Mason Durell Betha (born August 27, 1975), better known by his mononym Mase (formerly Murda Mase and stylized as Ma$e), is an American rapper and minister. In the late 1990s, he recorded on the Bad Boy Records label alongside its founder Sean "Diddy" Combs to significant mainstream success. In 1997 and 1998, as a lead or featured artist, Mase had a total of five platinum singles, five US Rap No. 1 singles, and six Billboard Hot 100 top 10 singles, including "Can't Nobody Hold Me Down", "Mo Money Mo Problems", "Been Around the World", "Feel So Good", What You Want" and "Lookin' at Me". Both "Can't Nobody Hold Me Down" and "Mo Money Mo Problems" reached No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100. Mase's 1997 album Harlem World was certified quadruple platinum by the RIAA. His other two albums, Double Up (1999) and Welcome Back (2004), have been certified gold. Early life Mase was born Mason Durell Betha in Jacksonville, Florida, on August 27, 1975, as a fraternal twin born almost two months premature, to P. K. Betha and Mason Betha. He grew up with two brothers and three sisters, including his twin sister, Stason, born a few minutes after him. Their father left the family when Mase was just three years old. In 1980, his mother moved with her children to Harlem, New York, where Mase spent the majority of his childhood. During his early teenage years, Betha began getting into trouble on the streets of Harlem, and when he was 13 his mother sent him back to Jacksonville to live with relatives. It was while living in Jacksonville that Betha first began attending church. After returning to live in Harlem at age 15, Betha began showing promise as a basketball player, becoming the leading point guard for his team at Manhattan Center High School during the 1993 season, where he played alongside Cameron Giles, who went on to be known as the rapper Cam'ron. He had hopes of joining the National Basketball Association (NBA), but was unable to make it into a Division I College due to his poor academic scores. He attended State University of New York at Purchase, where he grew to realize he was unlikely to make the NBA and instead began focusing more on writing music, producing demo tapes, and regularly performing at local nightclubs. Betha eventually dropped out of college and focused on