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Soon after Nicki Minaj first entered the rap industry, she was discovered by Big Fendi and signed to his record label - Dirty Money Entertainment - for 180 days. It was after this deal that Lil Wayne found Minaj and she joined his label.
Nicki Minaj's deal with Young Money was signed in 2009, as per XXL Mag. After this, she appeared on two tracks of the compilation album, We Are Young Money. Minaj's debut album, titled Pink Friday, followed a year later.
The record label was first founded in partnership with Birdman's Cash Money in 2003. In the last two decades, the label has been subject to several controversies including lawsuits and catalog sales.
Nicki Minaj was signed to Young Money alongside Drake
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Nicki Minaj wasn't the only artist to be signed to Young Money Entertainment in 2009; Drake also joined the label alongside her. Soon, the two rappers collaborated on multiple tracks, becoming close friends in the process.
By 2023, Minaj, Drake, and Wayne became the top 3 rappers to have the most Billboard top 10 hits, also becoming the star artists of the label in the process.
2015: Lil Wayne sued Birdman's Cash Money
BBC reported that Lil Wayne filed a lawsuit against Birdman's record label, Cash Money Records in January 2015. It was on account of violating the contract between them and withholding tens of millions of dollars from the rapper. The money was owed to Wayne for the long delay in the release of his twelfth studio album - Tha Carter V.
The album was first announced to be released in 2013 by the Lollipop rapper, but it kept getting pushed forward. According to TMZ, Wayne claimed that Cash Money owed him $8 million in advance for the album and an additional $2 million following its release.
Another claim that the Shooter rapper made was that he wasn't offered the 49% ownership of his label that was initially promised to him during the Young Money - Cash Money partnership deal.
Young Weezy was reportedly unhappy with the fact that he didn't receive any accounting of how much revenue Drake generated for his label, and thus, wanted an out. Soon after the lawsuit, Wayne also dropped a mixtape titled Free Weezy on July 4, expressing his disdain for Cash Money.
2018: Lil Wayne was freed from Cash Money with a multi-million settlement
Lil Wayne's legal battle with Cash Money Records - which started in 2015 - went on for three years. Finally, on June 7, 2018, a settlement was reached between both parties.
In the settlement, as confirmed by the rapper's attorney, Ron Sweeney, both parties were legally prohibited from sharing the details of the resolutions with the public. However, it was speculated that the settlement was a multi-million deal, Spin reported.
Following his release from the Cash Money deal, the Problems rapper gained complete control of his 49% ownership of Young Money Entertainment.
Soon after the walkout deal, Wayne dropped Tha Carter V on September 27. Within weeks, it peaked atop the Billboard 200 album chart. A deluxe edition of the album came two years later.
2020: Lil Wayne sold Young Money's catalog to Universal Music Group
In December 2020, Revolt TV reported that Lil Tunechi had sold his masters to the Universal Music Group (UMG) in June for $100 million. Later that month, new details of his UMG deal clarified that beyond the rights to his music, Young Money's entire catalog - including works of Drake and Nicki Minaj - was also given away as part of it.
2022: Drake signed a $400 million deal with Universal Music Group
In May 2022, Variety reported that one of the top Young Money artists - Drake - signed a "multi-faceted" deal with UMG, which paid the rapper $400 million. The deal transferred the ownership of Drizzy's music recordings, merchandise, and visual projects to the group, further solidifying its catalog.
According to the same publication, Drake's multi-million dollar deal ended his contractual obligation to his old record label - Young Money/Cash Money Records.
While Drake might no longer be a part of Young Money, Nicki Minaj remains a Young Money artist. The Bang Bang rapper also launched her own record label - Heavy On It - in July 2023. Among the artists signed to Nicki Minaj's new label include Tate Kobang, Nana Fofie, London Hill, and Rico Donna.
