25 Magazine recaps VH1′s “Behind the Music: Lil Wayne”

VH1 series “Behind the Music,” has finally returned with a new emphasis on rap artists. The series kicked off with the “reigning king” of hip-hop, Dwayne Carter, better known as Lil Wayne. The narcotic driven artist gives the VH1 staff insight on his childhood in New Orleans, family, career, and reckless behavior. Wayne found music to be his inspiration and began with Cash Money at the age of 9, then heightened his fame with the renowned Hot Boys, and eventually went solo with his debut album The Block is Hot in 1999. Once he stopped writing all his lyrics down, Wayne took his music more seriously. “When I stopped writing, I’ve noticed that everything was real now, I can’t speak about nothing than what was real because I can’t write nothing,” Carter says.

From then on, he pulled everything out of his head and was on the path to becoming a true icon. Few have known Mr. Carter to ever be over the influence. He attributes his  initiation to drugs at the age of 11 for his addiction. Wayne’s life is interesting, though not nearly as hardcore as he portrays it to be in his music. However, he did face some trials, from accidently shooting himself roughly a centimeter away from his heart and losing his childhood to the devastating Hurricane Katrina tearing apart his hometown.

“In 27 short years, Lil Wayne has already lived a lifetime of tragedy and triumph, and while his future remains uncertain, one thing is clear: He has no intentions of slowing down.”