DuB is just a few days removed from questioning Pac’s legacy and yesterday he reviewed the latest album by self-proclaimed, “Greatest Rapper Alive”, Tha Carter IV (Check that review here). DuB’s never half-steppin’ on his reviews so we’re not doing this to step on his review, but just to let other folks know (Once again) what the rest of the staff thought about such a major album. – Saule Wright
B-Easy
After so-so releases like Rebirth & I Am Not A Human Being, Tha Carter IV was suppose to be the reassurance that Lil’ Wayne was still at the top of his game. But an album filled with lines like “Fuck them niggas, and them hoes, them niggas pussy. Camel toes” have Weezy looking more like a lazy parody of his former self instead of the best rapper alive. This gets even more apparent when Wayne gets out rapped by Rick Ross on “John” and the best verses on Tha Carter IV are from Andre 3000 & Tech N9ne. A few songs here even sound like lesser versions of previous ones (“President Carter” sounds like “Outstanding”, “Megaman” sounds like “Ransom”, etc.). It’s not like the album isn’t enjoyable at all, parts of it give glimpses of why Wayne has amassed million of fans. And of course an uninspired Lil’ Wayne is still better than most rappers. But at this stage in Weezy’s career, we need a more defining album than this. I guess will wait and see on Tha Carter V.
Saule Wright
Weezy continues to show signs of true skill and promise that he could be in the discussion for G.O.A.T. …if he was consistent. You can’t be the that person without discussing lyrics and that is the problem I have with this album. He has some hot lines like “Money talks and muh’fuckas eavesdroppin'” and “I bought a brand new attitude, the hate is music to my ears I got my dancin’ shoes” but fucks that up with lines like “She’s my honey bee, bzz bazz” and “I tear it up like loose leaf paper” among others. It’s pretty simple to me, if Wayne dedicated himself to his rhyming instead of just completing songs he would be hard to refute as one of the best to do it lyrically (Listen to the poetry at the end of “President Carter”). Instead, what we get and what we’ve been getting is someone who finds great beats to drop punchlines, good or bad. The value of this album is overwhelmingly the tracks, and not the content. If you’re one of those folks that say that Weezy isn’t lyrical he doesn’t give me enough proof to refute you. If you’re one of those folks that really bought into him being “The Greatest Rapper Alive” I can’t wait to hear you defend the bars on this album. If you’re one of those people that pay more attention to the tracks than you do the content, pick it up. I think this album is largely incomplete and inconsistent. Oh, and the interlude is damn near the best song on the album…and he’s not on that one.
King Jerm
Wayne did it again. He is catching alot of flack from critics all over from sounding “uninspired” on this album, but I actually like this album. People are quick to judge this album to Tha Carter III, but what people forget is that Weezy is a different person than he was 3 years ago. He has been to jail, had 3 kids, and has positioned himself into the upper echelon of Hip-Hop. I really think this is his most complete album to date and the only question marks on this album was the song with T-Pain and the addition of Shyne on that song. Weezy, fuck what the rest of these cats saying…keep doing you!
H20
This album to me is the perfect example of an album that was rushed out to meet the hype. When “6 Foot 7 Foot” came out, everyone went crazy for about a month. Every other single off this album has been underwhelming, to say the least. It’s the exact same way with this entire album; Weezy doesn’t sound like he’s really giving his all on this album. He uses the exact same flow on each song and never really sounds too energetic on this track. When you listened to Tha Carter III, regardless of whether or not you thought it was classic, you can’t tell me that listening to that album you didn’t think he wasn’t working his ass off to make it one. I can’t even remotely say the same for this album; it sounds like a collection of songs that were put together at the last minute to stay relevant. Is it a good collection of songs? Well, about half of them are decent, and even that half sounds like every Weezy song you’ve heard before. When the best songs on your album are the ones you DON’T rap on, there’s a problem. Tha Carter IV is, by far, the worst of Tha Carters, and for this collection of songs, I’m happy that C4 blew up in his face.