A journey that was a culmination of my college career finally ended on September 28. I was a Freshman when my Roommate (a Wayne stan) and I eagerly anticipated the continuation of Tha Carter Series. What would it sound like we thought. The latest Lil Wayne release at the time was Dedication 5 and the attention it garnered was based on the name alone. It seemed as if Wayne was trying to once again cash in on the idea of the titles of his projects being bigger than his popularity at the time actually was. The initial announce of Tha Carter V was exciting, but also frustrating. The last entry in the series wasn’t particularly well crafted, as it lacked the potency of Wayne’s usual energy. Tha Carter IV was a combination of what made pre and post prison Wayne so painful to listen to, the lack of hunger and poor creative choices (e.g. Wayne’s rock album: Rebirth).
As terrible as it sounds, the legal troubles preventing Tha Carter V from releasing was the best thing to happen Wayne’s career since 2008. Between the announcement of Tha Carter V and it’s actual release, Lil Wayne released Sorry 4 the Wait 2 (an argument could be made for being one of the top four mixtapes of Wayne’s career), Free Weezy Album, No Ceilings 2, a “collaboration” album with 2 Chainz; ColleGrove, and two part Dedication 6. Most of these feature tracks that emanate the hunger and fire that was loss. The act of being betrayed by a mentor re-invergerated Wayne causing him to release some of his best material in years after being on auto-pilot while he began coining the Young Money brand early in the decade.
So where does this leave us? Tha Carter V is a 23 track album spanning with material dating back to its initial announcement all the way to more recent revelations in genre including. The album while bogged down by its runtime feels like celebration of Wayne’s newfound purpose. C5 is certainly one of the most rewarding waits I’ve experienced fr delayed projects.
On “Don’t Cry” Wayne paints a post apocalyptic picture for listeners, but almost as if he will break free from the shackles of the darkness and be revived. It’s forbidding when we understand that Birdman probably tried to have Wayne killed during the entire legal battle between the two men.
The highlight, Uproar, which features the same production from Green Ranger on Dedication 4, showcases Wayne in a modern setting without breaking character, truly demonstrating the idea that his sound should be seen as eternal as fellow rapper Jay-Z.
Wayne does stumble. Can’t Be Broken and Famous are cringe-inducing pop anthems that feel as if they once belonged to sessions with Recovery era Eminem and go against the idea of Wayne sticking to a true artistic choice and instead trying to get another sleeper hit similar to Mirrors with Bruno Mars from Tha Carter IV.
Through the second half of the album Wayne experiments with his voice emulating what I loved about Sorry 4 The Wait 2. On Took His Time and Mess, Wayne reverbs throughout the tracks. It’s smooth in a hypnotic sense. It’s as if he finally found the proper use for unique voice rather than creating weird ballads attune to“How to Love”. Perhaps a continuation of the artistic choice made on Prostitue Flange from 2007.
The emotional climax of the album, Let it All Work Out, which samples Sampha’s Indecision recounts the situation where Wayne accidentally shot himself with his mothers gun when he was a child. A situation that was used to discredit Wayne’s streetcred and intelligence by disgruntled listeners in his rise to stardom reveals the portrait of an artist tortured as rather a suicide attempt than missattempt. It’s the perfect end cap to a stunted release. For the first time in years Wayne feels right at home. What felt like an eternal wait is met with a a man free from his oppressors and with a newfound passion for something that almost made him kill himself. It’s as if Wayne has something to live for again and it’s a beautiful thing to experience.
P. Pardo: Words & Instant Karma 