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CD review: Lil’ Wayne ‘Tha Carter III’
Lil’ Wayne
“Tha Carter III”
(Cash Money)
On “Phone Home,” between calling himself a Martian and comparing himself to E.T., Lil’ Wayne declares “they don’t make ‘em like me no more / matter fact, they never made it like me before.” He’s right. While many rappers freestyle their lyrics and even more abuse drugs, few take it to the extremes Wayne does. Throughout most of “Tha Carter III,” he is rapping without a safety net — even he’s not sure what he’ll say next. He laughs at his own jokes, as if he’s just realizing what he said; occasionally, he loses his train of thought and starts rapping about something else.
On songs like “Got Money,” a vocoder-duet with T-Pain that is destined to be a club smash, his random boasting fits perfectly. Other times, the result is a mess — on “Let the Beat Build” he wastes a great beat with absolutely nonsensical rhymes. Many critics have praised his unique style as post-modern “free association” rapping. Less charitably, he’s babbling what sounds like drug-induced nonsense.
But his recent work on the mix-tape scene blurred the line between these two distinctions — mixing his lyrical insanity with strong and powerful songwriting. It was these songs, along with his numerous feature appearances, that made the buzz for “Tha Carter III” so deafening. It’s been XXL’s most anticipated album since January 2007, and in the meanwhile, several of his mix tapes made it onto critical top 10 lists. He’s had hundreds of songs released in the past few years, and the addition of any number of them would have greatly improved “Tha Carter III.” Instead, by the end of the album, a rapper with a seemingly endless amount of lyrical creativity has a song about sleeping with a female police officer who pulls him over (“Mrs. Officer”).
The production, mostly from A-list producers such as David Banner, Just Blaze, Swizz Beatz and Kanye West, carries the album. On the suitably epic “Mr. Carter,” Jay-Z drops by for a passing of the torch, telling Wayne “that I took so much money from the rap game, now it’s your go.” But even in the digital age, albums are still an artist’s ultimate proving ground. For Wayne to claim the throne, he’ll have to leave the mix-tape game behind and do like Kanye: keep all his best stuff for himself.
Recommended: “Mr. Carter,” “Tie My Hands”
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Permalink | Comments (3) | Categories: Music, Reviews
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By Da God
June 10, 2008 4:50 PM | Link to this
This review is blasphemous. Nothing on Let the Beat Build is nonsensical. That track is the best thing I have heard this year. Everything makes perfect sense and has a place and time. Go back to your dark hole and listen to more Connor Oberst.
By ExWayneFan
June 11, 2008 6:50 PM | Link to this
Wayne used to be good, too bad he used up all his good stuff on his mixtapes and still tells us to go get the weak album. He claims himself a lyrisist but Fab’s few lines on u aint got nuthin kills anything weezy tries to string together. The legend is done, and hip hop is dead.
By Lee
June 11, 2008 9:18 PM | Link to this
I think as I read most of these reviews that most have missed the genius behind this album. It’s hard for any of us to make a transition from what we identify as “true hip hop” and the future of hip hop. ‘Lil wayne broke new ground on this album showing us not only lyrics but more importantly; concept. He is a true artist and every song on this album is a smash just because you can’t help but anticipate what he will say next, a la Jay Z!