Comprising a number of Cash Money Records’ young protégés of the 1990s,
Louisiana hip-hop outfit Hot Boys strategically pooled their resources early in
their careers, boosting their individual profiles in the process. Banding
together in 1997 under the tutelage of label co-founders Birdman and Slim, the
New Orleans crew – originally a five-piece formed of B.G., Lil Wayne, Juvenile,
Turk and the late Bulletproof AKA Lil Derrick – instantly struck up a rapport in
the studio, with the exception of Derrick, who soon parted ways with the group.
By October of the same year, their debut...