Master P lived in New Orleans' infamous Calliope Projects as a child. He has two brothers, Vyshonn (rapper Silkk the Shocker) and Corey (rapper C Murder). His parents divorced, and he split his time between his father's family in New Orleans, and his mother in Richmond, California. He attended the University of Houston on a basketball scholarship, but left and returned to Richmond to live with his mother and study business at Merritt Junior College in nearby Oakland. In 1989, he inherited $10,000 from his grandfather and opened a record store called No Limit, which he later converted to a record label. He used the label to promote his first album in 1991.