On this date in 1991, New Orleans rap icon Percy “Master P” Miller stepped into the game with his debut album Get Away Clean, released through his independently founded No Limit Records. The project marked the beginning of what would soon grow into one of Hip Hop’s most powerful and influential independent empires.
Get Away Clean introduced listeners to Master P’s early sound and vision, laying the groundwork for the hustle driven mentality that would later define the No Limit movement. The album featured his New Orleans based crew TRU (The Real Untouchables), including his brothers Silkk The Shocker and C Murder, giving the project a raw, family centered energy that reflected the streets it came from. It also stands as the first official release under the No Limit banner, distributed at the time through Oakland’s In A Minute Records, as P was already building bridges between the South and the West Coast.
While the 14 track effort found strong support in underground and regional street circles, it did not reach the commercial success that Master P would later achieve in the late 90s. Still, the album served as the blueprint for everything that followed. It captured the early stages of a businessman who was just as focused on ownership and independence as he was on the music itself.
Years before Ice Cream Man and the multi platinum run that turned No Limit into a cultural powerhouse, Get Away Clean showed the hunger, determination, and DIY spirit that would come to define Master P’s legacy. It was the first step in building a brand that would eventually change how independent artists approached the industry.
35 years later, the album stands as a foundational chapter in Southern Hip Hop history and the starting point of a movement that empowered countless artists to take control of their careers.
Salute to Master P and the entire No Limit family for laying the groundwork with a debut that helped shape an empire.