Lil Wayne - The Carter
Reviewed By: ULTIMATECDLINK
Album Rate: 4.25 out of 5 Stars
Lil Wayne has been rhyming with Cash Money Records since he was just a kid on the blocks of N.O. Now as the only member of the Hot Boys left on CMR, he drops his anticipated 4th solo project featuring Baby aka The Birdman, Jazze Pha, Reel, and the single "Bring It Back" w/ Mannie Fresh.
1. Walk In-- Lil Wayne starts it off introducing us to his "building" (as in the movie New Jack City). Weezy flows his ass off on this one and you can immediately tell that this album will be a huge improvement over "500 Degreez". Funky blues guitar beat over a booming bassline fits the track nicely. This one reminds of one of those long freestyle sessions in the studio where the artists just go up and rip a beat. Nice ass track.
2. Go DJ (f/ Mannie Fresh)-- Mannie starts it off talkin over the stuttery computerized synthesizer beat. Has an old school feel with the chants of "Go DJ - cause that's my DJ" on the hook. Lil Wayne does a nice job on the mic and drops a slower flow than what he's shown us in the past on his albums. Some nice metaphors like "I've been runnin my city like Diddy, chump" throughout the song. Good effort on the song although the hook isn't all that.
3. This Is The Carter (f/ Mannie Fresh)-- this one has a guitar beat similar to "This Is How We Do" from the Big Tymers album and I can honestly see this as being the next single released from the single. Mannie adds his hilarious vocals on the hook "This is the Carter - so hold on to your teenage daughter - Wayne in your brain young Carter". Commercial single written all over this one.
4. BM Jr.-- this one has a dark mobby feel with the church bells thrown in that Lil Jon loves to use. Lil Wayne again rips the track lettin us know that he runs the streets down in Lil Weezy-ana. Some really nice punchlines on this one and again, a clean ass beat makes this a track that you're gonna bump over and over. Without a doubt, one of the tightest tracks Cash Money has come out with in recent years.
5. On The Block #1 (skit)
6. I Miss My Dawgs (f/ Reel)-- this one has a reminscing about the good times beat to it which fits the track perfectly since Lil Wayne steps up and lets his former Hot Boys homies know that he wants to make up and do it big with them again. Separate verses for B.G., Juvenile, and Turk lettin each of them know that he wants by-gones to by-gones for his "family". Perhaps we'll get a future Hot Boys reunion album with new verses from everyone instead of old recycled flows. Tight song overall.
7. We Don't (f/ Baby)-- this one has a violin and piano laced beat before the hi-hats kick in. The Birdman starts it off and lets the streets know that killin is a habit. Lil Wayne comes tight on the mic again as well as on the chorus. "Life's a bitch and death's her husband - and you're gonna have to meet em if you keep fuckin up" is one of those verses that make you think that Wayne has come a long way with his lyrics since the last album. Tight song.
8. On My Own (f/ Reel)-- midtempo beat with the snares bassline kickin in. Lil Wayne proclaims himself as the prince of Cash Money Records and New Orleans on this one. Weezy does a decent job on this one but it's not nearly as tight and any of the previous songs on the album.
9. Tha Heat-- the song starts off with gunblasts and Lil Wayne on the hook sayin "I shoot ya arm, leg, leg, arm, head". One of those tracks about gunplay and street heat in the murder capital of the U.S. Nice song worth checkin out.
10. Cash Money Millionaires-- this one starts off with a beat that reminds me of 8Ball and MJG's "Pimp Hard". Lil Wayne raps about how he don't give a fuck cause he's a Cash Money Millionaire. The hook has a screwed up voice sayin "Who they think they fuckin with?". Nice song.
11. Inside (skit)-- plays off The Carter building theme again when Lil Wayne kicks a short verse like he's showing you through his house.
12. Bring It Back (f/ Mannie Fresh)-- the first single from the album has been in constant rotation in most of the radio stations in the South. By now, most of us have heard the Mannie Fresh-laden hook "put ya hands on your knees and bend your rump - put ya back in back out do the hump - I bring it back to tha bottom of the map." Two things stood out when the single first hit...one was the more mature flow of Weezy and the other was the brash declaration at the end that he was the "best rapper alive since the best rapper retired". An obvious reference to his favorite rapper Jay-Z. Throw in a Soulja Slim reference as well and you have a hit single on your hands. Mannie kills the beat as usual which makes it one of the best songs on the album.
13. Who Wanna-- this one has one of those runnin at ya and see if you can keep up with it beats. Lil Wayne lets us know that who ever tries to fuck with em has to face the heat. Some may take this as a diss to his former mates Sqad-Up with whom Wayne severed ties after they accused him of holding them back and hoggin all the airtime, and even as far as to say that he sabotaged their chances to release an album with Cash Money or any other label.
14. On The Block #2 (skit)
15. Get Down (f/ Baby)-- another commerically radio friendly track in which Lil Wayne and Baby rap about how they bought everything own and that's the only way they know how to do it. A subtle bling-bling track by Cash Money standards. You're probably better off skipping this one.
16. Snitch-- Wayne starts this off singin and sayin "don't let ya mouth open up - cause you don't wanna see the automatic to open up". The laid back beat doesn't really fit the lyrics that Lil Wayne is trying to pull off-- in other words, a soft beat for hard lyrics. Not feelin this one too much.
17. Hoes (f/ Mannie Fresh)-- hoes, lets just talk about hoessssss-- you got it, that's how this one starts off as sung by one Mannie Fresh. Lil Wayne raps to some girl tryin to let her know he could make her an overnight celebrity as well. Another song that could easily be considered as "Project Chick Pt. 72". A song that would probably work for a Big Tymers album but seems really out of place on this album.
18. Only Way (f/ Baby)-- this one has a nice clean beat that seems like a recycled Cash Money remix beat but it escapes me at the moment. Lil Wayne drops a few verses about how he's bringin the pump through the hood. Baby lets us know that the only way they know to live is on the grind. Nice song worth checkin out.
19. Earthquake (f/ Jazze Pha)-- this Jazze Phizzle product-shizzle has a nice bass guitar beat with the Memphis native crooning on the hook that he's "way more fly than you" as only he can do. Lil Wayne raps in a laid back flow about
takin some other guy's girl from him. Another song that could easily be the next single. Not a bad track and one that you'll probably bump more than once.
20. Ain't That A Bitch-- Lil Wayne starts it off acapella before the guitar beat kicks in. He raps about how the cops be watchin, niggas be unloyal, family be unfaithful....in other words, like the title says, ain't that a bitch. It's one that starts off slow but grows on you if you don't skip it.
21. Walk Out-- this is the outro that if you combine the Walk In intro, Inside, and now this one, you have one complete track. Again, like the other 2 he continues to rip the track and makes you wonder why they decided to break it up into 3 segments. Whatever the reason, when the door slams on the end, it leaves you wantin more for sure.
Overall, the production from the Cash Money in-house producers Mannie Fresh and Jazze Pha (along with Raj Smoove) show the country why they are some of the most consistent producers in the game right now. Lil Wayne comes off with one of the best Southern CDs in 2004 right off the heels of Juvenile's "Juve The Great" which shows us that Cash Money Records hasn't fallen off just yet. Those expecting to find non-stop rhymes about cars, bling bling, money, stuntin, and ballin are gonna be waiting a long time because there's not hardly any references at all to those on this album. Wayne chose to go the route of punchline rapper that he showed us on the Sqad freestyle mixtapes and he does it well in a manner that some mixtape rappers like Lloyd Banks or Cassidy are unable to re-create on a mainstream album. Lil Wayne does a lot of the whisper rap like Jay-Z on this one too which gives it a different flow and tone to his voice. Aside from a handful of weaker tracks, Lil Wayne comes hard on the album. Definitely worth checkin out because Weezy stepped his game up bigtime.
Lil Wayne - The Carter