time.
III. LIL WAYNE
In 1999, just a year after Juvie’s solo Lil Wayne emerged with his first solo album, “The Block is Hot” — featuring a hit record of the same name.
The Hot Boys made numerous appearances on The Block is Hot, and just like the other solo albums that dropped from The Hot Boys this year, it was a commercial success that helped Wayne’s career and the Cash Money brand flourish.
IV. Turk
In 2001, Turk followed up with his solo effort “Young & Thuggin”
VI. THE ONLY MAN LEFT STANDING…
After the incredible success of the Hot Boys, they encountered a familiar arc that most groups face.
Various members of the crew alleged financial mismanagement by Cash Money, which culminated in almost everyone leaving the label; Even Mannie Fresh parted ways years later.
The Cash Money empire was on the brink of folding, but one artist stayed. He was the youngest of the group and the one to eventually bring Cash Money back to its former glory and beyond.
Lil Wayne was officially the last man standing, and after the Hot Boys went their separate ways, he focused intently on his solo career.
“Cash Money is an Army, Navy Seal me here/ A lot of n***** ran from it but I still be here” - Lil Wayne, The Fly In
There was considerable speculation about whether Wayne could uphold the label by himself. Critics often cited him as just the “wobbly wobbly drop” rapper who couldn’t make a good body of work without The Hotboys.
However, in the years to follow, Wayne went on to cement his identity as a solo artist. He followed up “The Block is Hot” with the 2000 album “Lights Out,” and a 2003 album entitled “500 Degreez,” but the real catalyst for his solo career would end up being his 2004 effort “Tha Carter.”
Wayne was still locked in with Mannie Fresh, and together they dropped a string of records that affirmed that Wayne wasn’t just 1/4 of The Hot Boys; he was his own man, and maybe, just maybe, he could keep Cash Money afloat.
As many avid Hip-hop fans know, in the years to follow, Wayne not only kept Cash Money going, but he was also dubbed The Best Rapper Alive in the mid-2000s. A run of mixtapes and albums leading up to Tha Carter III (which sold 1 million copies in the first week) would ultimately solidify Wayne as one of the best to ever do it.
VII. THE BIRTH OF YOUNG MONEY
On the heels of Wayne’s success as a solo artist, there were rumblings that he was also planning to leave to sign with Jay-Z, an idol of his.
However, Birdman swooped in with an offer to keep Wayne on the label and give him his own imprint, Young Money.
This would be a joint venture with Cash Money Records, effectively giving Wayne the ability to be an executive with his own roster of artists.
From that point forward, for Wayne, everything was “YMCMB” (Young Money Cash Money Billionaires).
The Young Money era coincided with Hip-hop’s transition into the Blog Era, and while the group consisted of several rappers, the two who defined Young Money were Drake & Nicki Minaj.
Nicki came to Wayne after a stint with Gucci Mane in Atlanta, and immediately electrified the world with her presence. Moreover, Drake was working on “So Far Gone” when Jas Prince introduced him to Lil Wayne, who took an interest and even featured on So Far Gone before Drake signed to the label.
Although these were Young Money artists, they were also Cash Money. As such, they extended the legacy of the label to another generation of Hip-hop fans to come.
Around 2015, Birdman connected with the younger generation through Rich Gang — a collective he founded that included Young Thug, Rich Homie Quan (for a time), Jacquees, and more.
They dropped a star-studded album featuring most of the Young Money Roster, including Wayne, which once again exposed the label to a new audience.
But all of the success came with its fair share of issues.
VIII. THE FALL OF YOUNG MONEY
As is a tale as old as time, eventually the big 3 of Young Money/Cash Money would leave for various reasons.
Drake successfully fulfilled his contract after his 5th solo album, Scorpion, with no real appearance of bad blood between him and his label (he still pays homage, in fact). Some speculate that he is still tied to Cash Money in a lesser-known way; however, it appears that he is signed solely to Republic Records.
In Nicki Minaj’s case, it appears that she also fulfilled her Young Money/Cash Money contract with the release of her 2018 album “Queen” and is now signed to Republic as well.
Which brings us to Lil Wayne…
In 2015, at the height of The Rich Gang era, Wayne publicly expressed his discontent with Cash Money, alleging that he had never been given proper ownership of the Young Money Imprint, and was owed upwards of $51 million in unpaid royalties and advances. He subsequently filed a lawsuit to that effect. 3
He eventually settled with Birdman out of Court and is effectively no longer a part of Cash Money Records. It was a bitter end to what was one of the most influential runs in Hip-hop history.
EPILOGUE
Although many of the artists who built Cash Money have all but left the label, they’re still going.
B.G. reconciled with Cash Money at some point, and after a prison stint, he re-signed with the label as a solo act. Juvenile and Birdman reconciled a few years after he left and have also collaborated since then. The Hot Boys even reunited for a tour earlier this year to much fanfare.
While the verdict is out on whether they’ll win the upcoming Verzuz (though they have a really strong case), at the very least, Gen Z will be able to get a glimpse of true 90s nostalgia during the event.
The reality is that in many ways, Cash Money is a cultural institution. Cash Money not only took over for the 99s & the 2000s, but for decades to come.
One.