Although Meek Mill only began to rise to prominence on the hip-hop scene in late 2010/early 2011, with his induction into Rick Ross' MMG label, the Philly rapper had long been freestyling on the internet. From the days of Myspace's reign and rap DVDs, Meek has been tossing bars and slinging rhymes way before he even had a sip of super stardom, and YouTube can prove it.

With one quick search, one discovers that it's easy to recognize that the DWMTM rapper was destined for greatness. From the mere age of 13 to his early adulthood, on the video-sharing website; Meek's progression as a rapper is traceable and the abundance of freestyle videos even sort of serve as a track record for MM's road to fame.

Fast forward to 2015, Meek Mill is at the top of the world. Not only dating platinum rap star Nicki Minaj, but primarily gearing up for the release of his sophomore LP Dreams Worth More Than Money. However, what many do not know is he worked twice as hard as most rappers to get to his current position and used street battles as his tool to do so.

Dating all the way back to the millennium era, check out 13 throwback videos from Meek Mill's Philly rap battle days.

Meek Mill and Rick Ross cover the Spring 2015 issue of XXL.

Related: Meek Mill Is Not Dropping ‘Dreams Worth More Than Money’ Next Week
Meek Mill and Rick Ross Cover the New Issue of XXL
Meek Mill and Nicki Minaj, the New Hip-Hop Couple
Duke’s Coach K Is a Meek Mill Fan

And check out his XXL "Ice Cream (Freestyle)" video featuring Rick Ross.

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