Lil Wayne is one of the biggest names in hip hop and there is no doubt that he has earned
that spot.
Selling over 120 million records worldwide, Lil Wayne is one of the most successful artists
of the 21st century.
The self proclaimed “best rapper alive” has released 13 studio albums and countless
mixtapes over the years, but some of his rise to fame came from the criminal history that
shaped the content of Wayne’s music.
The 37 year old has had a plethora of run ins with the law, one of which landed him
some serious time behind bars.
Curious what Lil Wayne was up to that earned him his time in lock up?
Well then we’ve got you covered.
Here is an exclusive look at the criminal history of Lil Wayne.
Lil Wayne, otherwise known as Dwayne Carter Jr, is a 37 year old rapper, singer, songwriter,
and entrepreneur out of New Orleans, Louisiana.
Wayne grew up in an impoverished neighborhood called Hollygrove, which is a sub district
of uptown New Orleans.
Hollygrove has a long history of crime, and since the 1970’s, the neighborhood has been
associated with drug dealers and above average homicide rates.
Soon after the rise of crack-cocaine in the southern United States, the New Orleans Police
Department came into constant conflict with local drug dealers in the neighborhood.
By the 1980’s and well into the 90’s, gun violence and homicide were a daily occurance,
making it one of the most dangerous places in the country with a crime rate that stood
137% above national averages.
Growing up around this type of environment led young Dwayne Carter to get involved himself.
At the age of 12, Lil Wayne managed to shoot himself in the chest with a 9mm handgun.
It is unclear however, whether it was an accident or a suicide attempt.
In early interviews, Wayne claims it was an accident fueled by being high and not knowing
how to handle a gun safely.
In his 2015 song “London Roads”, the rapper makes it sound more like a suicide attempt
gone wrong.
Either way, I think this might be one of those things that stays with Wayne and Wayne only.
Lil Wayne started making music early, and at the raw age of 8, he wrote his first rap
song.
Wayne's first break came when he was 13, after a local rapper named “Birdman” found him
at a record store and put him on the “Cash Money Records” label.
As the youngest member of the record label, Wayne sat alongside up and coming artists
Juvenile and Turk.
The trio went on to form the southern hip hop group, “Hot Boys”, and Lil Wayne served
as the top artist of the group and the record label.
Wayne kept with “Cash Money Records” until 2018 when he decided to cut ties and move
in his own direction.
Now let's get into what all of this history and background brought Wayne throughout the
years.
In July of 2007, Lil Wayne was arrested in New York City following a live performance
at the Beacon Theatre.
The NYPD found the rapper and one other individual smoking a little bit of weed near his tour
bus.
The marijuana wasn't the big issue though, because as police searched Lil Wayne’s tour
bus, they ended up finding a .40 caliber pistol stashed somewhere inside the rapper's tour
bus, claiming he was trying to conceal it.
The gun was registered, but it was registered to his manager and the gun was found directly
next to where Lil Wayne was sitting.
Mr. Carter was charged with one count of criminal weapons possession, and one count of criminal
possession of a loaded weapon.
Wayne’s lawyers made the claim that the gun did not belong to Carter and that the
police had no legal right to search his tour bus.
Wayne eventually pleaded guilty to the gun charges in October of 2009.
The rapper served an 8 month sentence with good behavior at Rikers Island Prison for
the weapons charges.
In 2008, Lil Wayne was arrested in the state of Arizona on multiple drug and weapons charges
after K-9 units searched the tour bus and found marijuana, cocaine, ecstasy, and over
$20,000 in cash.
Wayne ended up posting a $10,000 bail and was allowed to leave the state, but on the
day of his court hearing, he did not show.
This was only because Lil Wayne was already serving his 1 year sentence for weapons charges
at Rikers Island Prison.
Wayne was sentenced to 3 years of probation after his release by an Arizona judge.
Most recently in 2019, Lil Wayne was flying through Miami International Airport, when
the plane he was on was searched by ATF and other law enforcement agents after local police
had received a tip that there were drugs being transported on board which was enough probable
cause to receive a search warrant.
Both cocaine and a gold plated firearm were found on board.
Wayne was not charged in this incident and it is unknown if anyone in Lil Wayne’s entourage
were charged for those items.
The plane had a carrying capacity of 14 passengers, and it is unclear whether the plane belonged
to Wayne or not.
On top of the gun and drug charges, Wayne has had a rough ride involving other lawsuits
and legal issues.
In February of 2009, a record company called RMF productions filed a $1.3 million lawsuit
against Lil Wayne after a $100,000 advanced payment for 3 live shows ended up being canceled.
That same year, Wayne, Birdman, Cash Money Records, and various other distributors were
sued for copyright infringements.
In 2006, Thomas Marasciullo recorded “Italian spoken lyrics” that were used later on without
his permission.
In 2012, Wayne was sued by a total of 4 producer’s over unpaid royalties from his album “The
Carter 3”, Totals from all lawsuits topped $3 million in unpaid royalties.
It is unknown how that played out for Lil Wayne but I can guarantee it is settled by
now.
Well there you have it, the entire Criminal History of Lil Wayne in one single YouTube
Video.
I hope you guys all enjoyed this video and if you did please hit that like button.
If you want to see more Criminal History videos just like this one, then make sure to hit
that subscribe button and feel free to click the notification bell as well to be notified
when we upload.
Also, comment down below any suggestions of who we should make a “Criminal History”
video on next.
That is all we have for today's video, I’m out