Lloyd Banks | |
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![]() Banks in 2008 | |
Background information | |
Birth name | Christopher Charles Lloyd |
Also known as | Blue Hefner[1] |
Born | Baltimore, Maryland, U.S.[2] | April 30, 1982
Origin | Queens, New York City, U.S. |
Genres | East Coast hip hop |
Occupation(s) |
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Years active | 2001–present |
Labels |
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Formerly of | G-Unit |
Website | lloydbanks |
Christopher Charles Lloyd (born April 30, 1982),[3] better known by his stage name Lloyd Banks, is an American rapper. He began his career as a member of East Coast hip hop group G-Unit, which he formed with childhood friends 50 Cent and Tony Yayo in 1999. After the release of their debut album Beg for Mercy (2003), Banks released his debut solo album, The Hunger for More (2004) the following year. Met with critical and commercial success, it peaked atop the Billboard 200 and spawned the Billboard Hot 100-top ten single, "On Fire", as well as the top 20 single "Karma" (featuring Avant or Kevin Cossom). His second album, Rotten Apple (2006) peaked at number three on the Billboard 200 and saw mixed reviews. Banks then left Interscope Records and signed with EMI in 2010—along with his G-Unit cohorts—to release his third album, H.F.M. 2 (The Hunger For More 2) in November that year, which saw a critical rebound and peaked at number 26 on the chart.[4][5]
Over a decade later, he independently released his fourth album, The Course of the Inevitable (2021) to critical acclaim.
"Lloyd Banks: I was born in Baltimore. I was born on the run, I grew up in Queens. The only reason why I was born in Baltimore was because my pops was on the run at the time. He took my moms with him to Baltimore, I stayed there for about a year or two then came back to Queens".