Master P

Early life

Percy Robert Miller was born in New Orleans on April 29, 1970, and grew up in the Calliope Projects in the Third Ward of Uptown New Orleans. After receiving a $10,000 inheritance from a malpractice settlement connected to his grandfather, he moved to Richmond, California, and opened a record store called No Limit Records And Tapes. The store became the foundation for No Limit Records, which he started as a label in 1991.

Richmond and the first records

Recording as Master P, Miller released his debut album “Get Away Clean” in 1991, followed by “Mama’s Bad Boy” (1992), “The Ghettos Tryin to Kill Me!” (1994) and “99 Ways to Die” (1995). In 1994 No Limit also issued the “West Coast Bad Boyz” compilations. With his brothers Silkk the Shocker and C-Murder he formed the group TRU, whose 1995 album “True” was an early breakthrough for the label. In 1995 he moved No Limit back to New Orleans, bringing in the in-house production team Beats By the Pound.

The No Limit era

In 1996 Miller signed a distribution deal with Priority Records under which No Limit kept full ownership of its master recordings and 85 percent of sales. “Ice Cream Man” (1996) was certified platinum, “Ghetto D” (1997) reached No. 1 on the Billboard 200, and “MP da Last Don” (1998) also debuted at No. 1 and was certified four times platinum. The label released records by Silkk the Shocker, C-Murder, Mia X, Mystikal, Fiend, Mr. Serv-On, Kane & Abel and Soulja Slim, and signed Snoop Dogg in 1998. Miller also made the films “I’m Bout It” (1997) and “I Got the Hook Up” (1998). Black Enterprise reported that No Limit Enterprises grossed $110 million in 1998.

Later years

In 1999 Miller tried out for the NBA, spending time with the Charlotte Hornets and the Toronto Raptors before being cut from both rosters. No Limit Records filed for bankruptcy on December 17, 2003. Miller continued to operate under the New No Limit and No Limit Forever names, and managed the music career of his son, Romeo Miller.