Review #208: Tha Carter III, Lil Wayne
#208: Tha Carter III, Lil Wayne
Let’s get the obvious out of the way: Post Malone’s face owes Lil Wayne’s face a “Thank you.”
I’ve always loved Lil Wayne’s “croaky, syrup-addled” voice. But for whatever reason, I never got into his albums themselves. I was too busy with the Fugees and Ice Cube and the Beastie Boys. In fact, 2000s rappers didn’t grab my attention for a long time. The only current rapper I listened to when I was growing up was Eminem. (Yeah, yeah…)
But listening to this with a pair of trained ears makes me glad I wasn’t poisoned against him when I was in middle school. Lots of rap albums that I’ve listened to are basically infected with the same sound all the way through. I’m sure Weezy haters will say this one is no different, but I was really struck by how many differences there really were in tone and production stuff on every song.
Final note: Listening to albums from this era are sometimes tough because they’re all very bold and insulting in their use of a certain gay slur and the “R” word. 2008? Weezy, you should have known better.
FAVORITE SONGS:
“3 Peat” — I’m sorry, but I always think of Drake & Josh when I hear the word “threepeat.” (I can’t find the exact moment on YouTube, but here’s a clip of them singing the Blues Brothers.)
“Mr. Carter” — Did you know that Jay-Z and Lil Wayne both have the surname Carter? Well now you do! I also really love the electronicized chorus vocals by Sha Ron Prescott.
“A Milli” — Supposedly recorded in just one take. Freestyle rap is so mysterious to me. I edit everything I write and say several times before I let anyone see or hear it.
“Got Money” — I’ve come to appreciate a good T-Pain feature! It makes every song sound so 2000s. To say nothing of the “Umbrella” shout-out.
“Comfortable” — This one was fun because I understood a lot of the references. At the end when he says “Thank you, Mr. West,” it’s because Kanye produced this one!
“Dr. Carter” — The concept of this one cracked me up. I would watch a TV show about Lil Wayne “doctoring up” weaker rappers. Shout-out to this very professional-sounding nurse. Good afternoon, Dr. Carter…His confidence is down, vocab and metaphors needs work/And he lacks respect for the game.
“Phone Home” — We are not the same, I am a Martian. You’ll be relieved to know that this song samples the soundtrack for the movie E.T..
“Tie My Hands” — With crooner Robin Thicke, 5 years before “Blurred Lines” cursed his career. But Lil Wayne duetting with an R&B crooner is actually pretty cool.
“Mrs. Officer” — Wee-oo-wee-oo-wee-oo! The music video omits both Bobby V.’s and Kidd Kidd’s verses, which I actually think is a shame, because I like the police walkie-talkie part. Also, fun fact from this song’s Wikipedia page, “Rapper 2 Chainz, known then as Tity Boi, was originally featured on the song.”
“Let The Beat Build” — The climax of this song ROCKS. That’s how you let the beat build, b****. Also I’m all about this sample.
“Shoot Me Down” — I sweat money and the bank is my shower.
“Lollipop” — This sounds like it could be a Robyn backing track. Also, [censored].
“La La” — After that crazy dirty song, we get a backtrack from Shrek 3??? Lil Wayne, much like an onion, has layers.
“P**** Monster” — [CENSORED].
“You Ain’t Got Nuthin” — Mmm, listen to that sweet, sweet Autotune.
LEAST FAVORITE SONGS:
“Don’tGetIt” — Call me cynical, but I think most songs that have a monologue at the end are kind of lame. I do love the Nina Simone sample, though.
IS RS FULL OF IT?
What can I say? I’m a sucker for the frog voice.
I’m so glad we’re running into the 2000s era of rap. Lil Wayne is a maniac and I can’t wait to listen to Tha Carter II.
