By Megan Riedlinger
4:00am PDT, Oct 11, 2023
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We all know what our favorite rappers look like today, but what about when they were new to celebrity and just starting to make a name for themselves? Join us as we take a look back at big-name rappers when they were young, beginning with this music star, who turns 31 on Oct. 11, 2023…
Cardi B started her career on reality television (and looked quite a bit different back then!).
The rapper appeared on two seasons of "Love & Hip Hop: New York," which followed the beginning of her music career.
She's seen here at 23 in 2016 — the year she released her first mixtape.
Keep reading to see more rappers when they were young…
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This rapper was actually well known before hitting the music scene. Aubrey Graham, who you now probably know better as Drake, came to fame as an actor on "Degrassi: The Next Generation" in his native Canada from 2001 to 2008. He released his first mixtape, "Comeback Season," in 2007 — the same year he's pictured here.
MORE: Rock stars when they were young
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Dr. Dre got his start in the late '80s as a member of gangsta rap group N.W.A, but it wasn't until 1992 that he struck out on his own with a solo album, "The Chronic." He's seen here in the mid-'90s a year after winning his first Grammy (for best rap solo performance for "Let Me Ride").
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Like a few other rappers on this list, JAY-Z worked behind the scenes before finding fame as a musician. He founded Roc-A-Fella Records in 1995 and released his debut album, "Reasonable Doubt" a year later. Beyonce's husband is seen here in 1999, the same year he dropped "Vol. 3… Life and Times of S. Carter."
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Kendrick Lamar put out his first mixtape in 2004 and five years later joined Black Hippy, a group that also featured Schoolboy Q, Jay Rock and Ab-Soul. He's seen here in 2011, a year before he signed a record deal with Dr. Dre's Aftermath Entertainment that would make him a household name thanks to his album "Good Kid, M.A.A.D. City."
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Though he started performing in the '90s, it wasn't until Lil Wayne released his fourth album, "Tha Carter," that he made waves in the mainstream music world. He's seen here in 2004 — the same year that project was released.
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Snoop Dogg released his debut album, "Doggystyle," in 1993. He's seen here in the early '90s repping his hometown — Long Beach, California.
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Recognize this guy? It's Travis Scott back in 2013, the same year he released his debut mixtape, "Owl Pharaoh."
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Nicki Minaj made a name for herself in 2007 when she started releasing mixtapes. In 2010 — the same year she's pictured here — she released her smash hit debut album, "Pink Friday."
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Sean Combs — aka Puff Daddy, Puffy, P. Diddy and Diddy — originally worked behind the scenes as a talent director for Uptown Records before launching his own label, Bad Boy Records, in 1993. A few years later in 1997 — the year he's pictured here — Diddy stepped in front of the mic and released his first album, "No Way Out," which went seven-times platinum.
