Cardi B's Real Name: Belcalis Marlenis Almánzar

Quick answer: Cardi B's real name is Belcalis Marlenis Almánzar. She was born on October 11, 1992, in the Bronx, New York City, to a Dominican father and a Trinidadian mother (Britannica). Court and business filings use the name Belcalis Almánzar.

Where the name "Cardi B" came from

Cardi B has explained that people called her "Bacardi," after the rum brand, because her younger sister is named Hennessy. She shortened it to Cardi, and the "B" stands for Belcalis. She has said this in interviews since early in her career.

Early life and breakthrough

Almánzar grew up in the Highbridge section of the Bronx. She attended Renaissance High School for Musical Theater & the Arts and briefly studied at Borough of Manhattan Community College. She gained a large following on Vine and Instagram in 2013–14, then joined the cast of VH1's Love & Hip Hop: New York in 2015 (Britannica).

Music career highlights

• 2017: "Bodak Yellow" hit No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100. She was the first solo female rapper to top the chart without a featured artist since Lauryn Hill in 1998 (Billboard).
• 2018: Her debut album Invasion of Privacy opened at No. 1 on the Billboard 200. "I Like It" with Bad Bunny and J Balvin also reached No. 1.
• 2019: Invasion of Privacy won the Grammy for Best Rap Album, making her the first woman to win that award as a solo artist.
• 2020: "WAP" with Megan Thee Stallion debuted at No. 1.
• 2025: Her second studio album, Am I the Drama?, was released. As of early November 2026 it had logged 58 weeks on the Billboard 200 (per Music Times, citing Billboard).

Personal life

Cardi B married rapper Offset (Kiari Kendrell Cephus) in 2017. They have three children, and she filed for divorce in 2024. She later had a son with NFL player Stefon Diggs. In November 2026 she revealed the boy's name, Grey Marsean Diggs, while sharing the first photos of him for his first birthday (E! News; Page Six).