Belcalis Almanzar (born October 11, 1992), known professionally as Cardi B, is an American rapper. She first attracted attention for discussing her career as a stripper on social media; coupled with her "no filter attitude", she became an Internet celebrity through Instagram.
From 2015 to 2017, she appeared as a regular cast member on the VH1 reality television series Love & Hip Hop: New York. In February 2017, she signed her first major label record deal with Atlantic Records after releasing two mixtapes. Her debut single for Atlantic, titled "Bodak Yellow", reached number one on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart, making her the second-ever female rapper to do so with a solo output, following Lauryn Hill in 1998. Her debut studio album Invasion of Privacy (2018) debuted at number one on the Billboard 200. Time named the rapper one of the 100 most influential people in the world on their annual list in 2018.
Video Cardi B
Early life
Almanzar was born on October 11, 1992 in The Bronx borough of New York City. She was raised in the Highbridge neighborhood of the South Bronx. She was born to a Dominican father and Trinidadian mother. She spent much time at her paternal grandmother's home in Washington Heights, which she credits with giving her "such a thick [...] accent.". As a youth, Cardi B was a member of the Bloods, and has said she was a gang member since the age of 16. She went on to attend Renaissance High School For Musical Theater & Technology, a vocational high school on the Herbert H. Lehman High School campus.
During her teenage years, Cardi B was employed at a supermarket in Lower Manhattan, which was the last job that she held before turning to stripping at the age of 19. Upon being fired from the supermarket, her former manager recommended she work at a strip club. She has said she became a stripper to escape poverty and domestic violence, having been in an abusive relationship at the time. Cardi B has also said becoming a stripper was positive for her life in many ways: "It really saved me from a lot of things. When I started stripping I went back to school." She says stripping was her only way out, a way to earn enough money to escape her dire situation and get an education. Nonetheless, she eventually dropped out of college.
In 2013, Cardi B began to gain publicity due to several of her videos going viral on social media, on Vine and her official Instagram page.
Maps Cardi B
Career
Music
2015-2017: Career beginnings and debut mixtape
In November 2015, Cardi B made her musical debut on Jamaican reggae fusion singer Shaggy's remix to his single "Boom Boom", alongside fellow Jamaican dancehall singer Popcaan. She made her music video debut on December 15, 2015, with the song "Cheap Ass Weave", her rendition of English rapper Lady Leshurr's "Queen's Speech 4". On March 7, 2016, Cardi B released her first full-length project, a mixtape titled Gangsta Bitch Music, Vol. 1. In November 2016, she was featured on the digital cover of Vibe magazine's "Viva" issue. On September 12, 2016, KSR Group released the compilation Underestimated: The Album, which is a collaboration between KSR Group artists Cardi B, Hood Celebrityy, SwiftOnDemand, Cashflow Harlem and Josh X. It was previously released only to attendees of their U.S. tour. KSR Group's flagship artist Cardi B said "I wanted to make a song that would make girls dance, twerk and at the same time encourage them to go get that Shmoney," in regard to the compilation's single "What a Girl Likes."
On January 20, 2017, Cardi B released her second mixtape, Gangsta Bitch Music, Vol. 2. In February 2017, Cardi B partnered with MAC Cosmetics and Rio Uribe's Gypsy Sport for an event for New York Fashion Week. In late February, it was reported that Cardi B signed her first major record label recording contract with Atlantic Records. On February 25, 2017, Cardi B was the opening act for East Coast hip hop group The Lox's Filthy America... It's Beautiful Tour, alongside fellow New York City-based rappers Lil' Kim and Remy Ma. In April 2017, she was featured in i-D's "A-Z of Music" video sponsored by Marc Jacobs.
In May 2017, the nominees for the 2017 BET Awards were announced, revealing that Cardi B had been nominated for Best New Artist and Best Female Hip-Hop Artist. Although she failed to win any awards, losing to Chance the Rapper and Remy Ma, respectively, Cardi B performed at the BET Awards afterparty show. On June 11 2017, during Hot 97's annual Summer Jam music festival, Remy Ma brought out Cardi B, along with The Lady of Rage, MC Lyte, Young M.A, Monie Love, Lil' Kim and Queen Latifah, to celebrate female rappers and perform Latifah's 1993 hit single "U.N.I.T.Y." about female empowerment.
2017-present: Breakthrough and Invasion of Privacy
On June 16, 2017, Atlantic Records released Cardi B's commercial debut single, titled "Bodak Yellow" via digital distribution. In June 2017, it was revealed that Cardi B would be on the cover of The Fader's Summer Music issue for July/August 2017. On July 18, 2017, she performed "Bodak Yellow" on The Wendy Williams Show, where she was also interviewed by Williams. When the host asked where her professional name derived from, Cardi B responded with the distilled beverage Bacardi, as people would call her that. Her sister is named Hennessy Carolina, referencing the French cognac: "My sister's name, her name is Hennessy, so everybody used to be like Bacardi to me [...] then I shortened it to Cardi B, and the 'B' stands for whatever [...] depending on the day."
In August 2017, "Bodak Yellow" entered the top two of the US Billboard Hot 100 chart. The song also reached number one on Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs. She performed at MoMA PS1 on August 19 to a crowd of 4,000. On the Hot 100 chart dated September 25, 2017, Cardi B claimed the top spot with "Bodak Yellow", becoming the first solo female rapper to do so since Lauryn Hill's "Doo Wop (That Thing)" debuted atop the chart in 1998. It stayed atop the charts for three consecutive weeks, tying with American pop singer Taylor Swift's "Look What You Made Me Do" as the longest running female at the number one spot in 2017. Cardi B became the first person of Dominican descent to reach number one in the history of the Hot 100, since it was launched in 1958. "Bodak Yellow" was eventually certified quintuple platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). An editor of The New York Times called it "the rap anthem of the summer". With her collaborations "No Limit" and "MotorSport", she became first female rapper to land her first three entries in the top 10 of the Hot 100, and the first female artist to achieve the same on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart.
In October 2017, Cardi B headlined Power 105.1's annual Powerhouse music celebration, alongside The Weeknd, Migos and Lil Uzi Vert, at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York. In December, she released a collaboration with Puerto Rican singer Ozuna titled "La Modelo", and the second single from her debut album, "Bartier Cardi". On January 3, 2018, Cardi B was featured on Bruno Mars' remix version of "Finesse", and also appeared in the 90's inspired video. On January 18, Cardi B became the first woman to have five top 10 singles simultaneously on the Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop chart. She released the single "Be Careful" on March 30. Her debut studio album Invasion of Privacy was released on April 6, 2018. During a performance on Saturday Night Live in April 2018, Cardi B officially announced her pregnancy after much media speculation. The album entered at number one in the United States, while she became the first female artist to chart 13 entries simultaneously on Billboard Hot 100, on the chart issue dated April 21.
Television
In 2015, Cardi B joined the cast of the VH1 reality television series Love & Hip Hop: New York, debuting in season six. She is considered the breakout star of the show's sixth season. The sixth and seventh seasons chronicle her rise to stardom and her turbulent relationship with her incarcerated fiancé. On December 30, 2016, after two seasons, she announced that she would be leaving the show to further pursue a career in music.
She appeared on the December 9, 2015 episode of Uncommon Sense with Charlamagne. On April 6, 2016, she was on the twelfth episode of Khloé Kardashian's Kocktails with Khloé: In it, she revealed how she told her mother that she was a stripper. In November 2016, it was announced that she would be joining the cast of the BET series Being Mary Jane. TVLine describes her character, Mercedes, as a "round-the-way beauty with a big weave, big boobs and a big booty to match her oversized, ratchet personality."
Cardi B guest-starred on the celebrity panel show Hip Hop Squares, appearing on the March 13 and April 3, 2017 episodes. On July 18, she appeared on The Wendy Williams Show where she performed "Bodak Yellow", as well as answered questions about her name and the status of her love life. Since then Cardi B has appeared on various television shows to promote her music, including The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, Saturday Night Live, and Jimmy Kimmel Live!.
Artistry
Influences
In Billboard's "You Should Know" series, Cardi B said the first albums she ever purchased were by American entertainers Missy Elliott and Tweet, respectively. She also cited American pop singers Madonna and Lady Gaga as two of her favorite artists. She has credited Puerto Rican rapper Ivy Queen and Jamaican dancehall artist Spice as influences as well.
When asked about the initial direction for her music, Cardi B said in an interview, "When I first started rapping [...] I liked certain songs from Khia and Trina, and they [were] fighting songs. I haven't heard fighting songs for a very long time," crediting the two female rappers for her aggressive rap style. She continued saying "a lot of girls they can not afford red bottoms, a lot of girls they can not afford foreign cars [...] but I know that every girl has beef with a girl [...] I know that every bitch don't like some bitch, and it's like 'that's what I wanna rap about.'"
Musical style
AllMusic editor David Jeffries called Cardi B "a raw and aggressive rapper in the style of Lil' Kim and Foxy Brown." Stereogum called her voice "a full-bodied New Yawk nasal bleat, the sort of thing that you've heard if someone has ever told you that you stupid for taking too long at swiping your MetroCard." They continued to call her voice "an unabashedly loud and sexual fuck-you New York honk--that translates perfectly to rap." In a 2017 Complex article about her, the editor wrote "unapologetic does not begin to describe the totally unfiltered and sheer Cardi B-ness of Cardi B's personality. She's a hood chick who's not afraid to be hood no matter the setting. Cardi B is Cardi B 24/7, 365, this is why she resonates with people, and that same energy comes out in her music." Her first studio album Invasion of Privacy is primarily a hip hop record, which comprises elements of trap and Latin.
Other ventures
In February 2017, she partnered with M.A.C and Rio Uribe's Gypsy Sport for an event for New York Fashion Week. During an April 2017 interview with HotNewHipHop, Cardi B spoke on being rejected by fashion designers. Her April appearance in i-D's "A-Z of Music" video was sponsored by designer Marc Jacobs, and she made the cover of The Fader's July/August 2017 Summer Music issue.
In August 2017, the Style section of The New York Times's Sunday edition did a half-page story on her. The writer reported on her preparations for her first public performance in New York City, at MoMA PS1, describing her appearance as she arrived to the interview in "leggings, an Atlanta Braves 'Los Bravos' logo jersey and white Adidas Yeezy sneakers". She also covered Cardi's affinity for Christian Louboutin heels (a running theme in her song "Bodak Yellow"), and the custom local designer, LaQuan Smith, whose red dress she wore to perform.
Public image
Cardi B identifies as a feminist. The New York Times wrote "on Love & Hip Hop: New York some viewers saw her as a hero of female empowerment, as she made pronouncements like
'Ever since I started using guys, I feel so much better about myself. I feel so damn powerful.'"
When commenting on her rise to stardom The Fader wrote "one video in particular tipped her popularity over the edge. It was a 13-second clip that doubles as a neat précis of her ethos:
'People be asking me, 'What do you does? Are you a model? Are you, like, a comedian or something?' Nah, I ain't none of that. I'm a hoe. I'm a stripper hoe. I'm about this shmoney.'"
Cardi B was a member of the Bloods, and has said she became a gang member at the age of 16. However, she since has stated that she would not encourage joining a gang.
Political statements
Cardi B has been called "unabashedly, directly political" and often uses social media to advocate for causes she believes in, such as gun control. During the 2016 presidential primaries, she warned her fans of Donald Trump's immigration policies and encouraged them to "vote for daddy Bernie [Sanders]." At the 60th annual Grammy Awards in 2018, she appeared in a video along with Hillary Clinton to narrate a portion of "Fire and Fury," Michael Wolff's insider's account of Donald Trump's administration, and stated ""Why am I even reading this s-t? I can't believe this. I can't believe -- this is how he really lives his life?"
She has praised president Franklin D. Roosevelt as the "real 'Make America Great Again'" for advocating for the Social Security program and the New Deal project in general, and has noted her admiration for his wife Eleanor Roosevelt's humanitarianism and advocacy for African-Americans. She said of Franklin D. Roosevelt, "he helped us get over the Depression, all while he was in a wheelchair. Like, this man was suffering from polio at the time of his presidency, and yet all he was worried about was trying to make America great--make America great again for real. He's the real 'Make America Great Again,' because if it wasn't for him, old people wouldn't even get Social Security." Senator Bernie Sanders has praised Cardi B for her "leading role" in calling attention to Social Security.
Personal life
Religion
Cardi B is a Christian; she has mentioned her "strong relationship" with God in interviews, often saying that she directly communicates with God.
Relationships
As of early 2017, Cardi B began publicly dating fellow American rapper Offset, of the southern hip hop group Migos. When speaking on her relationship with Offset, Cardi B told The Fader, "It's been a blessing, me meeting him and meeting his friends. I see how hard they work. And that motivated me to work even harder. And I see how good things are going for them and how popping it is to be number one. And I'm like, I want that. A lot of people just see they jewelry and they money, but I don't think a lot of people see how hard they work for that shit every single day." Cardi B and Offset became engaged on October 27, after Offset proposed to Cardi B at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, during the Power 99 Powerhouse concert. On April 7, 2018, Cardi B revealed her pregnancy on Saturday Night Live; she is having a baby with fiancé Offset.
Family
Cardi B's younger sister, Hennessy Carolina, also has a strong following on social media and has accompanied her to award shows, such as the 2017 Grammy Awards.
Awards and nominations
Cardi B received her first two nominations at the 2017 BET Awards. In September 2017, the nominees for the annual BET Hip Hop Awards were unveiled, revealing Cardi B to be in the lead, alongside DJ Khaled and Kendrick Lamar, with nine nominations, winning five. She received two nominations at the 60th Grammy Awards: Best Rap Performance and Best Rap Song for "Bodak Yellow". She has won two iHeartRadio Music Awards.
Discography
- Invasion of Privacy (2018)
Filmography
Concert tours
- Supporting
- Bruno Mars - 24K Magic World Tour (2018)
References
External links
- Official website
- Cardi B at AllMusic
- Cardi B discography at Discogs
- Cardi B on IMDb
- Cardi B discography at MusicBrainz
Source of the article : Wikipedia
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