Listen: Lil Wayne, “La La La”
5.
Lil Wayne: “Georgia… Bush”
After Hurricane Katrina tore through New Orleans, Wayne moved to Miami. Rapping from afar, his peak period is littered with references to his hometown that are at turns pained and defiant; one thinks of him insisting, on Da Drought 3, that “They tried to make a brand-new map without us… And no matter how you change it, it’ll still be ours.” His flip of Ludacris and Field Mob’s “Georgia” is the searing, soulful explication of his rage at the administration that flooded the city. There’s the droning, atonal hook (“We from a town where/Everybody drowned”), the indignance over structural problems that had only worsened since 1965’s Hurricane Betsy, the simple relaying of stories from those who lived through the levees and “heard explosions.” There’s also what is the most memorable, most chillingly plainspoken passage of this period in Wayne’s work: “The white people smiling like everything cool/But I know people that died in that pool/I know people who died in them schools.” –Paul A. Thompson
Listen: Lil Wayne, “Georgia… Bush”
4.
Lil Wayne: “Who Wanna”
As Lights Out gave way to 500 Degreez, Lil Wayne was no longer the cute child rapper; he was growing up and struggling to find his footing in a fast-changing business. He was still around, but would be overshadowed whenever Juvenile decided to show his face—and he couldn’t go hit-for-hit with the Big Tymers. But in 2004, something changed, and Wayne transformed into the goblin we know now. Once he proclaimed he was the “best rapper alive, since the best rapper retired” people started paying attention, whether they believed him or not.
Tha Carter revealed a new artist—one who could make hits and compete lyrically with not just his labelmates, but hip-hop’s elite, like his idol Jay-Z. C1 has been largely eclipsed in the public imagination by its Carter successors, but remains the most upbeat and bouncy of the series. “Who Wanna” is its mission statement, with Wayne sending shots at all detractors, doubters, and non-believers. “Who Wanna” is perhaps the best example of a C1 song that hits Wayne’s sweet spot: perfectly meshing his past sound (futuristic New Orleans bounce) with the lyrical chops and catchy hooks that would define the next six years of his career. –Andrew Barber
Listen: Lil Wayne, “Who Wanna”
3.
Lil Wayne: “Lil’ One” [ft. Big Tymers]
Lil Wayne is standing on a nondescript street corner somewhere in New Orleans. Business is slow, and he’s desperate to find his next hustle. Up walks Baby, a big-time pimp and dealer from around the way, and they meet eyes. “I been peepin’ ya’ lil’ ass, I see you grindin’ and shit,” raps an impressed Baby, like he’s searching for new recruits for his street mentorship program. An overly eager and headstrong Wayne, clearly schooled on the hip-hop storytelling cuts of the ’80s and ’90s, gasses him up right back: “I been peepin’ you, too, nigga I see you shinin’ and shit/And you don’t even know how long I been tryna’ find me a brick/To make it flip and take the chips and go buy me a whip.” I could quote the whole damn song. “Lil’ One” is that good, as the eventual Like Father, Like Son collaborators size each other up and go line-for-line. The story ends with Birdman putting Wayne onto game in the car, and you can imagine his lavish rise and tragic, hubristic fall without them even saying it. It could be a conversation straight outta The Wire. –Alphonse Pierre
