Tha Carter III: More Lil Wayne, Less Pop Please
As with all things Lil Wayne, you always end up having to take the good with the bad: Dude is undeniably talented, but he’s also a bit of a trainwreck. His swagger and magnetic personality are most of what makes him great, but it also causes him to take things a bit far, like claiming he’s the best rapper alive. As we’ve discussed before, “Favorite Rapper Alive” may be more appropriate.
All that said, as a complete hip-hop package (for commercial rappers anyway), he’s about as good as it gets – he’s a really good MC and he’s completely unafraid to let his freak flag fly and take chances. And on Tha Carter III, that’s when Wayne’s at his best.
Songs like “A Milli,” “Dr. Carter,” “Phone Home” and “La La” are just short of classics. “A Milli” is pure lyrical prowess and weirdness over a droning bass drum (“My criteria compared to your career just isn’t fair/I’m a venereal disease like a menstrual bleed/Through the pencil and leak on the sheet of the tablet in my mind/’Cause I don’t write shit cause I ain’t got time”), while he envisions himself as a doctor in the ER saving a dying hip-hop on “Dr. Carter” and an alien on “Phone Home.”
“La La” is a production masterpiece by David Banner that, unfortunately, has a guest turn from Busta Rhymes, but really needs nothing more than Lil Wayne’s unrestrained insanity. There’s even a song with T-Pain (who needs to shove his Vocoder up his ass and go away forever) that Wayne makes listenable through sheer force of will.
That personality, which makes Wayne who he is, strangely is responsible for the moments where Tha Carter III falters a bit – not because he gets to be too much, but because he tries to hold it back. The handful of songs on Tha Carter III that were obviously made to be more pop friendly don’t stand out at all – not next to the better songs on the album, at least.
Kanye West drops two duds in “Comfortable” and “Shoot Me Down” before redeeming himself with “Let The Beat Build.” “Lollipop” is already a radio hit, but also pretty unspectacular.
As a complete piece, however, Tha Carter III is great. It shows a Lil Wayne who’s maturing a bit, but also coming apart at the seams (in a good way) and breaking out of the formulaic prison that commercial hip-hop has become. Let’s hope for the fourth volume, Wayne just says “fuck it” and lets his maniacal creativity take over. A 16-song manifestation of his true talent would be so much more enjoyable than having to skip over tracks that you know he’s better than. Maybe then, he’ll be the best rapper alive.
MP3s:
Lil Wayne – “A MilliLil Wayne – “Dr. Carter”
Lil Wayne – “La La”
best review i heard so far! you managed to judge the album as it is not as you personally and emotionally expected it to be like every other review i been reading. well done and i agree with you on some points but good review overall.
Finally someone with brains!!!
Wow. Thanks for that. Tom Breihan at the Village Voice has a good track-by-track dissection of the album too: http://blogs.villagevoice.com/statusainthood/archives/2008/06/_ha_ha_ha_ha.php
He also fell in love with “A Milli” – I’ve seriously listened to that like 1,000 times. I’m depressed that I don’t have a car to seriously slap songs like this anymore.
“Dr. Carter” alone is worth the price of the admission. Even though the sample (David Axelrod’s “Holy Thursday”) has been used by everyone from Pete Rock and DJ Shadow to the Beatnuts, Weezy makes it his own…..
This is a close second:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JkMPxgolIJM&feature=related
It’s easy to dismiss Weezy’s “greatest rapper alive” claim as standard rapper swagger, but I really don’t think he’s far off. Jay-Z’s body of work and influence on hip-hop is definitely larger, and I’d even argue that Eminem belongs in that upper echelon. But both of them are past their primes.
It doesn’t have the same ring, but I’d say Weezy is probably the “best current rapper”
No. He talks way too much bullshit to come close. He’s technically good and has like 9,000 different styles, but for 50 percent of the time, he’s just babbling. Jay always had a point, Wayne barely ever does. He’s still awesome, just not the best.
Though thinking about it for 30 seconds, I can’t think of who would be …
That’s my point. His claim is easy to dismiss, especially because he’s such a clown, but it’s tough to give the crown to anyone else
There doesn’t have to be a crown. The Pulitzer withholds awarding the prize if there are no worthy recipients. Also, I thought of two – both Andre 3K and Big Boi of OutKast guys are better.
Stranger, we’ve talked about this before, but Eminem, really? Dude certainly had his moment, and certainly can rhyme and all, but I don’t know, as a package I think his albums suck. Maybe it’s because they were commercially produced to penetrate a gigantic following of middle-class white, college kids but I kind of always took Eminem as being the first white rapper to sound black, which is impressive considering previous candidates are the formulaic Beastie Boys. But as far as putting him close to the likes of JZ, Biggie and Tupac I think you’re way off the mark.
That being said, I’ll be the first to admit I’m not all too well versed in hip hop, but even Lil’ Wayne seems like a big gimmick to me. The first time I got into hip hop wasn’t because I heard the big thumping, brow-beating swagger of guys like Lil’ Wayne, it was when I heard records that are elegantly produced. Sound snobby? Sure and I’ll always come off that way, but I’d much rather hear anything, ANYTHING on Stones Throw. Maybe it’s because I’m more of beat junky, I dunno. I need more hip hop education, I guess. But I don’t understand why the likes of MF DOOM just fall through the cracks – not accessible enough? I mention Madlib to friends and they have no clue who I’m talking about. I guess I’m on my own little island.
Both Biggie and Pac are dead, so they’re out. (Still think Tupac is among the most over-rated musicians ever.)
I’m certainly not defending Eminem’s entire Oeuvre, but when he was on, he was pretty damn amazing.
MF Doom is awesome. No two ways about it. But MCs like him and Ghostface are great at what they do, but tend to make the same song over and over (really well). Weezy’s got a million different flows and his rhymes are unbelievable.
Cor, I’m with you on OutKast, but I don’t know if I can even call A3k a rapper anymore. Regardless, they both belong on the list.
Oeuvre? Really? Panther – Eminem is really, really good. I don’t have a French word to use, but he was good. MF Doom is like all artists who don’t make it big, just not for everyone. Like Madlib. I’m not really a fan because his beats are soo … slow … and … plodding. I prefer fast. I think to be the most skilled rapper and best rapper are two different things. There’s a package that needs to be there, not just technical stuff. And Beastie Boys formulaic? Dood.
Yay, our first 10 comment thread – and only eight of them are ours!
Beastie Boys formula:
One person rhymes and all of them shout the last word of each line.
I’ll stir fry you in my WOK!
Like a pinch on the neck from MR. SPOK
etc., etc., etc., over and over again…
Oh no. Shit talk against Beastie Boys is never allowed, not even on your own site.
Just to get into the mix 8 days late, the best rapper alive is and always will be QTip, hands down. His style is impeccible, his flow unmatchable, his… well you get it.
Ok… I have now listened to this album for a while and it IS much better than previous efforts – in fact, infinitely better. He has really matured as an artist, and I will admit that I didn’t expect it to be this good. I shall give this one to you Mr. Corey, and will stay tuned to your hip hop expertise. That is, as long as you don’t try to convince me that the Flobots rock.
Torp – I love the Beastie Boys. No doubt about it. Just saying I stopped getting excited for their releases sometime after the Sounds of Science (which is a compilation, ha). But, yes they are responsible for a style that has been emulated over and over. Beastie Boys, if you are reading this – I love ya. I just demand a lot from the best.