Waka Flocka Flame was born by the name Juaquin Malphurs on May 31, 1986. He never dreamed of becoming an artist since he was a kid. Despite the fact that his mother is a CEO of artist management group Mizay Entertainment, he shied himself away from music and instead focused on his love for basketball.

And after his youngest brother died in automobile accident when he was just 14, Waka moved even further away from music, opting to spend his time running the streets of Atlanta with his friends. "That whole period of my life really messed with my head," he said. "I ain't even gonna lie - it killed me as a man. But it also made me stronger as a man in the future."

After a while, he then tried music as a fun activity of messing around with sound to relieve his frustration. "I was going through so much at the time," he said in an attempt to find a way to pour his distress. "I had so much stress and so many issues. I couldn't release my emotions physically, so releasing them verbally was the only option I had."

The result was a street album "Salute Me or Shoot Me, Vol. 1" which was out in 2008 and featured "O Let's Do It" which rose at No. 7 on Billboard Rap Songs chart. Certainly having all the connections to get a quick step on music business, he made his own road and earned the spot on the chart that he deserved.

Two years after, he dropped a debut album "Flockaveli" which made a notable debut at No. 6 on Billboard Hot 200. His single "No Hands" even rose higher to No. 5 on Billboard Rap Songs and peaked at No. 6 on R&B Songs charts.