What's the deal cats?! This latest salute to hip-hop labels is highlighting a label that has been in existance for nearly twenty years, and has been one of the most financially lucrative and successful labels in all of hip-hop. Ran by the Williams brothers, Bryan "Baby" and Ronald "Slim", they have been putting it down for southern hip-hop since the early nineties with acts such as Pimp Daddy and U.N.L.V. After minimal buzz, Baby and Slim signed B.G., Young Turk, and Lil' Wayne, while they were all in their early teens. Shortly afterwards, they signed Juvenilke and the rest was history. Since the late nineties, Cash Money has been one of the most talked about and in-demand labels, and with that, here are the best projects to get released from the label.
15. Nicki Minaj- The Pinkprint
Hip-hop's leading lady has been the "it" girl for the last eight or so years. Selling upwards of nearly three million units, her albums of Pink Friday and Roman Reloaded have made the young NY native a worldwide name in hip-hop and in music at large. Her third album, The Pinkprint, continued her momentum, and produced her overall most cohesive album yet. Crossiver enopugh to appeal to the suburbs yet still having elements of urban relatability, Nicki had hits upon hits on this album, with the majority target towards radio, but she also has several moments of introspection and vulnerability thus maing this album a winner.
14. Lil' Wayne- Tha Carter II
The undisputed star of Cash Money has always been Dewayne Michael Carter. Even as a child on the mic, eyes were on Wayne as the next big thing within Cash Money and likely within hip-hop period. One of the hardest working emcees you'll ever come across, Wayne became notorious for his constant slew of mixtapes, guest appearances, and performances. In 2005, he dropped the sequel to his album of '04 Tha Carter, which showed growth and more lyrical maturity. Hits like "Best Rapper Alive", "Fireman", and "Hustler Muzik" all served us some of Wayne's best and earned him a platinum plaque.
13. Drake- Nothing Was The Same
Aubrey Drake Graham is polarizing. Just as many love him as they hate him. Nobody can deny the fact that Drake is the "it" guy of the game. His star appeal has done nothing but grow and grow to where he's breaking records all over the place. With his third album, Nothing Was The Same, Drake continues his star power appeal. Going off the formula that made him a radio friendly giant, he coninues with strong cuts like the very delightful collab with Jhene Aiko "From Time", the sizzling "Tuscan Leather", and the smash hit "Started From The Bottom", but also hit it hard fro the streets with cuts like "Wu-Tang Forever" and the HOT "Pound Cake" with Jay-Z. His ability to be vulnerable and confessional is just as apparent here as with his prior excellent piece, Take Care, thus continuing his enormous stature in the game.
12. Nicki Minaj- Pink Friday
The game was in great need for a female to rep for the ladies in a mainstream, accessible type of way left behind by the likes of Missy and Eve. While neither one retired, they also weren't a s out in the forefront as in former years. Enter Onika Miraj, a Queens cutie who could own her own with the fellas on the mic. Making tons of buzz off mixtapes such as Beam Me Up Scotty, Playtime Is Over, and Sucka Free, the young Trinidadian was signed to Weezy's Young Money imprint as the first lady. Her highly anticipated debut, Pink Friday, was met with pretty decent acclaim, and showed her ability to be a great artist worthy of the fame she was starting to build. Hits like "Super Bass", "Your Love", and "Moment For Life" screamed of crossover appeal and ended up being one of the highest selling hip-hop albums from a female act in recent memory, obtaining nearly quadruple platinum status. A star has officially been born.
11. Lil' Wayne- Tha Carter
Lil' Wayne was at a crossroad come 2004. Although regarded still as one of the mightiest in Cash Money, the need to reach more people and have a broader appeal was really getting to him. As well as the need to prove his worth as the best in the game was starting to really become his battery to produce not just good material. Thus, the beginning of Tha Carter series. The first installment was a very good effort, but it also marked the last album we would hear he and Mannie Fresh collaborate on. Mannie crafted over half the album, including heaters like "Go DJ", "Only Way", and "Bring It Back". At this time, Wayne was the underdog we were pulling for to succeed due to his work ethic and his passion to be the best. This was the first step towards his impending greatness.
10. Drake- Thank Me Later
After the runaway success of his So Far Gone mixtape, Drake was next in line to be among hip-hop's next great acts, but it was all depending upon how his eagerly anticipated Young Money debut, Thank Me Later, would turn out. Any and all doubts were very quickly answered with monster hits like "Over", the sultry Kanye-crafted "Find Your Way", and "Miss Me". However, it didn't stop there whatsoever, other excellent cuts like "Fancy", "Unforgettable", and "Show Me A Good Time" making the album an incredible listen. many have dubbed this an instant classic, and among the best debuts of the decade. The results came in the form of a nearly double platinum album, and the making of hip-hop's newest in-demand emcee.
9. Big Tymers- I Got That Work
If there was a duo in the game that everyone wanted to be like in terms of showing off their riches and material wealth, it was Birdman (then Baby) and Mannie Fresh, known as the Big Tymers. Make no mistake about it: these cats were nowhere near deep, substantial, or anything resembling the most lyrically savage cats around. With them, that didn't matter. It was about exploiting the high life of materialism. With I Got That Work, they bring it to a paramount like never before from prior albums. Never shying away from the formula of riches and more riches, these two were all about showing that this could be your life too with hard work. Instant appealing tracks like the infectious "Get Your Roll On", "Sunday Night", and "Ain't No Stoppin" provides Mannie with some of his best production work to date at that point, and simply put, who cares if this lacks in depth, this album was the manual on showing off and schooling people on how to do it.
8. Drake- Take Care
The ever ancy question to every artist that starts off hot with their debut as Drake did with Thank Me Later is "Will they do it again with album number two?" With Take Care, the answer was a resounding yes, and then some. While many have criticized it for overly emotional and vulnerable, just as many would state this is as incredible of an inside look of Drake as we've heard to this day. Instantly infectious hits like the steamy title track with off-and-on boo Rihanna, "Headlines", and the Nicki Minaj featured "Make Me Proud" show off his excellent ability to create hits to remember, while more emotive cuts like the depressing "Marvin's Room", the very candid and emotional feeling "Doing It Wrong" (the Stevie Wonder harmonica solo is simply BREATHTAKING), and "Hate Sleeping Alone" are fantastic examples of how imopressive Drake is as a songwriter, but also how much he's in need of a therapist's couch. No matter how you felt about this release, the album was worthy of earning quadruple platinum status plus a Grammy, thus not only making him a household name, he was now a worldwide star.
7. Lil' Wayne- Tha Block Is Hot
At the age of seventeen, Lil' Wayne was ready to show off his abilities as a main role guy instead of just one fourth of The Hot Boys. His debut album, Tha Block Is Hot, was a great first go around for Wayne, with strong showings of a kid with possible mainstream appeal. Considered one of the foundations of the success of Cash Money, Tha Block Is Hot was gritty and definitely misogynistic, but Wayne wouldn't have it any other way. Cuts like "Kisha" and the title track showcased Wayne's familiar tales of thirsty groupies and the grimy streets of New Orleans. A very essential album for the future global success of Cash Money.
6. Juvenile- Tha G-Code
When it comes to the term 'infectious', none exhibited that term more than the eldest of The Hot Boys, Juvenile. Putting Cash Money on a huge scale with his breakthrough album, 400 Degreez, he attempts to follow that up with his enxt release, Tha G-Code. Presenting a lot of the same elements that made 400 Degreez a classic, this album recreates them. While there's no sureshot hit quite like "Back Dat Azz Up" or "Ha", we do have the single "Got That Fire" and "U Understand" that were rotational in their own right. With double platinum units sold, Juvi was clearly the biggest flagbearer of Cash Money and was just simply on fire.
5. Drake- If You're Reading This, It's Too Late
Talk about an album for all haters. Drake's surprise mixtape/album from 2015 caught everyone by surprise in more ways than one. Seen as his most focused and aggressive since his So Far Gone days, he was tired of trying to prove that he belonged in the category of best there is, he showed he already was. This very well could've been his own version of Mama Said Knock You Out, only in his own way. Less with the vulnerability and emotional conflicts, and more centered with addressing haters and showing why he's THAT Drake, this was an album he truthfully needed to make, and we're glad he did so. Cuts like "10 Bands", "Energy", and the Tyga-dis "6PM In New York" are all very confident and full of a higher form of Drizzy swag that showed whether you loved him or hated him, you could no longer avoid him. Oh yeah, add another platinum plaque and Grammy nomination to the list as well.
4. B.G.- Chopper City In The Ghetto
Besides Lil' Wayne, there was another cat that was spittin when he was very young, and his name was B.G. An original Hot Boy, B.G. already had a buzz with his underground classics, Chopper City, It's All On U Vol. 1, and It's All On U Vol. 2. His major label debut continued the momentum his prior albums had started. Raw and gritty, B-Geezie paints vivid pictures of drugs and the streets that raised him. However, in the midst of this came his most noted and signature cut, "Bling Bling", which along with Back Dat Azz Up became the staple singles for Cash Money. While releasing other albums like Livin' Legend, Life After Cash Money, and the pretty dope Checkmate, it's this album that made B.G. just as much a part of Cash Money's success as anyone else.
3. Juvenile- 400 Degreez
The album that started Cash Money's worldwide success. Considered a southern classic, Juvi's 400 Degreez established a whole new sound for the south. His breakout single "Ha" was so infectious, Jay-Z had to hop on the remix to it. However, it was the anthemic "Back Dat Azz Up" that made Juvi THAT crossover star, and it was enough for the album to be the biggest selling Cash Money album to date with over four million sold. Cash Money was officially in the house.
2. Lil' Wayne- Tha Carter III
By 2008, there was no hotter and in-demand emcee than Lil' Wayne. Mixtapes and guest appearances a plenty, the time came for all this recognition to culminate in his highly anticipated album, Tha Carter III. Wayne not only presented us with the album of his career in terms of acclaim, but also his most successful as well. The album made history being one of only a handful of hip-hop albums to sell over a million units in a week, ultimately topping out at three point five million units sold. Lyrically, he was as hot as anything in the game at this time, and with incredible cuts like the Jay-Z assisted "Mr. Carter", the rewind-worthy quotables of the classic "A Milli", and "Phone Home", but with an impassioned focus and an unrelenting desire to be the best, this album became one of the single best albums of that decade. Lil' Wayne had officially become the rock star he had always envisioned himself to be.
1. Hot Boys- Guerrilla Warfare
As potent as Turk, B.G. Wayne, and Juvi were on their own, when they were a group, they were a force. Seriously. These cats were what a supergroup sounded like and the chemistry between them all was damn near perfection. While this isn't the first album they put out together (that would be the somewhat dismal Get It How You Live!), this album was how their debut should've sounded. This was more polished, focused, and sounded like they really had something they wanted to prove. Much like prior albums, there needed to be a street single ("On Fire") and then an anthemic radio hit for the club ("I Need A Hot Girl"). From there, the tracks are as on fire as their name implies, with Mannie Fresh providing some of the most consistent and perfectly balanced production of his career. Simply put: this is THAT Cash Money album that represented what Cash Money represented to the fullest and to perfection.
With Cash Money, lots of controversy has surrounded the label over the past few years with artists not being happy or being shelved indefinitely. Of course there's the whole Wayne vs. Cash Money drama as well. Regardless, nobody can deny the impact Cash Money has had on the game, even to this day. Love them or hate them, Baby and Slim are to be recognized for their accomplishments. Until next time!
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