Before the Wayne stans slink out of the woodwork, let me be clear: Tha Carter III is a good album. A three-star effort on the Times scale or in more rap-friendly terms, a four- mic album back when the phrase meant something. Yes, my review might be slightly overly critical. Then again, when you call yourself the “greatest rapper alive,” and can’t go 16 bars without insecurely boasting that you’re in a league with the Nas’, Jay-Z’s and BIG’s, you are intentionally subjecting yourself to a different rubric.
Point being, if you are constantly trumpeting your world-beating dominance and originality, you are not allowed to call a song “Get Money.” That is, unless you can make it better than “Get Money.” To paraphrase the Notorious L.L.O.Y.D. Bentsen, I have seen Biggie Smalls., Mr. Weezy F. Baby. and you sir are no Biggie Smalls.
So no, this is not Wayne’s Blueprint/Ready to Die/Illmatic, if anything it’s his Volume 3…Life and Times of D. Carter. I’d continue here but the review is linked below and the Times was gracious enough to let me ramble for 800 words, so there is that. Besides, this is the Internet and there is a comment box below and maybe just maybe you have an opinion on this Wayne fellow?
LA Times: Lil Wayne-Tha Carter III
MP3: Lil Wayne ft. Jay-Z-“Mr. Carter”
MP3: Lil Wayne ft. Kanye West-“Lollipop Remix”
Video: Junior Mafia-“Get Money” (Because I mean…)
