Tha Carter V
Maybe more than any other rapper in history, Lil Wayne’s output is defined by franchises. An artist should be so lucky to sustain the kind of longevity that would allow for multi-volume phases the likes of Wayne’s *Dedication*, and *Da Drought* mixtapes, let alone the series that made him into a superstar, *Tha Carter*. Though Wayne was not without projects in between, some seven years were allowed to pass between the release of the fourth and fifth installments of the lattermost. Fortunately, Wayne has rewarded his fans’ patience with 23 tracks that speak to a number of his most storied eras. “Mixtape Weezy,” as Jay-Z famously coined, is alive and well on songs like the Swizz Beatz-produced “Uproar,” Wayne blacking out over a reinterpretation of G-Dep’s 2001 hit “Special Delivery.” The nostalgia doesn’t stop (or peak) there, as Wayne and Snoop Dogg share space over a flip of Dr. Dre’s “Xxplosive” on “Dope N\*ggaz,” while Mannie Fresh revisits the Cash Money golden-era bounce of Juvenile’s “Ghetto Children” for “Start This Shit Off Right.” There are nods to the experimental Wayne of the *I Am Not A Human Being* projects (“Don’t Cry,” “Mess”) and also the rapper’s under-heralded pop wizardry (“Famous,” which features his daughter Reginae as hook singer), and even a love song built on a gospel sample, “Dope New Gospel.” In all, *Tha Carter V* is an album for anyone who’s missed Wayne—no matter which Wayne they’d missed.
The long-delayed album captures Wayne how we want to remember him: openhearted, word-drunk, and exhilarated by the possibilities of his own voice.
Lil Wayne’s long-delayed Tha Carter V has enough highlights to carry it through, while metal vets High On Fire offer one of their most ass-kicking albums yet, and Philly DIY rockers Swearin’ return restless and reflective on Fall Into The Sun. Plus, we look at the third LP from Death Valley Girls, Darkness Rains.
Much of this record is an elegiac homage to Lil Wayne’s outlier status as an elder statesman of hip-hop. Sadly, he cheapens himself, too
Rapper Lil Wayne's long-delayed album 'Tha Carter V' reminds us why he's one of the greats in hip-hop.
"Still the motherfuckin' best rapper a-live," Lil Wayne offhandedly declares on "Dope New Gospel," a coasting track on which the unmistakable MC also insists that he's irreplaceable, even in death.
Since the release of Tha Carter IV in 2011, Lil Wayne has left fans clinging on to any hope that the quintessential rap series would continu...
Originally slated for release in 2014, this long delayed album doesn't entirely resonate but has some magic in thereIt’s hard to believe it’s been a full ten years since the release of Lil Wayne’s Tha Carter III.
After five years in label purgatory, ‘Tha Carter V’ finally arrived when the clock struck midnight on Lil Wayne’s 36th birthday.