Happy Birthday, Saigon!

Saigon is getting ready to appear in the much-anticipated Entourage movie, a feature that's been in the making for years. His 38th birthday, which is today (June 1), comes with a sense of excitement for the June 3 release of the film.

Of course, Saigon isn't just known for his recurring role on the famed HBO show. He went from New York's Brownsville, Brooklyn to being one of the hyped rappers of the mid-2000s. You tend to get a lot of attention when the likes of Jay Z and producer Just Blaze give you their co-signs.

Saigon kept the respect of underground fans, but mainstream success alluded him -- major label incompetency got in the way. Despite knowing his sound before signing him, Atlantic Records continuously delayed the release of Saigon's debut album, which was likely out of fear the project would not be marketable.

The Greatest Story Never Told was supposed to drop in 2007, but it took Saigon leaving Atlantic to finally get his debut LP out in 2011. The effort sold poorly, but Saigon at least got a solid critical reception. The props continued throughout his next two albums: The Greatest Story Never Told Chapter 2: Bread and Circuses and G.S.N.T. 3: The Troubled Times of Brian Carenard. The latter found Saigon trying to bring positive messages back into hip-hop.

"There’s schools in the South Bronx and Brooklyn with 50 percent graduation rates," Saigon said in an interview with The Boombox. "That’s incredible. Half of the kids don’t graduate high school. So who’s out there talking to them. You know what they love? Rap. I call it rap because hip-hop used to have a message. Hip-hop had a responsibility. Rap doesn’t have a responsibility. Rap is just rap. Hip-hop is culture. So if I’m gonna be in this culture, I gotta have some sense of responsibility."

That's a message we support. Happy Birthday, Saigon.

Watch Saigon's "Nunya" Video

See 20 Rappers & Singers Who Disappeared From the Spotlight