Master P, a.k.a. Percy Miller, is one of the most successful rapper’s, record-executive’s, and record producer’s in American history. He’s an entrepreneur, actor, and multi-millionaire who inspired countless others, rising rapper’s and inner-city kids alike to go after what they think their worth. His music defined an era, and his iconic work-ethic helped many others dream bigger and hustle harder. Needless to say, Master P understands success, which is what we aim to highlight in this Master P Success Story special.
We believe success leaves clues, which is why we cover icons like Master P. Every story contains hidden insights that can teach, guide, and benefit us in unimaginable way. That said, if you’re ready to see what Master P’s story can teach you about life and success, then let’s get started.
THE MASTER P STORY OF SUCCESS
Early Days
Master P was born in 1970 in New Orleans, Louisiana. He grew up rough in the inner-city’s third ward and the notorious Calliope projects; which had a reputation as one of the most dangerous and violent projects in the United States.[1]
In fact, he only five years old when he was first acquainted with the rough world he was born into, having witnessed a man get murdered just outside his window.[2]
P and his four other siblings were split into different household after his parents divorced in his younger years. He and his brother Kevin lived with his father, and the other siblings with his mother. But, the family would also bounce around between his grandparent’s house and his mother’s house daily.
That said, struggle was an everyday experience for P and his family. Growing up in a the projects with a house full of siblings and extended family, with parents struggling to make it made for lean times. Poverty was real for P.
In fact, Master P once stated that he felt as if he was always hungry growing up, and that it was as if they always had a house full of people yet always an empty refrigerator.
Fortunately, sports helped P survive the streets. In fact, he was known for being a pretty good basketball player. So good, that he earned himself an athletic scholarship to the University of Houston. Dreams of becoming a pro basketball player and helping his family get out of the projects was a huge motivator for Master P.
Tore Up Dreams
Master P would go on to leave the hood to chase his basketball dreams in Houston. However, things didn’t work out as planned, and P eventually dropped out after he tore his ACL during that first year.
Devastated by the injury, he quickly found himself back in the Calliope projects. At first he tried making money in phone sales, but success was slow to come. So he eventually turned to dealing drugs.
His grandmother got wind of what he was up to, and started to pressure P to turn away from that life. He was slow to take heed of her advice, but shortly after P had his own son, he started thinking differently about his life’s trajectory.
Seizing Opportunity
So, he packed up his son and his wife and moved to Richmond, California to get out of the drug game and make an honest living. While driving down the street one day, P noticed a long queue of people wanting to get into a local record store, and decided to get into the music business himself.
Having recently received $10,000 from a malpractice lawsuit related to his grandfather’s death, he leveraged this money to open up his own record store.
Like all businesses though, gaining traction was a challenge at first. In fact business was so slow in the beginning that he had to move his family into the record store to make ends meet.
Times were tough at first, but P didn’t give up. Instead, he doubled-down and starting looking for ways to make his venture work. He soon noticed that there was a demand for Gangster Rap, but there were very few other record stores selling it. So, he made his move to fill this void, and began offering his customers the high-demand product.
Eyes Wide Open
Success soon followed, and Master P’s small record store became a hit. His store became the local go-to-place for obtaining the latest and greatest gangster rap music.
Gaining insight into the mindset of rappers, P started to notice that many of these rappers were simply telling their struggle stories of life in the streets. And P, having lived his fair share of surviving the game, decided to rap about his experiences too.
Knowing he had a built-in distribution center with his record store, P dove into the music making business, and launched his rap career in short order.
After connecting with a few local music producers, P started making his music. Just his record business though, his first few tracks were not instant successes. But, he kept at it.
His brother Kevin Miller, was murdered in New Orleans, and this event really catalyzed P’s hustle. Vowing to save his two other brother’s and his son, he poured everything into making his rap career take off. He brought his brothers into the T.R.U. (The Real Untouchables) fold and started shooting for the stars in the music industry.
Relentless Hustle
Master P and his No Limit Soldiers started turning out track after track with a relentlessness unseen by any other local groups. P decided to get serious about making money, so he started traveling across the country to do shows. He also began giving away his music and merch to influencers to establish brand recognition. Master P was trying to go viral.
After connecting with a few high profile music producers during his travels, Master P realized he needed to get even more strategic about his business efforts. So, he started studying business administration at Merritt Junior College.
In addition to this, P also began bringing in more business minded partners into the fold to help him gain more exposure and strategically capture market share. Master P was committed to having his rap label take off.
Everything changed for P when he dropped his hit single ‘The Ghettos Tyrin’ to Kill Me’. He followed this success up with ’99 Ways to Die’, and sold over 250,000 copies. He then went on to produce ‘Ice Cream Man’ with his newly hired in-house producers ‘Beats By The Pound’, which helped him eventually hit No. 3 on the Billboard album charts. Master P had arrived.[3]
The Dynasty
It was from the foundation of this success, that P would move on to launch even more projects. He chose to relocate No Limit Records back to New Orleans as he prepared to take the hip hop industry by storm.
Once Master P released the album ‘Ghetto D’, his song ‘Make ‘Em Say Uhhh!’ went certified triple platinum, propelling P into the mainstream spotlight.[4]
Master P then went on to leverage his honed business savvy approach to connect with other aspiring artists, and turn out fresh hip-hop beats that the public craved into massive success.
He would then go on to turn out countless new records, with fresh beats, high profile artists, with trendy packaging that the public could not resist, all at breakneck speed. The result?
Master P ended up becoming one of the hottest names in the industry, getting himself ranked by Forbes as one of the top 10 highest grossing entertainers.
Master P would go on to create one of the greatest hip hop dynasty’s in history and become a multi-millionaire many times over.
Master P’s Enduring Hustle
That said, Master P’s story is still unfolding. He’s mastered many industries over the years, and now he’s got his eye on a whole new industry; the food industry.
If you keep your eyes open, you may just come across some of his more recent products on the shelves of your nearest grocery store.
Related: Master P Net Worth
Master P’s Success Ethos
Master P has gone on to to achieve even massive success in film, apparel, sports management, and many other industries. He built one empire to go on to build another. He achieved the American Dream, and then some.
So, what helped Master P achieve so much success? What was the success ethos that gave him his edge? Here’s our distilled answers. We believe his success had a lot to do with his vision, his purpose, relentlessness, and grit.
P had a vision. He wanted more than the average person. And he took his grandmother’s suggestion that having a dream was the most important thing.
Master P was also driven by purpose. Much of his efforts were about helping his family out. His ambitions were fueled by his wish to save his family. To get them out of the projects and living a life free of the dangers that come from living in poverty.
In addition to this, P also had a relentlessness to him that aided in his success. It may have stemmed from the work-ethic he acquired in sports, but regardless of where it came from, he applied it to all of his ventures. And it paid off.
Lastly, Master P had grit. Almost every single aspect of Master P’s life, and each of his ventures were first met with adversity. But, in each situation, P took the obstacles, adversities, and tragedies that were placed before him, and consciously decided to see things through until he surmounted them. P is the epitome of grit.
Success In His Own Words
To give you a few more insights on what helped Master P become so successful, here are few of his most insightful quotes on success.
Read More: Master P Quotes
Final Thoughts
There you have it, the Master P story of success. We highlighted his challenging beginnings, his crushed basketball dreams, to his overcoming of countless adversities and life tragedies to ultimately come out on top as one of the most successful businessmen and hip hop icons in history.
We also covered some of the key success principles that led Master P to achieving so much in his lifetime. Here are those qualities summarized again as a quick recap:
Vision | Purpose | Relentless | Grit
That said, we hope this Master P success story inspires you to dream big, pursue your purpose, and back your vision up with relentless effort and grit. No doubt, if you do so, your grand dreams will come into reach.
Till you reach your aims,
STRIVE
PS – If you enjoyed this Master P success story, then you may also enjoy this collection of inspiring success stories.
