Jeffrey Bruce Atkins Sr., better known by his stage name Ja Rule, is an American rapper, singer, and actor. Born and raised in New York City, Ja Rule became known as a leading figure in 2000s hip hop for his blending of gangsta rap with commercially-oriented pop sensibilities. He signed with Irv Gotti's Murder Inc Records, an imprint of Def Jam Recordings to release his debut studio album Venni Vetti Vecci (1999), which spawned his first hit single, "Holla Holla". Ja Rule peaked the Billboard Hot 100 thrice in 2001 with his single "Always on Time" and his guest appearances on Jennifer Lopez's "I'm Real " and "Ain't It Funny". His encompassing singles, "Put It on Me", "Mesmerize", "Livin' It Up" and "Wonderful" have each peaked within the top ten of the chart and spawned from commercially successful album releases.
Shad Gregory Moss, better known by his stage name Bow Wow, is an American rapper and actor. His career began upon being discovered by rapper Snoop Dogg in 1993 at the age of six; five years later, he signed with record producer Jermaine Dupri's So So Def Recordings, an imprint of Columbia Records. As Lil' Bow Wow, he released his debut studio album, Beware of Dog (2000) at age 13, and his second album, Doggy Bag (2001) the following year. Both met with critical and commercial success, the albums peaked at numbers ten and 11 on the Billboard 200, respectively.
Dwayne Michael Carter Jr., known professionally as Lil Wayne, is an American rapper. He is regarded as one of the most influential and greatest hip hop artists of all time. Wayne was formally part of Cash Money Records, where he would release 5 number 1 albums under the label name before ultimately leaving in 2018. Wayne is now apart of Young Money Entertainment, a record label in whitch he created.
Kimberly Denise Jones, better known by her stage name Lil' Kim, is an American rapper. She was born and raised in New York City and lived much of her adolescent life on the streets after being expelled from home. In her teens, she would freestyle rap, influenced by fellow female hip-hop artists like MC Lyte and the Lady of Rage. In 1994, she was discovered by fellow rapper The Notorious B.I.G., who invited her to join his group Junior M.A.F.I.A.; their debut album, Conspiracy, generated two top 20 singles in the United States and was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA).
Christopher Charles Lloyd, better known by his stage name Lloyd Banks, is an American rapper. He began his career as a member of East Coast hip hop group G-Unit, which he formed with childhood friends 50 Cent and Tony Yayo in 1999. After the release of their debut album Beg for Mercy (2003), Banks released his debut solo album, The Hunger for More (2004) the following year. Met with critical and commercial success, it peaked atop the Billboard 200 and spawned the Billboard Hot 100-top ten single, "On Fire", as well as the top 20 single "Karma". His second album, Rotten Apple (2006) peaked at number three on the Billboard 200 and saw mixed reviews. Banks then left Interscope Records and signed with EMI in 2010—along with his G-Unit cohorts—to release his third album, H.F.M. 2 in November that year, which saw a critical rebound and peaked at number 26 on the chart.
Straight Outta Cashville is the debut solo studio album by American rapper Young Buck. It was released on August 24, 2004 via G-Unit/Interscope Records. The album's title alludes to the N.W.A's 1988 album Straight Outta Compton and is a neologism for the artist's hometown of Nashville, Tennessee.
Lloyd Polite Jr. is an American R&B singer. Born in New Orleans, Louisiana, and raised in Decatur, Georgia, he began his musical career as a member of the preteen-boy band N-Toon, which was formed by Joyce Irby in 1996. The group disbanded in 2001, and Polite signed with record executive Irv Gotti's Murder Inc. Records, an imprint of Def Jam Recordings in 2003 to pursue a solo career. His 2004 debut single, "Southside" peaked within the top 40 of the Billboard Hot 100 and led his debut studio album of the same name (2004), which entered the Billboard 200 at number 11. His second album, Street Love (2007) debuted at number two on the chart and was supported by the Billboard Hot 100-top 20 singles "You" and "Get It Shawty".
Joseph Antonio Cartagena, better known by his stage name Fat Joe, is an American rapper. He began recording as a member of hip hop group Diggin' in the Crates Crew (D.I.T.C.) in 1992 until pursuing a solo career with the release of his debut studio album, Represent (1993) the following year. Cartegena formed the hip hop group Terror Squad and its namesake record label in the late 1990s, through which he has signed fellow New York artists including Big Pun, Remy Ma, Tony Sunshine, and Cuban Link, as well as then-unknown producers DJ Khaled and Cool & Dre.
Sammie Lee Bush, Jr., known by the mononym Sammie, is an American singer and songwriter. He is best known for his 1999 hit single, "I Like It", from his debut album, From the Bottom to the Top (2000). He returned with his second studio and self-titled album, Sammie in 2006. Since then, he has released several EPs, mixtapes, and albums including Indigo, Coming of Age, and Everlasting. Sammie announced via Instagram that he would be releasing a new album in 2020 after the completion of the Millennium Tour 2020.
Tha Carter III is the sixth studio album by American rapper Lil Wayne, released on June 10, 2008, by Cash Money, Universal Motown & Young Money Entertainment. It follows a string of mixtape releases and guest appearances on other hip hop and R&B artists' albums. The album features appearances from Jay-Z, T-Pain, Fabolous, Robin Thicke, Busta Rhymes, Juelz Santana, Babyface, Bobby V, and Kanye West, among others. It also features Static Major, who is credited posthumously following his death in February of that year.
The Price of Fame is the fifth studio album by American rapper Bow Wow. The album was released on December 19, 2006 through LBW Entertainment and Columbia Records. The production on the album was primarily handled by Jermaine Dupri, Nitti, Lil Ronnie and R. Kelly. The album also features guest appearances by Chris Brown, Johntá Austin, Pimp C, T-Pain, Lil Wayne and many others.
Buck the World is the second studio album by American rapper Young Buck. It was released on March 27, 2007, through Cashville Records, G-Unit Records and Interscope Records.
Before I Self Destruct is the fourth studio album by American rapper 50 Cent, released November 9, 2009, on Shady Records, Aftermath Entertainment, G-Unit Records, Interscope Records and Universal Music Group. The album is his final solo release with Shady, Aftermath and Interscope excluding his 2017 Greatest Hits album Best Of. An accompanying feature film of the same name coincided with its release, and is available within the albums packaging.
This article summarizes the events, album releases and album release dates in hip hop music for the year 2010.
The DeAndre Way is the third studio album by American rapper Soulja Boy. It was released on November 30, 2010, by his label Stacks on Deck Entertainment, Collipark Music and Interscope Records.
Keenon Dequan Ray Jackson, better known by his stage YG, is an American rapper. He released his debut mixtape 4Fingaz in 2008, and its follow-up, The Real 4Fingaz the following year. The latter gained recognition for its local hit song "Toot It and Boot It", which entered the Billboard Hot 100 at number 67 and received platinum certification by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). He signed a recording contract with Def Jam Recordings in October 2009, which entered joint-venture with Atlanta-based rapper Jeezy's record label, CTE World, in 2013.
Durk Derrick Banks, known professionally as Lil Durk, is an American rapper from Chicago, Illinois. He first garnered a regional following with the release of his Signed to the Streets mixtape series (2013–2014), which led to his signing of a recording contract from Def Jam Recordings. The label released his debut studio album, Remember My Name (2015) and its follow up, Lil Durk 2X (2016) to moderate commercial reception before parting ways with the artist in 2018. He is today considered one of most preeminent figures in drill rap genre.
Kimetrius Christopher Foose, better known by his stage name Lil Skies, is an American rapper, singer, and songwriter from Waynesboro, Pennsylvania. He signed with Atlantic Records in 2017 to release the hit singles "I," "Nowadays," and "Red Roses." The songs peaked at numbers 39, 55, and 69 respectively on the Billboard Hot 100. His major label debut mixtape, Life of a Dark Rose (2018) peaked at number ten on the Billboard 200 chart and received platinum certification by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA).. His debut studio album, Shelby (2019) and its follow up, Unbothered (2021) followed thereafter, peaking respectively at numbers five and 50 on the chart.
Activated is the debut studio album by American rapper Tee Grizzley. It was released on May 11, 2018, by 300 Entertainment. The album features guest appearances from Lil Yachty, Lil Pump, Chris Brown, Moneybagg Yo, Lil Durk, and YFN Lucci, among others. The production on the album was handled by Helluva, London on da Track, The Breed, Chopsquad DJ, The Olympicks, and Infamous Rell. The album was supported by two singles: "Colors" and "Don't Even Trip".
Rodrick Wayne Moore Jr., known professionally as Roddy Ricch, is an American rapper and singer-songwriter from Compton, California. He rose to fame in 2018 following the release of his single "Die Young," which marked his first entry on the Billboard Hot 100. Moore's first two mixtapes, Feed Tha Streets (2017) and Feed Tha Streets II (2018) received widespread acclaim. Moore guest featured alongside Hit-Boy on Nipsey Hussle's 2019 single "Racks in the Middle"—which earned him a Grammy Award for Best Rap Performance—and on Mustard's single "Ballin'" that same year, which peaked at number 11 on the Billboard Hot 100 and received a nomination for the same award.
