[Review] Lil' Wayne - Rebirth

Artist: Lil' Wayne

Album: Rebirth

Label: Cash Money/Universal

Release Date: Unknown 2010

Guests: Kevin Rudolf, Shanell, Nicki Minaj & Eminem.

Producers: Cool & Dre, Eminem, Develop, J.U.S.T.I.C.E. League, DJ Infamous, Essay Potna, Chase & Cashe, Hit-Boy & Drew Correa



When Lil' Wayne announced that he would be recording a rock album, I never thought it would happen. I mean, Kanye made an album where he sang about heartbreak, but it is nowhere near his strongest material, and failed in comparison to what I think he was expecting. But when the best rapper (supposedly) is dropping an album aimed at a different audience, Im sure the label must be expecting a backlash.



Afterall, Weezy has already generated hate from rap fans on social netowrking sites such as Facebook, telling him not to make a rock album, and even rockers themselves are saying it wont work. And this becomes another problem for me - do I review the album in comparison to other rap albums and other Lil' Wayne albums, or do I review it as a rock album, and in comparison to other rock artists?

The factor is, Im not sure whether this album will be acceoted on either side. Rap fans will be hugely disappointed with the style, and not just because he is not rapping, but because he is not inflicting clever punchlines, and his lyrical content has changed. I feel that he is aiming this album towards male high school students, as he is putting himself in their shoes. But on the other hand, rock fans will know that Weezy is not a rocker, and is just trying to add more fans to his following. Although he does play the guitar in a few of the tracks, it is pretty much nothing ground breaking, and dont expect any clever string solos or crowdsurfing at gigs for now.

There are a few nice touches to the CD - the track with Eminem has a nice feel to it, and Eminem's verse, possibly something leftover from all of his Relapse material, dives straight into the dark mind of the artist of the decade. 'Prom Queen', is a song about rejection, and despite being leaked several months ago as the first single off the album, it remains one of the handfull tracks I think fans will take to. There is another track that I think will be the next single - a sample of the intro of Amy Holland's 'Shes On Fire', fans of the Scarface movie will recognise this instantly, but I feel that the sample (produced by Cool & Dre) is a too basic loop, and fails to capture much of the best parts of the original song.

Personally, I would give this album a low score, as I think Weezy's rock style is fake and see through, but I do not think it will be a disaster. With his reputation on the line, it may be that Weezy changes his music completely and decides to release more rock albums, but I hope not. Bring on Tha Carter IV.

5/10

[Review] Young Money - We Are Young Money

Artist: Young Money Entertainment (Lil' Wayne, Drake, Jae Millz, Mack Maine, Tyga, Nicki Minaj, Lil' Twist, Gudda Gudda, T-Streets, Shanell & Lil' Chuckee.
Album: We Are Young Money
Label: Cash Money/Universal
Release Date: December 21st 2009
Guests: Birdman, Lloyd, Gucci Mane & Clyde McKnight.
Producers: Tha Bizzness, Kane Beatz, David Banner, Chase N. Cashe, B.Carr, Andrew "Papa Justifi" Wansel & Warren "Oak" Felder.

50 Cent has his G-Unit Records, Jay-Z had Roc-A-Fella and Eminem has Shady Aftermath, and now Lil' Wayne is showing that the Young Money movement that he has spoken about over the years, has some strength behind it - in the form of a new album.

Its no myth that Lil' Wayne has been regarded as being the best rapper making hits for several years now. His wordplay on tracks have made him popular with the fans, and on the mixtape circuit, and with an estimated 2,000 songs tracks that he has recorded, there is no shortage of Weezy verse out there.

So, when I became aware of a Young Money group album coming, it was instantly something that I was looking forward to, especially with the newest sensation, Drake also confirmed for appearance. Potentially, two of the best lyricists in the rap game as of 2009, were going to be making a CD, with several other label mates - it had the ingrediants for an exciting album, helped further by the smash hit 'Every Girl'. The song was a synopsis for what we could expect to hear on the album, and a chance to hear some of the talent that was emerging from the label, especially Drake. Wayne started off with not a one of his best verses, but still strong enough to be ahead of other MCs in the game, but Drake killed it. His flow, technique and delivery was perfect, and I have to say, I was also impressed with Jae Millz and Mack Maine's efforts to. However, I was left wondering whether or not this was going to be an Autotune bashing disc, but I was not too concerned, as Weezy is one of the few artists that has adapted his style to use it...in fact, I think apart from T-Pain, Weezy is the only artist who has used the effect and made it work for him in my opinion.

I needed to hear more though. A second single began circulating the internet a few weeks ago called 'Bedrock' and featured a hook sang by Lloyd, and despite it being an old chat-up line, I liked the sound of it - the beat was tidy, and once again, there was a strong verse from Drake, but again, I was expecting a better Weezy opening. It might sound picky, but I am comparing verses to what he is famous for - remix songs that he has killed in the past, and features on other artist's albums. I actually think that Weezy is like a sportsman. He has a good game and gets picked for the team, but other times he can play bad, and needs substituting at halftime, and other times, damn right shocking and deserves fining a week's wages.

So I made sure that this album was right at the top of my list for 2009. 50 Cent has dropped, Eminem has dropped twice, Fabolous dropped, Jay-Z dropped and now the end of December in the middle of the Christmas season, there was to be another big one. I was just hoping that Birdman did not carry on his tradition and push this one way back into 2010, although I was thinking that if he did do tat, I would just pre order it on Amazon.

So here it is, I sit flicking through the tracks, listening to the verses, and I am loving it, right? Wrong. There just feels like tere is something missing from it. Should the opening line on the album be "Sitting on the toilet..." The intro song, 'Gooder' just does not have the impact that the start of albums usually have, but anyway, it is straight after that that 'Every Girl' comes - probably the strongest track on the album. The next track 'Ms. Parker' feels like maybe it should be a single, but the beat does not give it strength. This seems to be the case throughout, the album has 'average' beats, and Weezy is not spitting at his strongest, in fact, he is outshone on quite a few tracks - this will be a disappointment for most fans,because 90% will buy this because Lil' Wayne has been involved in it, the other 10% get it as a gift at Christmas.

Other songs that I liked from the CD were 'Bedrock' , 'Steady Mobbin', 'Roger That' and 'Finale'. The last of these being the outro for the album, and features several bars from each of the Young Money artists, and despite Weezy seeming to have a much longer verse on the track, it was far from the best. In my yes, Drake is becoming the aplha male of the label, and you can understand where the buzz is coming from. Nicki Minaj, a female rapper on the label, also showed some good lyrical skill as did Mack Maine and Jae Millz.

To some up this album, I would say that its purpose has been to promote the talent of the label, rather than to try and take over the rap industry. The album will be enjoyed by most rap fans, but I feel that the songs on it seem to be 'overcrowded' by artists. Dont be put off by this review, it is a good album, but not a classic.

6/10