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Download Now! A game-changing artist and an impervious celebrity, Lil Wayne began as his career as a near-novelty — a preteen delivering hardcore hip-hop — but through years of maturation and reinventing the mixtape game, he developed into a million-selling rapper with a massive body of work, one so inventive and cunning that it makes his famous claim of being the "best rapper alive" worth considering. Born Dwayne Michael Carter, Jr. and raised in the infamous New Orleans neighborhood of Hollygrove, he was a straight-A student but never felt his true intelligence was expressed through any kind of report card. He found music was the best way to express himself, and after taking the name Gangsta D he began writing rhymes. Combining a strong work ethic with aggressive self-promotion, the 11-year-old convinced the Cash Money label to take him on, even if it was just of odd jobs around the office. A year later, in-house producer Mannie Fresh partnered him with the 14-year-old B.G. and dubbed the duo the B.G.'z. Although only B.G.'s name appeared on the cover, the 1995 album True Story has since been accepted as the B.G.'z debut album both by fans and the Cash Money label. The 1997 album Chopper City was supposed to be the follow-up, but when Wayne accidentally shot himself in the chest with a .44, it became a solo B.G. release.That same year, he officially took the moniker Lil Wayne, dropping the "D" from his first name in order to separate himself from an absent father. He joined B.G., Juvenile, and Young Turk for another Fresh project, the teen hardcore rap group the Hot Boys, who released their debut album, Get It How U Live!, in 1997. Two years later, Cash Money would sign a distribution deal with the major-label Universal. Mainstream distribution would help that year's Hot Boys album Guerrilla Warfare to reach the number one spot on Billboard's Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart. In 1998, Lil Wayne would appear on Juvenile's hit single "Back That Thing Up," or "Back That Azz Up" as it appeared on Juvie's album 400 Degreez. Wayne would launch his solo career a year later with the album Tha Block Is Hot, featuring the hit single title track. It went double platinum but the rapper was still unknown to Middle America, since his hardcore rhymes and the rough Cash Money sound had not yet crossed over. His second album, Lights Out (2000), failed to match the success of its predecessor but it did go gold, and with an appearance on the Big Tymers' hit single "#1 Stunna," his audience was certainly growing. While Fresh was primarily responsible for launching his career, Wayne was now much closer to Fresh's fellow Big Tymer and Cash Money CEO Birdman. When Juvenile left the label, Wayne — or "Birdman Jr." as he was calling himself — showed his allegiance to his CEO by releasing an album with a title much hotter than Juvie's breakthrough effort. 500 Degreez landed in 2002 and while it went gold, rumors began flying about Cash Money's financial troubles and possible demise. The rest of the Hot Boys had defected and Wayne's planned 2003 album was scrapped, coming out instead as an underground mixtape called Da Drought.Wayne became enamored with the mixtape world after Da Drought drew so much attention from the hip-hop press. He used these underground releases to drum up anticipation for his next official album, the breakthrough effort Tha Carter. Released in 2004, the album seemed familiar on one hand with Mannie Fresh's production, but the Wayne on the cover was a dreadlocked surprise, and the rhymes he laid on the tracks showed significant growth. His marketing skills had become sharper, too, and it was no mistake that the album's hit single, "Go DJ," mentioned hip-hop's greatest tastemakers right in the title. It reached number five on the singles chart, and with a guest shot on Destiny's Child's number three single, "Soldier," Wayne had officially crossed over. On the flip side, his street cred was supported by a slew of mixtapes released in 2005, including the popular titles Dedication with DJ Drama and Tha Suffix with DJ Khaled. Cash Money's future was no longer in doubt and traditional music business rules no longer seemed to apply, as tracks would be leaked onto the Internet and various DJs' mixtapes. "Get Something" was another bold move, as a Universal-funded video was made without the track ever seeing official release.With his alternative marketing scheme working in overdrive, the 2005 landing of Tha Carter II was a major event, selling over a quarter-million copies the week of its release. "Fireman" and "Shooter" with Robin Thicke were released as singles, while the album — which for the first time featured no Mannie Fresh productions — went platinum. It also introduced his Young Money posse, with appearances from Curren$y and Nicki Minaj, and initially came with a bonus disc featuring Wayne's greatest hits screwed and chopped by Swishahouse DJ Michael "5000" Watts. A year later he collaborated with Birdman for the Like Father, Like Son album, featuring the hit single "Stuntin' Like My Daddy." His mixtapes were still flooding the underground, including the stunning Dedication 2, which came with an iconic image of the rapper on the cover plus the much talked-about track "Georgia...Bush," a venomous response to President George W. Bush's handling of the Katrina disaster. With no official follow-up to Tha Carter II in sight, numerous collaborative tracks kept the rapper in the mainstream with "Gimme That" by Chris Brown, "Make It Rain" by Fat Joe, and "Duffle Bag Boy" by Playaz Circle becoming three of the biggest hits.Tha Carter III was promised for 2007 but didn't arrive until a year later, setting off Wayne's infamous reputation of delayed releases. Part of the problem became unauthorized leaks of the album's tracks, something combated by the official, downloadable EP The Leak released that same year. Preceded by the number one hit "Lollipop," Tha Carter III arrived in May of 2008, selling more than a million copies in its first week of release. An appearance on Saturday Night Live and four Grammy awards — including Best Rap Album — spoke to Wayne's mainstream acceptance. He also performed at that year's Country Music Awards with Kid Rock, but rather than rap, he played guitar. The guitar playing was part of Wayne's new involvement with rock music, including his help in signing Kevin Rudolf to Cash Money plus an appearance on Rudolf's massive hit "Let It Rock." His planned rock album was previewed with the 2009 single "Prom Queen," but when the album failed to meet its promised April release, the music press began to portray the rapper as the king of missed street dates. Unconcerned, Wayne forged ahead with his Young Money crew, releasing the underground mixtape Young Money Is the Army, Better Yet the Navy, the aboveground single "Every Girl," plus the official album We Are Young Money that same year. His rock album, Rebirth, would finally appear in early 2010, which coincided with Wayne being sentenced to a nine-month prison term for criminal possession of a weapon. The rapper may have been behind bars on Riker’s Island, but that didn’t stop his ten-song EP I Am Not a Human Being from seeing the light of day in September that same year. Follow @LilTuneChi on twitter! http://www.lilwayne-online.com/ http://www.myspace.com/lilwayne http://www.facebook.com/LilWayne

Download Now! Showtime looks to elevate the rap game with dynamic style. Representing Twista’s GMG label, he is an ambitious newcomer in the music industry. Born on July 13th 1988 in Harvey, IL, Showtime grew up humbly in the hood. In school during his music class, Show exhibited a natural skill in lyricism. It was undeniable to Showtime’s teachers and other students that his talent would elevate him to success. Inevitability, he honed his craft and made the effort to pursue a career in music with the support of family, friends and other Harvey based artists. He reveals, “In Harvey everybody shows everybody love. They push you cause’ everybody wants to see somebody out of Harvey make it…Harvey is what brought me here and raised me”. Fortunately, Showtime has come a long way since he started writing songs in 1998. May 2010 saw the release of the GMG distributed mixtape by Showtime Rookie of Da Year. The mixtape showcases his clever lyrical ability impressively over innovative and gritty beats. Show flows over the hard funhouse funk on the track “Get Yo Prize”, robotic bass of “Superhero” and speaker banging “What more can I say”. He has collaborated with Chicago superstars Ben One, Dude N Nem, Phoenix Phenom, as well as, Sly Polaroid, Currensy, Xcel, Butter Pro, Fedarro Noel, 3 Piece, and Lil Wish. Recently, his track “Homerun” featuring J Sqruipt is played on major radio stations across the country. Show wants to provide for his family and look out for those people who had his back. “I’m doing for others, what they tried to do for me when I didn't have nothing. I’m making everyone's life better that made mine's better. That's what drives me”, he confesses. Fast forward to 2011, Showtime has established himself as a charismatic and inspired artist. He says, “I'm the best thing coming out of Chicago in 2011…My style is different: it’s not typical. I make music for the times. I can make a love song, I can make a dance song, or I can go street…I can take a line and flip it better ". With his creative comes an intense drive to prosper. He wants to obtain platinum plaques in album, digital download and ringtone sales; a mission he wants to accomplish at GMG. Being a member of the GMG label, Show has learned to be grateful from his label mates and was taught how to be the best by Twista. “I’m working with one of the top five best rappers alive…Everything he has told me has shown itself true”, Showtime explains. Currently, Showtime is working on his anticipated debut album. The record is set for an April release date and features Twista along with other GMG artists. Show believes hard work is necessary because success is limitless. His goal is to be on the charts with his GMG family and put the rap game on lock in Chicago. He contemplates his career and states, "It couldn't went any better. I got with Twista and he groomed me to be the best artist possible." Being mindful of that, Showtime strives to reach the top and certify his place as a significant Chicago musician. "My impact on the music industry is that I want to be on top of everything. I want to expand what I'm doing. I want to be on the top ten”; Show responds. In his track “Dead Wrong”, he spits “Niggas, bitches, ho, slut, player-haters/ You don’t get no better than Show/ I’m a creative player”. With a record deal with one of the prominent independent labels in hip hop, and tutorage from the legendary Twista; Showtime not only sings it; he brings it. Look out for the arrival of Showtime in 2011. Follow @ChicagoShowtime on twitter! http://showtimegmg.com http://facebook.com/chicagoshowtime http://youtube.com/showtimegmgtv http://twista.com/

Download Now! With hip hop screaming for help, the breath of fresh air Young R brings is such a relief. What’s great about Young R is that you will fall in love with his music and background. This amazing artist is a recent Engineering school graduate who is also working on getting an M.B.A and taking over the music industry at the same time. His music is electric. Every song sounds like he knew it would be his last. Born on January 28, 1988 in Macon, GA and raised in nearby Juliette, GA Young R is the voice of the yet to be respected Middle GA area as far as hip hop music. In 2009 he recorded and released his most successful single to date Anotha Planet. Anotha Planet would spark millions of MySpace plays and YouTube Views, thousands of digital downloads and a business negotiation with Jive Records which would cause a verse from multi-platinum artist Lil-Wayne to be recorded for the song. Young R has also performed with numerous major artists ranging from Monica to the Plain White Ts. All this was done while being a full time student in engineering school. With a B.S in Industrial Management to fall back on he has his sights set on becoming a hip hop legend and mogul. In his own words, his goal is to prove that nice guys don’t finish last! Young R was also a recent finalist in the Georgia Lottery All Access Music Search. As a finalist, Young R was able to perform during halftime of the Atlanta Falcons vs. Green Bay Packers game in front of 70,000 people and also perform on national TV during the finale of the music search while being judged by major music industry names like Dallas Austin and Monica. Follow @YOUNGR478 on twitter! Watch on youtube!http://WWW.YOUNGRLIVE.COM http://WWW.FACEBOOK.COM/YOUNGRLIVE http://WWW.YOUTUBE.COM/YOUNGR478