Belcalis Marlenis Almánzar (New York; October 11, 1992), more commonly known by her stage name Cardi B, is an American rapper, singer, actress, and entrepreneur. Raised in The Bronx, she was part of various street gangs, which led to a very turbulent childhood and adolescence; she even became a victim of gender violence from one of her boyfriends. After working as a stripper, she began gaining popularity on social media around mid-2013 and two years later finally achieved fame by starring in the sixth season of the reality TV show Love & Hip Hop: New York. Her stage name is an abbreviation of her childhood nickname, Bacardi. After releasing two mixtapes through independent labels, she caught the attention of Atlantic Records executives and signed a record deal at the beginning of 2017. In June of that year, she made her debut with «Bodak Yellow», which became a hit after reaching number one on the Billboard Hot 100 in the United States, making Cardi the second female rapper in history to achieve this as a solo artist. Her streak of hits continued with the singles «No Limit», «MotorSport» and «Finesse», which all entered the top ten of the Billboard Hot 100. On April 6, 2018, Cardi released her debut album Invasion of Privacy, which debuted at number one on the Billboard 200 and won the Grammy Award for Best Rap Album. From the album, the single «I Like It» also reached the top of the Billboard Hot 100, an achievement that made Cardi the first female rapper in history to achieve two number one hits as the lead artist, a record she later extended to five with «Girls Like You», «WAP» and «Up», which also reached number one. On the other hand, among her recognitions, Cardi has received a Grammy Award, five American Music Awards, four BET Awards, eleven BET Hip Hop Awards, seven Billboard Music Awards, and four MTV Video Music Awards. She has also been named by various outlets as the «current queen of hip hop». She was married from 2017 to 2023 to rapper Offset, with whom she has three children. Belcalis Marlenis Almánzar was born on October 11, 1992, in the city of New York (United States), the daughter of a Dominican father and a Trinidadian mother. She mainly grew up in the Highbridge neighborhood in The Bronx, although she also spent a significant part of her childhood at her grandmother's house in Washington Heights (Manhattan), which is why she claims to have an indistinct accent. She attended the Musical and Technology High School and was part of very violent street gangs from a young age. Due to her family's financial struggles, she began working as a cashier at an Amish Market supermarket located in Manhattan during her adolescence. After being fired, she started working as a stripper at the age of 19. Regarding this job, she stated in an interview that it helped her escape poverty and domestic violence, as her boyfriend at the time was very possessive.
Given her lifestyle, Cardi turned to plastic surgery to increase her breasts and buttocks in order to attract more customers and earn better tips. After saving enough money, she left her apartment in The Bronx and consequently left her boyfriend. Although one of her goals was to obtain a bachelor's degree, Cardi dropped out of university due to lack of time to study and continue with her work. In 2013, she began becoming a social media personality, mainly on Vine and Instagram. Regarding her stage name, she explained that it is an abbreviation of her childhood nickname, Bacardi.
