Lil Wayne -- We Signed PARIS HILTON to Record Contract

Lil Wayne's crew just signed Paris Hilton to a record deal ... and she's planning on dropping a brand new album in the very near future!!

Wayne's mentor -- Birdman -- confirmed the news on Twitter ... saying, "Lil Wayne's Cash Money family has a new member! Paris Hilton: RichgangRichgirl."

According to Showbiz411, Hilton's album will focus on house music -- no surprise, since she's been DJing at various clubs all over the world ... and training with some house music bigshots for years.

The album -- Hilton's first since 2006 -- will reportedly be produced by Afrojack ... and will feature bona fide stars like Lil Wayne.

Paris told Showbiz411, "[The new album] is a lot different than my first album. It's really going to be house music."

Now, let's take a walk down memory lane ...