Juvenile Withstands Katrina And Comes Out On Top

When Juvenile's seventh album, Reality Check, debuted at #1 on the U.S. SoundScan chart last month, it was the last thing that the New Orleans-based rapper expected to happen.

"I've put out a lot of albums, but none of them ever debuted at number one," he says. "Atlantic was telling me that we were shooting for number one, but I really didn't see what they were saying until it happened. And when it actually happened, I really was surprised."

After spending 10 years with Cash Money Records, the label that put his name on the hip-hop map, Juvenile now believes that it was holding him back.

"The company didn't want to spend any money on me," he explains.

"As long as I sold two million records, they didn't care what I did. I never had features like Ludacris, Brian McKnight, Fat Joe, Lil' Jon, Mike Jones... because I wasn't able, and they didn't want me to."

It took a lot of guts for Juvenile to start his own label, but nothing could have prepared him for Hurricane Katrina last summer. Although he's not a saint, that storm has given him a new attitude.

"That's why the album title is so crucial," says Juvenile. "Some of us needed that hurricane, and I got to admit, I'm one of those people.

"Now, my family reaps the benefit of everything, you know what I mean. We cherish moments because, when you're rich, you forget what you went through to get that and about the people who sacrificed to put you in that position."

In fact, Juvenile was so drastically affected by Katrina that he went back into the studio and recorded "Get Ya Hustle On," a song that speaks directly to the victims of the storm — especially those living in the Lower Ninth Ward who were most impacted by the disaster.

"The song really means, 'Get off of your lazy ass and stop crying about the government,'" explains Juvenile. "Do something for your damn self, get ya hustle on.

"I'm not telling everybody out there to go buy some cocaine. That's not what I'm saying. I'm talking to the ones that do it, the ones that hustle, and really sell cocaine for real. You just got hit with the hurricane, so now what you gonna do?"

Whether you love Juvenile or hate him, Reality Check proves that he's a force to be reckoned with. Not even a hurricane can slow him down.