Cardi B has been making the rounds for the past few years, and for a good reason. The rapper from the Bronx is still just 26 years old but has already received numerous awards including three American Music Awards, and multiple Grammy nominations. You might think that you already know a great deal about the rising star, but here are a few things that you probably didn’t know:
Her Father Is a Dominican While Her Mother Is from Trinidad
The rapper’s father hails from the Dominican Republic, whereas her mother is from Trinidad. She grew up in a working-class family, with both parents working multiple jobs.
Her childhood home was in a small Latino town named Highbridge, in South Bronx. Her upbringing was in a multicultural environment.
She Doesn’t Have a License to Drive
Although Belcalis (Cardi B’s real first name) has showcased her cars multiple times on social media, she admits to not having a driver’s license and not knowing how to drive at all. During an Instagram-live session, she said, “I don’t even have a f*cking license,” right after buying a new car.
She further added that how is she expected to know how to drive a car when she has been taking the train all her life. Well, that certainly makes sense.
Cardi B Is Short for Bacardi
If it surprises you that the nickname Cardi B wasn’t derived from the musician’s real name, Belcalis Almanzar, then we feel you. During an interview with Jimmy Fallon, she elucidated how her stage name/title has been derived from Bacardi, which is a rum company.
Explaining the process to the host, she said, “My sister’s name is Hennessy, so everyone used to call me Bacardi, and I started calling myself Bacardi,” which finally got trimmed down to become Cardi B.
Her Sister Hennessy Is Social Media Star You Never Heard Of
Cardi B’s sister is a star of her own. She has over 4.2 million followers on Instagram and a prevalent fan base too.
Some people argue that the reason she has garnered such a formidable following, has a lot to do with Cardi B’s fame and recognition, but the Instagram star has a lot of talent of her own to credit as well. Give her a follow to know more about her.
Before Topping Charts, Cardi B Worked at an Amish Market
Before she was even known as Cardi B, the rap star used to work as a cashier in an Amish market. Surely you didn’t know this!
As a teenager, she was handling the register at a market in TriBeCa, a small neighborhood in New York. Get this: She was only pocketing a salary of $250 a week at the time.
Cardi B Loves Her Social Media Following
Before becoming a rising rapper and before making multiple TV show appearances, Cardi B was a social media celebrity with a huge following. Her followers revered her for her motivational posts and gregarious personality, even before she made music that became everyone’s jam.
Today, she has close to 40 million followers on Instagram alone, and when asked by W, about how she feels about her followers, she said, “I can’t believe they love me? I mean, what’s so great about me?”
Invasion of Privacy Mentions Beyoncé Every Twelve Minutes
Like millions of Americans and people from all over the world, Cardi B is also a huge Beyoncé fan.
Even though she has given shout-outs to numerous female artists like Rihanna, TLC and Tina Turner in the recent past, she went a bit overboard when she references Beyoncé after every 12 minutes in her album Invasion of Privacy. Throughout the 13 tracks, she mentioned Beyoncé 4 times!
Madonna Has Always Been Her Idol
Cardi B loves a lot of people from outside her genre, and another example of that is the fact that her favorite musician is Madonna. In an Instagram post, she wrote that when she met her real-life idol Madonna for the first time and then performed with her at the same event, it was “the most meaningful performance” she ever gave.
She further mentioned how she grew up listening to Madonna for hours with her mom and how she performed “Material Girl” as a freshman in high school.
After Receiving a Shout-Out, Her Dentist Claimed, “Business Has Tripled”
Cardi B has admitted to getting her teeth looked at and fixed, in both her songs and interviews. In “Bodak Yellow” she said, “Got a bag and fixed my teeth,” which reportedly helped her dentist garner a lot more business than before.
The dentist, in an interview with TMZ, said that his business tripled after Cardi B had an appointment with her. He added that people were calling him all the time, asking whether she got her teeth done at his clinic.
She Got Plastic Surgery at 19 Years of Age
Cardi B is all about spreading body positivity and bashing people who shame women who have undergone cosmetic procedures to improve the way they look. She has also openly claimed that she had received a lot of hate herself for getting plastic surgery at a young age.
She has repeatedly accepted that the reason she got multiple surgeries as a 19-year-old, was that she thought she could make a lot of money as a dancer.