Lil Wayne is a New Orleans (USA) rapper who has been present on the music scene for around 10 years and shot to worldwide recognition with the release of this, his sixth studio album 'Tha Carter III.' The album achieved swathes of award nominations and scooped the rapper the title of 'Best Hip-Hop Video' at the 2008 MTV Video Music Awards and also contributed to him winning four Grammys in 2009. A very notable achievement for a hip-hop artist.
'Wayne' whose real name is 'Dwayne Michael Carter Jr.' had naturally, preceded 'Tha Carter III' with 'Tha Carter ' and 'The Carter II' amongst other albums. He is soon to release his seventh album entitled 'The Rebirth' in autumn of 2009 and has said it a much more rock orientated direction than his music currently moved in. Despite his hip-hop background and album history, Wayne has stated that from a young age he loved bands like Nirvana so the album should either be one to remember or one to avoid, as most brave yet experimental musical changes tend be. Most of Wayne's music is basically Southern American hip-hop with elements of the Atlanta rap scene and crunk American club beats. His vocal approach is unique which has led to many to laud him as the next big thing in the world of hip-hop music and he has recently featured on tracks for more than 10 other prominent performers as a guest vocalist. However, all is not perfect for Wayne, he has been in trouble with the law in recent years for narcotics and weapons offences... but let's face it, most US rappers have.
Tha Carter III's initial release featured 16 tracks and ran well over an hour in length so was already good value for you hard earned money. So upon release of the 'Deluxe Edition' -which features eight more tracks and more than an extra half an hour of music in total- the album became a massive almost two hour record which offers a variety of vibrant moods and host's of guest vocalists and producers. There are a variety of releases with varying tracks and remixes as bonuses but I think I have the most comprehensive addition so will try to give a view of each track available.
The album is in so many forms and couple have been completely different had it not been for an internet leak of most of the original tracks for the album. Wayne did plan to release this collection of tracks as an album called 'The Leak' but this never materialised an instead he went to produce even more material for 'Tha Carter III.'
I have to state, before I review the album, that I had not even liked Lil Wayne until very recently after this album was recommended to me as his tracks appeared to be no different to countless others pouring out of America at the moment and the lyrics I had heard had not impressed me. However, after listening to this album, it is clear that where Wayne lacks, he compensates with his ability to stick to the beat, not with his lyrics, but with his style. He just sounds like he belongs on every track and I found that given a few chances, this album really grew on me.
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THa CaRTeR III
Track 1 [3 Peat]
A slow and bass'y drum beat warms up the album and a mellow yet dramatic violin sample helps to craft a pretty decent first beat. Wayne raps with a distinctive sort of flow. His rhyme schemes are very unconventional and sometimes can be almost inspired and brilliant from an emcee's point
of view. But at other points in the album they are so basic it is almost embarrassing. However, he usually watches his step and manages to produce a good-sounding verse with what appears to be little effort. This track is pretty good and a satisfactory opener.
Score (7/10)
Track 2 [Mr Carter (featuring Jay-Z)]
Immediately I liked this track, the concept seemed so simple yet clever. With both rappers’ real surnames being 'Carter' they answer along to 'Mr Carter' by saying 'I am him... ’ The chorus works really well and a good hook always gives any track a good chance. The beat is a slightly bumping drum loop with keyboards and/or a piano. Wayne raps most of the track but manages to carry himself impressively when coupled with, the rap veteran Jay-Z. Jay-Z's verse is one of the best I have heard from in the past couple of years and the track really succeeds in most areas. As a consequence, it is one of my favourites on the album.
Score (8.5/10)
Best Lyrics: Jay-Z CHYeeeah! I'm right yeah in my chair, with my crown and my dear Queen Bee, as I share, mic time with my heir Young Carter, go farther, go further, go harder Is that not why we came? And if not, then why bother?
A light and airy beat is merely a hoax ahead of the repetitive sample and US club beat that make up this track. The constant repetition of 'A Milli A Milli A Milli A Milli' in the background to makes most of the tune may irritate some to the point of hatred. Admittedly, the track is pretty good in some ways but I can't escape the idea of fourteen your olds playing it from their phones on the bus. Probably a love me or hate kind of track.
Score (6/10)
Track 4 [Got Money (featuring T-Pain)]
A slightly more troublesome beat, more energetic than the previous one with the tendency to fill a dance floor. This kind of track is rife in many US clubs, which tend to favour a breed of slow dance music crossed with hip-hop as oppose to the happy hardcore or cheesy yin-yang of most UK clubs. The vocals are altered with a synthesiser quite a lot in parts of the track and it doesn't really sound anything new but is a good example of its kind still. A typical rap song about flashing the cash.
Score (6.5/10)
Track 5 [Comfortable (featuring Babyface)]
A very strong R&B vibe in inescapable here. A rap ballad if there can be such a thing, Wayne shows a sensitive(ish) side and the chorus is crooned way by Babyface. In essence, a love song. Quite radio friendly really but a little uneventful.
Score (6/10)
Track 6 [Dr Carter]
Produced by the omnipotent 'Swizz Beats' this track is a strange one but his presence manages to create a decent beat for the song. The concept is that Wayne is a 'The Doctor' (of rap) and he is presented with patients with 'lack of concepts and originality' 'weak flows' and other superimposed vocal ailments which Wayne tries to rectify. The beat samples an orchestral tune called 'Holy Thursday' by 'David Axelrod. The sampled song is also on 'Grand Theft Auto IV.' The beat works really well in the end and the track is a creative one.
Score (8/10)
Track 7 [Phone Home]
A slow build up to the track with little hints of brass and some sort of tubular bells or xylophone notes lead the way until a bass-heavy drum beat joins the party. Wayne raps the verses himself and manages decent verses each time but the chorus is a little dull. The beat is nothing more than average either really.
Score (5.5/10)
Track 8 [Tie My Hands (featuring Robin Thicke)]
An acoustic guitar is the basis for this tune's beginnings and this ties in well with the style of the guest vocalist. Robin Thicke has a soft style of singing and lends his voice to this track. A very laid back beat with equal lots of singing and not that much actual rapping from Wayne, although when he does rap there are not many complaints.
Score (6.5/10)
Track 9 [Mrs Officer]
Wyclef is the man behind the music this time with a soulful rhythm that carries on nicely from the smooth vibe the album is starting to create. The track begins as a sort of love song, where Wayne sings about being stopped by a female police officer and the two hit it off - very quickly. there are plenty of little jokes about police and a funny ending to the chorus. Actually made me laugh out loud. Bobby Valentino sings the chorus, and 'Kidd Kidd' provides one of the verses. One of the coolest and most universal tracks so far, unless you work for the police, in which case, you may need to rent a sense of humour =P
Score (8/10)
Best Lyrics - Lil Wayne
Ha Ha! And after we got done, I said... 'Lady what's your number?' She said nine one. Emergency only, here doctor perform surgery on me, ...and now I healed, I'll make her wear nothin but handcuffs and heels...
And I beat it like a cop, Rodney King baby, I beat it like a cop Ha Ha! beat it like a cop, Rodney King baby, yeah I beat it like a cop
But I aint try'n'a be violent, I'll do my time but her love is timeless. Mrs Officer, I know you wish your name was Mrs Carter huh?
Track 10 [Let the Beat Build]
Another beat that Kanye West had a hand in producing. A soulful gospel choir is the basis for the tune and a piano and harmonica and an extra dimension. Wayne shows that his taste in music is not limited and the complete lack of drums for most of this song is testament to Wayne's versatility. Overall, the track is nothing remarkable but it adds an extra colour to the spectrum of the album.
Score (6/10)
Track 11 [Shoot Me Down]
Produced by Kanye West, this is one of the albums strongest rap beats. Very low tempo with various bass samples and a very serious vibe. Quite timid in terms of actual aggression expressed but full of pent up energy which is always threatening to split through the sides of the track. A very good track and a return to the hip hop vibe.
Score (7.5/10)
Track 12 [Lollipop (featuring Static Major]
Most people will have heard this song, whether they know it or not. It has been everywhere and is bombarded in adverts for ringtones and music videos. A cult smash straight away and one of the album's award winning tracks. A very 'dirty south' beat again. this type of song seems to be sweeping up fans in America and to some extent of the UK. The kind of track that encourages bumping and grinding and seems so popular today. The chorus is another of those irritatingly catchy ones, but is pretty decent really. The verses are pretty simple but complex rhyme schemes and deep opinions don't tend to lead to any form of commercial success today. The mainstream tends to latch on to tracks about money, girls, parties and drink/drugs. A little worrying statement about society maybe but musically, it has been known for a long while that popularity favours attitude over intellect.
Score (7/10)
Track 13 [La La (featuring Brisco & Busta Rhymes)]
A very infantile beat with an appropriate sample of little children humming out 'La La La La La La La La' Wayne raps about his young daughter for some of the track but Brisco fails to impress me with his verse. Busta Rhymes provides a characteristically professional verse although I feel his style of rapping favours a slightly faster beat. Some highlights in the rap of Busta and Wayne but a poor beat lets the track down.
Score (5/10)
Track 14 [Playin' With Fire]
More piano in the beat, with an atmospheric chill in it's notes and a peculiar delivery from Wayne make this a track worthy of note. Maybe not the most laboured and polished delivery from Wayne but that isn't really what he intends in his style really. The track's main chorus is powerful and seems to push Wayne into a more energetic delivery. Overall, another good track.
A synthetic beat is first trodden by Fabolous with one of the most disciplined verses of the last few tracks. He sticks to the beat as well as Jay-Z and Busta Rhymes managed to and he is probably the third impressive guest rapper so far. The title might be a grammatical nightmare but the actual track is hardly going to fall down on that fact!! The beat isn't spectacular but is the type that allows the guys on the mic to deliver a medium tempo verse whilst keeping the ability to produce some enjoyable bursts of rhyming.
Score (7/10)
Track 16 [Don't Get It]
This near ten-minute monster of a track is the climax to the original 16 track issue of 'Tha Carter III' and it opens with a great sample of 'Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood' and a vibrant but kicked back beat which is perfect to take the album through its final minutes. A pretty simple set of verses from Wayne but the song is a top notch background beat. In my opinion, that is not even a criticism of the actual song. Maybe a little swipe at some lazy lyrics, but eventually Wayne just degenerates into talking the album out to its climax. Clearly rap wasn't the order of the day; he makes his own political opinions on society, education and crime public domain in the tracks last few minutes. A very decent way to take the album out, not musically brilliant but the track has other merits and the beat is still a damn good one.
Score (7/10)
Available Bonus Tracks
*This first five tracks are available on the 'Standard Deluxe Edition' of the album.
[I'm Me]
In some ways, an uplifting beat with positive sentiments. Some of his better verses are on this track and a decent chorus despite its simplicity. A shame it's missing from the main album as it is one of the best tracks altogether.
Score (8/10)
[Gossip]
A pretty eventful beat with true hip-hop form and a strong performance from Wayne make this another track that is a loss to the standard album.
Score (7/10)
[Kush]
This track however is welcome to not be included on the album. Probably the laziest rhyming I have ever heard in my life. A reasonably good, chilled out beat is tainted by an annoying set of samples and Wayne rhyming the words turtle with itself 4 times in two lines. Also hampered by a chorus that wears thin after one or two listens.
Score (4/10)
[Love Me Or Hate]
Wayne is better on this track with an inventive flow and approach. A grand beat which builds to a crescendo that drops into a soulful and positive track.
A pretty ominous beginning gives way to a reasonable track. Nothing special, the track excels during the verses and is penalised by its weak, sharp sounding choruses and breaks.
Score (5.5/10)
*The next two tracks are on the 'Limited Edition Deluxe' version
[Whip It]
A heavy beat with a funky rhythm is another track that would have been great on the original album. One of the quickest rapping tempos of all the tracks and a song that after listening to again whilst I review, I enjoy a little more now.
Score (7/10)
[Action]
This track is also available on some UK editions of the original 'Tha Carter III.' Another heavy beat, produced by 'Deezle' as are many other beats for the record. A pretty decent song, with a vibe on hype as 'It's Showtime! It's Showtime' rings out. Wayne rhymes with some slightly questionable content but some evident skill.
Score (7/10)
* The final two tracks are bonus tracks available on iTunes.
[Prostitute 2]
A synth-heavy track with another slightly uncharacteristic instrumental for Southern Hip Hop, however, the presence of the kick drums ensures that it isn't totally diluted. Not a bad track but you wouldn't miss it too much.
Score (6/10)
[Lollipop Remix (featuring Kanye West]
A different angle on the album's most successful track and different enough to warrant a separate track. A fairly good appearance from the biggest ego in hip-hop (aka Kanye) but again, I can’t help think they should have just brought all the tracks out at once.
Score (7/10)
Overall
If you are still reading, well done! I'm impressed and hope the breakdown of the albums helped. There are so many variations of this release that you could get various different combinations of tracks and that is one of my main criticisms of the album. I think the release of a double album would have been more relevant or just a couple more strong tracks and there could be two good albums here. The other negative is that Wayne does have a tendency for sloppy lyrics, rhyming a word with itself quite often but at times he really does display lots of talent. He knows how to make a song sound funky (obviously helped by top producers) and whether you like this type of music, there are elements of many songs which touch on other genres and undeniably make good tunes.
The positives are far greater than I expected and was bracing myself for a two-star review before I had listened. I have now heard it four or five times and each time I find another track I like or something similar. It is easy to judge this kind of music from brief encounters with it and the profiles of the artists who make it but it has the potential to be soulful, passionate and yet still full of fire and power when it chooses to be. This album in particular manages to maintain good consistency in general with a handful of genuinely weak tracks. It would be the most amazing value for money if all the tracks were included together in every instance, but the potential to maybe have to buy the album two or even three times to get all the tracks is a little bit of a sour note. However, with you now ridiculously extensive knowledge of this album you should be able to get the version you need should you want to.
The best guest performance on 'Tha Carter III' comes from Jay-Z but Fabolous, Busta Rhymes, Bobby Valentino, T-Pain and Juelz Santana all offer valuable contributions to their relevant tracks. The support of such big names is testament to the waves Lil Wayne is making within his industry and I think I am starting to see what all the fuss is about.
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3 Peat Mr. Carter A Milli (Re-Mastered) Got Money Comfortable Dr. Carter Phone Home Tie My ... more
Hands Mrs. Officer Let The Beat Build Shoot Me Down Lollipop (Re-Mastered) La La Playing With Fire You Ain't Got Nuthin DontGetIt Digital Insert - 'Action
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Advantages: Fantastic lyrics and an album which you wont get bored of. Disadvantages: Some tracks have very repetative backing music which can get annoying.
Advantages: Fantastic lyrics and an album which you wont get bored of. Disadvantages: Some tracks have very repetative backing music which can get annoying.
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