The Carter IV Album Review

    The fourth installment in The Carter series is dropping at last, and I have had the pleasure of hearing it from front to back numerous times. In retrospect, Lil Wayne has morphed into so many personas and it’s hard to say who he is anymore. One thing I can finally say is that Wayne is a heavy weight in the lyrical arena. I bought The Block is Hot with my hard earned money as a paper boy in 1999, and was completely disappointed and refused to invest in such annoying music ever again! Nine years later, A Milli dropped and made it hard to not believe this artist was a changed man. So, I bought The Carter III and was completely satisfied with my purchase. I saw it as luck, though. I didn’t think lightning could strike twice in one spot. Well, lyrically. Although The Carter III is still his best album to date, The Carter IV holds its own with lyrics alone. Unfortunately, lyrics alone can not save an album in the hip-hop community
            The intro sounds like a track four to a mixtape than an introduction to a highly anticipated album from an artist that is revered as the messiah of the rap game; due mainly to the beat and the premise of the lyrics. Though the lyrics were dope from start to finish, they were highly inappropriate for where it was placed on the album. I can’t say that the lyrics were out of this world, but I can say that they were consistent and hard hitting from punch line to punch line. Blunt Blown gave me an immediate headache. I was never a fan of the Hot Boyz! Ever!...ok, I was a fan of the Hot Boyz; but I was young and lost. Once I came to my senses, I ended up hating the style the Hot Boyz had. I actually detest it. It’s an abomination to music in general. I say that to say this: the beat and the chorus to this song almost made this song sink to the bottom of the Atlantic. If it wasn’t for…..you know what, this song is garbage, I don’t care how consistent his lyrics were. The music was horrible. On to more important matters. On Megaman, The beat may be as generic as ever; but Wayne’s flow fused with his punch lines makes this song very hard hitting. I mean, really “Whoa nigga/ die slow nigga/ for dear life, you’re holdin on. En Vogue nigga/ Unload nigga/ reload nigga/ tools on deck, home depot nigga/ well if life is a b*ch, then mine is a gold digger/”. Although I can go without the “nigga” repetition, hearing him ride the beat while he murdered it gave me a feeling of nostalgia of when it was all about the lyrics.
            6 Foot 7 Foot is not my favorite song. It was a poor attempt to build the type of hype that A Milli did. The beat was catchy, but overall it was more of an album filler than a single to me. Cory Gunz’s voice is annoying, and besides the beat, Wayne’s lyrics are the only exciting aspect of this song. Nightmares of the Bottom has a generic 808 bass line, cheesy snares, and a moderate pace to it. I almost fell asleep listening to it until I hit the skip button. Which led me to She Will; which features Drake. She Will is probably the most exciting song on this album. From the beat, to the chorus, to the lyrics, to the delivery. The intro of the song sounds like a sample from Zelda ( the one on SNS. My old school heads know exactly what I’m talking about), but I love it! If only they could have incorporated some live instruments. And I don’t care, I’m a Drake fan. Yea, I said it. He laced the chorus with a smooth melody that made the drums almost feel real. Drake should have kept this song for himself and put it out as a single. I can’t wait for Take Care.
            Unfortunately  for all you T-pain fans, T-pain has finally retired. And if he hasn’t after this heart retching performance, he should. How to Hate has a cheesy beat and an even cheesier chorus. But, Lil Wayne saves this song from a sudden death with lines like “all I had to do was put two and two together/ but that just makes four. But not for-ever/ damn. So much for being a perfect couple/ I put in over time, I was working doubles/ I wish you the best, good luck boo/ weezy F, fu f*ck you/”I laughed at how he ended that line myself. The interlude that features the same beat he used in the Intro, Tech N9ne and Andre 3000 and NOT lil Wayne makes me wonder just what they were thinking. At first listen, Tech N9ne’s fast pace lyrics sound like nothing more than a barrage of words overwhelming your ears. He makes up for it by making sense and with a raw delivery, though. Andre is probably the only artist I know of that can be elegant on a hard beat and be successful at it. When are you dropping an album man? John features Rick Ross and is generic also. Why they chose to sample Rick Ross is beyond me; but this was another song that makes this album seem like a mixtape. I’m sure some of will enjoy the familiarity of it though. It’s hard hitting and the lyrics are on point. It just sounds like every other song Rick Ross makes these days. I won’t talk much about Abortion because it’s boring. It really sounds like a throwaway song from Rebirth. The lyrics, once again, very much worth listening to. I question that “hell of a smoker and a bit of a drinker” line though. I’m sure is probation officer is going to question why he is snitching on himself. So Special features John Legend and sounds like a song that 2 Pistols, Rocco, or Yo Gotti would be on. Lil Wayne seemed to have lowered his standards as far as quality in music for this song. The hyper snare, the same distorted horn in the back ground, and drowned out keys make this song very average and so five years ago. How to Love makes me appreciate a lot of things about Lil Wayne. I personally would have done this song differently, but its Lil Wayne, I’ll give credit where credit is due. He touches on some sensitive subjects that I completely agree with (the video was almost spot on with what I thought they would do with it). Wayne isn’t the best singer, but his vocals seemed appropriate for this type of beat. Good luck attracting that new demographic Weezy! President Carter has nothing but a good loop in its beat. But I love it! The only real problems I had with this song was the type of drums they chose to use and the repetitive chorus. I just think they could have been more creative than sampling Jimmy Carters voice over and again. I wasn’t fooled by the affects they put on his voice either. Its Good is a good song. Yes it is. Before I get to the main attraction of this song, I have to point out what I don’t like: the beat, Drakes verse, and the chorus. You would think I don’t like this song, right? But Jadakiss kills it and Lil Wayne sent a jab at Jay-Z that I can’t help but to respect. “Talkin bout baby money/ I got your baby/ kidnap your b**ch, get that how much you love your lady money/” I had to give him extra points for 1. Being clever and 2. Having the guts to go at Jay-Z. When it’s all said and done though, I got Jay-Z demolishing Lil Wayne. Yes, at the age of 42 and all. The Outro made me want to not only assault the engineer, but Lil Wanye himself. Why on earth did they use a beat that was used twice before? And they put Shyne on this song. I don’t have to say why Shyne is probably the worst choice for a feature on any album. Bun B was average, Nas stood out as expected, and Busta actually did decent. I didn’t expect that.
            Let me close out this review, though. The production for this album was sub par, features were very disappointing, song choice was thought provoking (in a bad way), but Lil Wayne’s lyrics were good enough to listen to every track. A friend of mine told me, after listening to the album, that he likes the sober Lil Wayne better. I can’t help but to agree. He is definitely in rare form. If he could only mix the production and features from The Carter III and the lyrical consistency of The Carter IV, he would make an undisputed, classic album. So I enjoyed the lyrics, but the music rarely did. Overall, this album is a failure. Yes, a failure. We expect more from Lil Wayne, and we should expect more from Lil Wayne. Aside from the hype he puts around himself, the hype that his fans and media bombard his image with makes us want more from Lil Wayne. He must still be on drugs if he is putting artists like Shyne and Cory Gunz on his album. It was a nice try though Lil Wayne. A for…no B for effort. I hate giving points. So if you get them, that means you earned them.

1.)    Intro – 3.5/5
2.)    Blunt Blown – 2.3/5
3.)    Megaman – 3.85/5
4.)    6 Foot 7 Foot (ft. Cory Gunz) – 3.5/5
5.)    Nightmares of the Bottom – 3.3/5
6.)    She Will (ft. Drake) – 4.5/5
7.)    How to Hate (ft. T-Pain) – 3.1/5
8.)    Interlude (ft. Tech N9ne & Andre 3000) – 3/5
9.)    John (ft. Rick Ross) – 3.3/5
10.)  Abortion – 3.3/5
11.)  So Special (ft. John Legend) – 3.3/5
12.)  How to Love – 4.4/5
13.)  President Carter – 4.2/5
14.)  Its Good (ft. Jadakiss & Drake) – 3.75/5
15.)  Outro (ft. Bun B, Nas, Shyne, & Busta Rhymes) – 3.2/5

Watch the Throne Album Review

                One last call for alcohol! I’m having my last run hip hop or rap or pop, or whatever you want to call it, so I’ll go out with a bang. I haven’t been listening to it much lately anyway. Have no fear though; I haven’t lost my touch a bit. I’m going to finish it up with the first of five reviews. The first being Watch the Throne. There has been hype beyond hype around this album. I honestly thought it would be nothing more than an idea that manifested into a few songs; at most a mixtape. Kanye and Jay are giants in the hip-hop community and we all know what happens when they get together. So we should only expect the best from these two, right? Wrong! I am disappointed in this album, to say the least. It is feelings like this that led me to hanging up my mic and ultimately leaving the hip-hop community completely. I am sure some of you have a scrunched up face right now; you probably don’t even want to finish reading! I completely understand if you feel that way. I have moved onto other areas in music and I probably sound completely out of my mind. Either way, this is still an unbiased column (unless Mary J. or Souljah boy is involved. I will never find room in my mental harddrive for admiration of those artists). So without further adieu, let us begin.
            Watch the Throne makes a wonderful first impression. No Church in the Wild drops an immediate attention-grabbing sample that is followed by the vocals of Frank Ocean (a new artist I recommend everyone give a listen to). Jay (of course Jay-z had to go first) lays his vocals first and does justice to the beat from start to finish. He finishes with a witty play on words, “I’m out here ballin, I know you heard my sneaks/ Jesus was a carpenter, yeezy laid beats/ Hova flowed the holy ghost, get the hell up out ya seats/…preach” Classic Jay-z. Unfortunately, Jay has the only lyrical highlight on this song. Kanye finishes off as normal Kanye. Now his lyrics are not horrible per say, they just lack shock value. He makes his presence known through riding the beat and stellar production though. After that valiant introduction, we come to a free fall. A pit stop. A buzz killer. A smack in the face. Life Off can be described in so many ways with so many words. The best I can think of is ear poison. Usually, I listen to a song while I describe it in my columns, but I’ve had too much exposure to this horrible excuse for a song. Jay and Kanye are an obvious good mixture; and you would think that Beyonce would only add to the glory. I was sadly mistaken. The beat begins as promising, but becomes a collage of loud noises and is then topped of by Beyonce’s already loud vocals (side note: normally, I really enjoy Kenye’s drum patterns. Either he didn’t lay them or he is slacking in a major way on this song). At this point Kanye is losing major points for lyrics and production. And …he insists on continuously using auto-tune. An immediate facepalm. And Jay doesn’t make it any better either. The sad part is the only good thing about this song is the last 45 seconds; where the song completely changes. The last 45 seconds of the song get a 3.6/5. I’ll leave this track alone though, I’m beginning to be sick just talking about it (if they put this song out as a single, I’m going to shoot through my wrists).
                Niggas in Paris is actually a release of the grip Lift Off had on your throat. You can breathe, put on your gaudy chain, fix your outfit and bounce your head in every direction as you listen. This hard hitting song makes you feel yourself and makes you want to move on the dance floor. Kanye finally makes a lyrical appearance. One highlight that I love is the fact that they managed incorporate the vocals of legendary anchorman Ron Burgundy. Two thumbs up! I won’t lie to you people, Otis was not a great song to me at first listen. After hearing it a few times, I became a fan. A big fan. I thought they were doing an injustice to my man Otis Redding. But I ended up loving it. The video was a work of art even. While Otis’ screaming, pleading vocals provide the drama in this song, Kanye and Jay literally smack this song around. Otis might be Kanye’s magnum opus on this album (look at my rhyme). I don’t blame them a bit for putting this out as a single. I would have made the song longer and changed how they ended it. But overall, very well delivered. Gotta Have It is worth listening to, but also worth hitting the skip button. I believe this was an attempt at being innovative and relevant. I will say that Jay and Kanye going back and forth reminds me of how Jadakiss and Styles P. used go back and forth on a verse. If they would have chose a different beat for this song, I would put it up there with the better songs. We get some time to think on WTT with the RZA produced New Day. Until this point in the album, I didn’t expect a song like this one. Kanye and Jay deliver cautionary, heartfelt advice to their future, unborn sons, and do it with justice. Kanye not only delivers lyrically, but shows a modest, regretful side of himself. I will say that this song provided the opportune moment for Kanye to vent some of his bitterness about his situation with Amber Rose. Though he did it with taste, it was taking a jab none the less. Amber Rose becomes the brunt of a clever line,“Don’t be like the daddy that I never was/ and I’ll never let em ever hit a strip club/ I learned the hard way, that ain’t the place to get love.” Over all this song is moving(do to a soulful chorus and soothing beat) thought provoking (wonderful perspectives and advice from Kanye and Jay), and well put together.
                 That’s My Bitch  is more annoying that anything. I’m sure there are some of you out there that will enjoy it. I enjoyed the congas and the chorus somewhat. But overall, this is a song that you would hear from an up and coming artist, not two seasoned pioneers with impeccable track records. The only perks about this song really are the lyrics, Charlie Wilsons vocals, and congas. I can go without the content and the beat as a whole. Welcome to the Jungle  is an ear sore for me, but I’m sure is a hype, get money song for some of you. I am not a Swizz beat fan…at all! The beat is nothing but a horrible loop with a dramatic moment that isn’t worth waiting for.  Honestly, I listened about five times, found nothing worth talking about and hit the skip button. Who Gon Stop Me almost follows in the previous song’s footsteps, but makes up with lyrics. Murder on Excellence makes Jay show his age as he reminisces too far back in the past for this generation to keep up with. This song overall is decent. I can go without them two singing (especially Jay). But it’s a decent song , worth listening to. The album comes to a rough landing (as if it had a great flight) with Made in America and Why I Love You. No, these are not bad songs; I like these two songs. But, I would not end an album with them. Although I think that Made in America  should have been a song solely done by Frank Ocean, I can tolerate Jay and Kanye’s lyrics. Why I Love You reminds me of the twisted mind of Eminem for some reason; don’t as me why. They muffled some rock music, put in a hyper snare, and added some hip hop flavor to it. I can say that this beat was the only beat that had diversity. Sadly enough though, they should have did more work to it.
                 Overall, WTT is a disappointment. Not because I “miss their old music”, but because I know what they’re capable of. Jay can deliver some ugg face lyrics (ugg face: an ugly face caused by dope lyrics). Jay should have carried this whole album lyrically. Kanye (a phenomenal producer) can make some of the best instrumentals and unique arrangements. Unfortunately, he did the exactly opposite. He contributed something that plagues hip hop till this day: repetitive loops, three choruses, lyrics, weak drums and drum lines, and no good music. There was no…..feeling in the music. It wasn’t risky. It didn’t make me feel bad for liking a certain song. It didn’t make me keep the album in my iTunes. I’m honestly upset that they didn’t reach out to The Roots for some live music and heart pounding drums. There are some good songs; I won’t completely bash this album. I’m happy they put Frank Ocean and Otis Redding on the album. From a hip hop standard; I guess you can say that this album is hotter than a lot of the music that is coming out in this genre. I still look up to them as leaders in the hip hop community, but they need to step their game up. They want us to "watch the throne", but that seems like nothing more than a good idea. The stock the enjoyment of hip hop is declining due mainly to lack of creativity and redundancy. So sitting on a throne and ruling over something that is becoming meaningless kind of useless. its like saying I'm the king of Klondike bars. No one care. I will say that  Jay has at least two more albums in him, believe it or not. Go ahead and laugh. Lyrically, he is holding it together. Kanye has a lifetime of producing to do. Unfortunately, I won’t hear them. The next reviews that are coming are The Carter IV, Take Care, Slaughterhouse, and Nas’ next album. Until the next review….

1.)    No Churh in the Wild (ft. Frank Ocean) – 4.4/5
2.)    Lift Off (ft. Beyonce) – 2/5
3.)    Niggas in Paris – 3.8/5
4.)    Otis (ft. Otis Redding) – 4.5/5
5.)    Gotta Have It – 3.4/5
6.)    New Day – 4.3/5
7.)    That’s My Bitch – 3.4/5
8.)    Welcome to the Jungle – 3/5
9.)    Who Gon Stop Me – 3.2/5
10.)  Murder to Excellence – 3.65/5
11.)  Made in America (ft Frank Ocean) – 3.5/5
12.)  Why I Love You (ft. Mr Hudson) – 3.6/5