Cardi B

The Bronx native quickly won fans over with her vibrant personality, tick accent, and snappy one-liners. Two seasons and two mixtapes later, Cardi B announced her departure from the show to focus on her music career.

In February 2017, just two months after her exit from Love & Hip Hop, Cardi B signed with Atlantic Records at just 25 years. Her debut single, “Bodak Yellow” was released in June that year. The song was an instant success, catapulting Cardi B to worldwide fame.

Infatuated with the rapper’s unapologetic style, rapid flow, and thick New York-Dominican accent, listeners quickly turned into fans. After topping the Billboard 100 chart for three weeks in a row, Cardi B became the second rapper to reach number one as a solo artist. The music video for “Bodak Yellow” was just as big of a hit. When it dropped on YouTube, it became the fastest solo female rap song to reach 1 billion views on the platform.

Cardi B’s first studio album, Invasion of Privacy, dropped in 2018 to universal acclaim. The 13-song tracklist included collabs with Migos, Chance the Rapper, Bad Bunny, J Balvin, Kehlani, 21 Savage, YG, and SZA. The album entered the U.S. charts at number one and became Apple Music’s most-streamed album for a female artist in a single week. By refusing to soften herself as a new female artist, Cardi B redefined what it meant to break through in the industry.

The album went on to produce five singles, including “I Like It,” which also reached number one on the charts. Both Rolling Stone and Time magazine named Invasion of Privacy the best album of 2018. This phenomenal success earned Cardi B the titles of “Reigning Queen of Hip Hop” and “Queen of Rap” by multiple music publications.

Cardi B’s rapid rise to success reached a climax during a 2018 appearance on Saturday Night Live. The rapper had previously revealed to fans that she had wed her fiancé, Offset, in a secret ceremony the year before. While performing “Be Careful” live on the show, Cardi B revealed she was pregnant with their first child. The announcement broke the internet. Her baby daughter Kulture has since become an icon in her own right. She has captured the hearts of 3 million+ Instagram followers by featuring in several of her mom’s social media posts.

After welcoming her baby into the world, Cardi B’s career showed no signs of slowing down. At the end of 2018, she made history as the first female rapper to appear on the cover of Vogue. In early 2019, she won her first Grammy Award for Best Rap Album. For only the second time in 25 years, Thierry Mugler opened its archives to dress her for the event. Cardi B’s invite to the 2019 Met Gala confirmed her status as a budding fashion icon, and the very next year, she was recruited by Balenciaga to be the face of their winter campaign.

Cardi B’s star has only continued to rise. She made her film debut in the star-studded 2019 hit Hustlers, and she returned to TV as a judge on the Netflix competition series Rhythm + Flow. She has since also joined the Fast & Furious franchise, starring in F9 and the upcoming Fast X.

Toward the end of 2020, Cardi B teamed up with Megan Thee Stallion on the single, “WAP.” The song debuted at the top of the Billboard Hot 100 chart, making it Cardi B’s fourth number-one single. On YouTube, the song broke the record for the biggest debut for an all-female collaboration. Praised for its sex-positivity, the song also received critical acclaim.

In 2021, Cardi B welcomed her second child, a son named Wave. The same year, “Bodak Yellow,” was certified Diamond by the RIAA, cementing her icon status.

Today, Cardi B is the highest-certified female rapper of all time. Her second studio album is currently in the works.