Lil Wayne, Juvenile, and Mannie Fresh were among the hip-hop stars that gathered in Los Angeles this week to honor Cash Money Records founders Slim and Birdman.
The brothers, Ronald and Brian Williams, were honored at the second annual YouTube Leaders & Legends Gala, held in Los Angeles on Thursday (June 27).
During the star-studded black tie event, the New Orleans moguls were presented with flowers by YouTube’s head of music, Lyor Cohen; BMI’s vice president of creative, Catherine Brewton; producer Polow Da Don; and Republic Records’ chief executives, Avery and Monte Lipman, who are also brothers and have recognized the Williams brothers as mentors throughout their careers.
Others that attended were 2 Chainz, LL Cool J, NLE Choppa, Saweetie, Queen Naija, Yo Gotti, Kevin Liles, and Quality Control co-founder Pierre “P” Thomas.
Birdman, who was on stage with his brother, spoke about his and Slim’s childhood and the economic influence Cash Money’s illustrious run had on the industry during his victory speech, according to Billboard.
“We were living in every project in New Orleans, so it wasn’t easy,” he remarked. “I was a truly lost child, desperately trying to find my way, having been in and out of foster homes, jails, and the streets at the age of twelve. By the time I was fourteen, I was sporting two Rolex watches. I didn’t want the kids I met to follow my path, right? Rapper B.G. of Cash Money was following that path, and it appeared to me that [Lil] Wayne was following suit.
“I wanted to save their lives,” he went on. My goal was to attempt to save a life. And because I was careless, I also required assistance. My brother was the only person I respected enough to keep me alive. And I put them in the studio as a means of preserving their [B.G., Lil Wayne] lives. The new streets were meant to be the studio.
“We felt like this was our time to take over hip-hop,” Birdman said in closing. At that point, Nicki and Drake gave birth to Young Money. We restrained hip-hop in a way. We made it through the fighting in New Orleans. We’re living our lives now, and we’re doing a fantastic job at it. I only had four lives to save when we first started, but in the end, we ended up saving thousands of motherf–kers. My brother, who was like a father to me, has my sincere appreciation for saving my life.
Contrarily, Slim began his speech to the assembly by praising the three well-known Cash Money alumni who were present.
He remarked, “I saw Juvenile, Wayne, and [Mannie] Fresh when they were in that studio, and I want to say that I’m so proud of them.” They engaged in amiable rivalry with one another. We would end up performing five songs a night after initially performing just two. They were competing as if they were actual basketball players. The fact that they are continuing their professions with generational riches and pursuing interests outside of music while preserving it is what truly inspires me.
“To get here, my brother and I had to go through a lot. Growing up, I was once told by someone that I would never amount to anything and that I wasn’t worth a cent. But in order to get me to cry, you have to do better than that. That is not how breakable I am. I had a few more quarters left since it motivated me to work hard and go hard.
Finally, he gave some parting counsel to the assembly, saying, “Never allow anyone tell you what you are incapable of doing! You carry out your duties. You can only succeed in that manner.
After expressing gratitude to Polow, Mannie Fresh, Juvenile, Jeezy, Turk, and Wayne, Slim said, “I love y’all.” “Nobody else on the planet will ever do what we’ve done.”
