Lil’ Wayne: GOAT or sellout?

July 26th, 2011 | By Edwin

Has there ever been a rap artist in hip hop history that has generated as much buzz, animosity, or praise as Lil’ Wayne? The former Hot Boy credited with inventing the word “bling bling” is now an international superstar, with 3 Grammy wins and the often argued, self-claimed, and nearly always disputed title as “Best Rapper Alive.”

Fans seem to divide themselves into several camps:

1) Fanatic and newly minted fan-boys/girls – You know the type. They think he is the greatest but have not yet heard of any his mixtapes, been raised on “Lollipop,” and have not listened to the Carter II yet.

2) Jaded Wayne fan – used to love him, but now not “gangsta, G, southern, hard, etc etc” enough now

3) Hater - thinks Wayne is the worst thing to happen to hip-hop. Commercialism, drug fueled antics, and lack of meaningful lyrics makes Weezy the musical equivalent of a shitty reality TV show on housewives.

4) Simple fan – appreciates his good qualities and wary of his bad. I would be in this camp.

So what makes Weezy the GOAT (Greatest of All Time) or MOAT (Most Overrated of All Time)?

Here is my attempt at an intelligent answer:

Why is Lil’ Wayne a great rapper?

Let’s digest his technique and flow. He definitely established himself as an unique brand. If you have taken any marketing classes before, you need to find a way to make your product easily identifiable. Like it or not, his signature “wheezy” voice, tendency to change pitch and speed randomly, and rapid fire delivery made him sound different from everyone else. Sorry, but a lot of rappers sound alike. The Game and Jay Rock sound exactly the same for example (Am I the only one who thinks this?)

Lyrically, he doesn’t have the poetical dexterity, beautiful imagery, or socially conscious lyrics like Common, Mos Def, Talib Kweli, etc. But he isn’t trying to emulate them, he is a Southern Rapper. If you look at his songs, they are actually very complex in its usage of double ententes, double meanings, intentionally mispronouncing words to fit unorthodox rhymes schemes, and creativity. It’s like being an absolute God at trash talking. And who doesn’t want to be able to knock somebody down 5 pegs with rhymes? I wish I could do that in the supermarket on a daily basis.

What is Lil’ Wayne’s downfall?

Obviously, songs like “Lollipop” has shown he is willing to sell out to get album sales. It was one of the worst songs I’ve ever heard in my life. I appreciate the fact that he is experimenting with new sounds, but it was a Monster Java energy drink type of failure – a noxious blend of incompatible sounds. It worked with the “fans,” however – Carter III went triple platinum so you can’t blame him that much. Using the auto-tuner when you can’t sing well in the first place is not a smart idea, nor is taking up the guitar when you are mediocre. I do understand that he felt like he conquered the rap world so he is trying to branch out, but few artists do that well (look at Mos Def). Lastly, he is spewing out way too much material too quickly. Earlier mixtapes which used to be solid gold are now mediocre, stuffed with featured artists, and nowhere near the same quality. For example, Dedication 3 was lacking hunger, innovation, and energy, and Prom Queen just sounds terrible.

Those are my two cents on Weezy. What are yours?

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