Spring Break
Lil' Wayne gives insane vibe in Tha Carter III
John Holmes
Issue date: 9/11/08 Section: Entertainment
Even with accessible tunes such as these, Lil' Wayne shows elsewhere that he's not afraid to court controversy. On the emotional "Playing with Fire," he declares "…so assassinate me b**** / 'cause I'm doing the same shit Martin Luther King did / checking in the same hotel in the same suite b**** /same balcony, like, assassinate me b****!"
As blasphemous as the comparison to one of the greatest civil rights leaders in our nation's history may seem, it's hard to argue with his conviction and emotional intensity in his delivery of these lines.
Similarly controversial is the final track, "Don'tGetIt," which is less notable for its verses than it is for the seven-plus-minute, marijuana-aided rant on the state of America's prison system and the Reverend Al Sharpton; Lil Wayne raps, "You are no MLK, you are no Jesse Jackson…you're nobody."
Overall, the album is refreshing, eccentric and brilliant. Lil' Wayne is an artist of high caliber, taking risks rather than sticking to some "tried-and-true" formula like other artists in today's music scene.
But with all that risk-taking, there are bound to be some mistakes. On the track "La La," Wayne seems to be unsure of where to go with the odd beat produced by David Banner, which consists of a xylophone and a young child singing the song's title. The result is that guests Brisco and Busta Rhymes outshine him.
Also, "Tie My Hands," a song describing his reaction to Hurricane Katrina in his hometown of New Orleans, suffers when he raps, "Take away the football team, the basketball team / now all we got left is me to represent New Orleans." The self-aggrandizing sentiment clashes with the message of the rest of the song.
These complaints however are few and far between. The album as a whole is a great accomplishment for the artist, and easily lives up to the hype surrounding its release. Wayne raps at the end of track "Mr. Carter," "Next time you mention Pac, Biggie, or Jay-Z / Don't forget Weezy Baby!" If he keeps making albums like this, that doesn't sound like too bad of a suggestion.
As blasphemous as the comparison to one of the greatest civil rights leaders in our nation's history may seem, it's hard to argue with his conviction and emotional intensity in his delivery of these lines.
Similarly controversial is the final track, "Don'tGetIt," which is less notable for its verses than it is for the seven-plus-minute, marijuana-aided rant on the state of America's prison system and the Reverend Al Sharpton; Lil Wayne raps, "You are no MLK, you are no Jesse Jackson…you're nobody."
Overall, the album is refreshing, eccentric and brilliant. Lil' Wayne is an artist of high caliber, taking risks rather than sticking to some "tried-and-true" formula like other artists in today's music scene.
But with all that risk-taking, there are bound to be some mistakes. On the track "La La," Wayne seems to be unsure of where to go with the odd beat produced by David Banner, which consists of a xylophone and a young child singing the song's title. The result is that guests Brisco and Busta Rhymes outshine him.
Also, "Tie My Hands," a song describing his reaction to Hurricane Katrina in his hometown of New Orleans, suffers when he raps, "Take away the football team, the basketball team / now all we got left is me to represent New Orleans." The self-aggrandizing sentiment clashes with the message of the rest of the song.
These complaints however are few and far between. The album as a whole is a great accomplishment for the artist, and easily lives up to the hype surrounding its release. Wayne raps at the end of track "Mr. Carter," "Next time you mention Pac, Biggie, or Jay-Z / Don't forget Weezy Baby!" If he keeps making albums like this, that doesn't sound like too bad of a suggestion.
