Tha Carter 3 Album Review

First review

Everyone gather ’round as I walk the tightrope between hater and True Hip-Hop Head in my review of Lil’ Wayne’s sixth album Tha Carter 3. Let’s get some things out the way first, I own all the albums in Wayne’s Tha Carter series, so while not his biggest fan I’m well aware of his lyrical prowess.

With such strong street and industry buzz behind the album, it’s a good guess that TC3’s going to have some bangers. The first track to fill that slot is “Mr. Carter,” featuring Mr. Shawn “Jay-Z” Carter himself, produced by Just Blaze. It’s a perfect example of lyrical mastery, not only does Jay-Z hold his own with the young challenger, he basically takes the track home with him- leaving the booth with his crown intact.

Other standout tracks include “A Milli,” produced by Bangladesh, where Weezy’s flow sounds slightly different than earlier versions where he sounded more care-free but the beat still bangs plain and simple; on “Phone Home” Weezy goes in hard on the David Banner beat with his “Flow so sick/I make you wanna throw ya food up,” and “Tie My Hands,” featuring Robin Thicke, is a nice reunion joint for these two artists who seem to have a good working chemistry- but sadly it’s no “Shooters.”

The two songs that show Weezy F at his best both have mega producers attached but take nothing away from the would-be kings presence on the mic. “Dr. Carter,” produced by Swizz Beats, has Weezy donning a purple medical jacket and using precision wordplay to save wannabe rappers, and even hip-hop, in a marathon session of operations. The quotables on this track alone make up for almost all of Wayne’s drug-induced rants on the rest of this release. Almost. The best song on the album has to be the Kanye West produced “Shoot Me Down” -over subtle drums, Weezy flies high above anything he’s ever done before. Not quite a lyrical beast just good music; the song approaches “Flashing Lights” greatness, I bullshit you not. After hearing this I proclaimed “this is the Lil’ Wayne I want to hear!” and for 4 minutes 30 seconds I was one of the suckled masses hailing him as the “second coming of nice.” Unfortunately the self-proclaimed Martian proves all too human throughout much of rest of Tha Carter 3.

What would an over-hyped album be without duds? TC3 has enough to satisfy. Some songs simply pack no punch and fall squarely in the OK category never reaching the title of Hot! Tracks like “3 Peat”, “Got Money” feat. T-pain, “Nothing, On me” (I heard this shit on a mixtape months ago), “Misunderstood” (Common’s version is better) and “Let the Beat Build” ( what happened ‘Ye?) are perfect examples of mixtape joints not fit for a so-called classic album. Then there are the songs full of too much lean drinkin,’ egotistical ramblings that further show the sad state of present day hip-hop. The worst culprit is “Playing With Fire”(produced by Streetrunner) in which Wayne believes everything that comes out his mouth is lyrical genius while in fact it just sounds like tired metaphors with an extra helping of hip-hop clichés piled on and sandwiched between the overconfidence of youth and a giant ego, creating the perfect dud. “Comfortable” feat. Babyface, “Lollipop,” and “Mrs. Officer” feat. Bobby Valentino are all great duds in their own right each one begging to be deleted from MP3 players and never heard again.

Overall Tha Carter 3 is a decent album whose true potential to be even near classic status was held back by self-indulgence and vanity. Wayne easily proves he has the talent to create amazing music, he’s done this for three albums straight now, and with each one his flow got better. It’s scary to think what this kid will do when he finally puts the Styrofoam cup down. If you’re looking for a decent Lil’ Wayne album then this it, if you’re looking for that classic Lil’ Wayne album come back in a year or two.

by A. Frederick & Nana Nkweti

7/10

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