Lil' Wayne - Tha Carter IV

He's back! After a three year absence, Lil' Wayne makes his long-awaited return with Tha Carter IV. In between his last studio album, he released two albums to tide fans over with varying degrees of success, 2010's miserable Rebirth and the more cohesive I Am Not A Human Being also released later on that year. Weezy aims to recapture his fanbase with an album that is a welcome return for one of the best rappers in the game today.

The disc opens up with "Blunt Blowin'" a steady, cohesive jam that is full of pure, unadulterated beats that don't need Auto-Tune or any technological advances to get its point across, all it needs is Wayne to do his thing. "MegaMan" is a futuristic sounding, thumping jam that shows off Wayne's lyrical skills which have evolved steadily over the course of his career and have gotten more complex as well. "6 Foot 7 Foot" features Cory Gunz and has a definite hook embedded within the chorus that will have you listening over and over again for quite some time to follow. "She Will" features new rapping sensation Drake and has a slowed down, steady beat that brings things down a couple of notches here and also gives a little bit of variety to its listeners as well. T-Pain guest stars on "How To Hate", bringing his familiar Auto-Tuned style to a uptempo, urban flavored jam that gives a little something for everyone while still retaining the gritty lyrical content that some of the prior tracks have exhibited.

We head into the disc's second half with "John", which also features Rick Ross and is a frenzied, beat infused track that takes it to a whole new level with a treat for its listeners that is one of the many highlights on this diverse and entertaining disc so far. R&B crooner John Legend guest stars on "So Special, a hybrid hip-hop/R&B crossover jam that blends in John's voice with Wayne's highly skilled rhymes blending in nicely with the simple, dynamic beats that add a great deal to a track that best displays Weezy's talents. My favorite song off the album is "How To Love", Wayne's first attempt at a love song that totally threw me for a curve and is actually one of the best songs that Weezy has made, featuring simple acoustic guitar arrangements blended in with downtempo beats that add a great deal of depth to a solid and well thought out album heard here so far. The disc gets ready to close out with "It's Good", which also features Drake & Jadakiss, who make a good combo here with an intense, lyrically driven track that hits at a different angle than the other tracks did with authentic, urban flavored beats that closes us out on a high note. Lil' Wayne has evolved steadily over the years starting from when he released his debut album, Tha Block Is Hot in 1999 when he was only 15 years old. Since that point, he has grown into one of the top rappers in the game today who continues to bring his own unique lyrical delivery to his listeners, some who might not understand what Wayne is saying at times, but that's one of the reasons why we love Lil' Wayne so much.

All in all, a solid and return to form effort from Lil' Wayne, who has more than made up for the lackluster disappointment of his past rock hybrid album and has crafted a remarkable hip-hop album that fully displays his true talents to a devoted audience. While this album is nowhere near as good as 2008's magnificent Tha Carter III, it still keeps Weezy in the public eye and still on top as one of the best rappers in music today!

                                                                                                                                Album Score: 3.5/5

Track Listing:

1. Intro
2. Blunt Blowin'
3. MegaMan
4. 6 Foot 7 Foot (f/Cory Gunz)
5. Nightmares of the Bottom
6. She Will (f/Drake)
7. How To Hate (f/T-Pain)
8. Interlude (f/Tech N9ne)
9. John (f/Rick Ross)
10. Abortion
11. So Special (f/John Legend)
12. How To Love
13. President Carter
14. It's Good (f/ Drake & Jadakiss)
15. Outro (f/Bun B, Nas, Shyne, & Busta Rhymes)