On September 28, 2018, after 7 years, 1 month, 8 seizures, and around 500,000 gallons of lean consumed, Lil Wayne finally released, Tha Carter V, the latest installment of his critically acclaimed album series.
Perhaps the most hotly anticipated release since that of O.J. Simpson, Tha Carter V picks up right where the previous album left off almost a decade ago. I'm not sure I can put into words exactly how I felt at 12:01 a.m. on September 28, but it was pretty much the opposite of how I felt after watching Attack of the Clones for the first time.
Despite the monumental expectations that the album's delayed release built up for itself, C5 does not disappoint. It's fitting that this album has 23 tracks, as it only goes to further Lil Wayne's case for being the greatest of all time (A reference to Lebron, not Michael Jordan… just to be clear).
With that as a preface, let's take a journey together, and dive deep inside the first five of these 23 songs like James Cameron when he discovered the Titanic, or whatever.
1. I Love You Dwayne
Would it kill you people to call your mother's every once and a while? They're worried that they haven't heard from you and just want to hear your voice, damnit.
On this introduction track, Lil Wayne shares with us an emotional spoken-word message that his mother reads to him, thanking Wayne for being 'her rock' and for supporting his family with his music. If you listen to this and don't get at least a little wishy-washy inside then you're just subhuman.
2. Don't Cry
The first actual song on C5 features the late, XXXTentacion, a rapper who Wayne himself had never heard of until his posthumous hook on the album. I don't know if that says more about X's inability to make a serious impact on rap in what little time he had, or more about the Codine induced haze that Weezy has been living in for the past half-decade. Either way, the two artists mesh together well on this comparatively mellow track, getting the album off to a strong start.
3. Dedicate
Wayne's next song in the rotation sports an upbeat tempo that he uses to play around with different rhyme patterns and flow to the point of exhaustion.
The first verse, for example, is a near constant repetition of the 'oou' sound until he switched to rhyme the 'a' sound in words like 'man', 'plan', and 'diagram'. What's more interesting to me, however, is something that I haven't heard talked about all that much from rap bloggers and institutions, which is the subtle diss to the Migos throughout the track.
The song's hook claims, "You tatted your face and changed the culture", a could-be reference to Migos's Culture album series. Later Wayne says, "Walk it, like you talk it / Now you walkin' in s**t", and, "I started this s**t / they borrowed this s**t."
Again, using repetitive rhymes but more importantly making references to both the Culture II song Walk It Talk It, and to the southern trap style that many credit Lil Wayne with popularizing. It sounds to me like Wayne is invoking a young Holden Caulfield to call the Migos a bunch of phonies who are jacking his style. Remember the first place you heard this when it makes its way to the mainstream.
4. Uproar
If there was an award for 'Song Most Likely to Get More Than A Few People Hit By Cars', Uproar would win that award. The viral dance challenge inspired by the song is all but guaranteed to be responsible for a few cracked pelvis's by the time the year is out.
The track's high-octane beat along with a fun and engaging flow are more similar to something you would find on a Wayne mixtape than on any albums of late, only adding to the almost unusual energy of the record.
5. Let It Fly
This song features Travis Scott, who I am not a fan of. But this song also features the bar: "Tunechi Tune a Lunatic/ My Goonie Goons the Gooniest", which I am a fan of. I'll call it even and declare this song a win.
Tha Carter V was able to reach, if not exceed the lofty expectations that it's multi-year delay resulted in. The album proves that, at 36 years old with 16 albums and 25 mixtapes already under his belt, Lil Wayne is still capable of exploring new areas and evolving as an artist.
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