Tha Carter III
| Lil Wayne
Tha Carter III
Tha Carter III is the sixth studio album by American rapper Lil Wayne, released on June 10, 2008, by Cash Money and Universal Motown. It follows a long string of mixtape releases and guest appearances on other hip hop and R&B artists records, helping to increase his exposure in the mainstream. The album's cover art features a baby picture of Wayne and is similar to covers of hip hop albums such as Nas' Illmatic (1994) and Notorious B.I.G.'s Ready to Die (1994). Amid release delays and leaks, Tha Carter III became one of the most anticipated releases of 2008 -Wikipedia
Critic Reviews
Show All-
Pitchfork
Nine years after his first solo LP, and on the heels of an unprecedented glut of increasingly remarkable mixtape and internet leaks, Lil Wayne produces Tha Carter III, the epic culmination of a lifetime of eccentricities. This is Wayne's moment and he embraces it on his own terms.
-
Rolling Stone
The album cover links Carter III to Biggie’s Ready to Die and Nas’ Illmatic, and he makes no bones about coveting a spot in hip-hop’s pantheon. “Next time you mention Pac, Biggie or Jay-Z/Don’t forget Weezy Baby,” he advises on “Mr Carter.” It’s sound advice.
-
Genius
We know Lil Wayne isn’t bound by the Earth’s limits, and this is the album that proves you’re a damn fool to this that he ever was.
-
Consequence of Sound
Fortunately, Wayne possesses enough creativity and charisma that, provided he is able to keep his head relatively straight, should keep him on top of the game for a long time to come.
-
Slant
This is Wayne’s first studio effort as the reigning king of the hill—it’s been delayed, and therefore anticipated, for years—and he’s in fine form throughout.
-
BBC
Sampling Nina Simone's Don’t Let Me Be Misunderstood on Dontgetit, Wayne's delivery and debate of the American prison system evokes memories of 2 Pac. But on Tha Carter 3's evidence, the prodigy has a long journey before he can be spoken of in the same vein as one of hip hop's unrivalled godfathers and a true 'hot rapper'.
-
Sputnik
he’s created an album both for the music nerds and the mainstream-ers, both for the now and for a long time to come. Tha Carter III is a contradictory, against-all-odds masterpiece, and Lil Wayne may never perfect this balance again
-
The Guardian
He claims he's the greatest rapper in the world. To be fair, he has a point, says Steve Yates
-
Complex
Tha Carter III contains songs that not just are amongst Lil Wayne’s best and still slap ridiculously hard, but also ones that created a foundation for future artists to build on.
-
Sputnik
Tha Carter III is an album by Weezy’s stoner standards just to prove he could. Of course it’s still too long, tracks could have been shaved and cut, and there’s the ever present feeling of novelty wearing off, but there’s that horrible, horrible charm, as if Weezy could snap his fingers and get back to his gangsta rap like nothing happened.
-
Hip hop DX
Tha Carter III is flashes of brilliance surrounded by a number of rookie mistakes made by a young veteran of the game.
-
The Washington Post
It lived up to expectations as one of the strangest rap records ever recorded — a title it arguably still holds. While today’s rap consists mainly of the political (Lamar), the personal (Drake), or boasting (Pusha T), Weezy was just … weird.
-
XXL
The third installment to his acclaimed Carter series was the culmination of one of hip-hop's most impressive and all-encompassing runs. Lead by the singles "Lollipop" and "A Milli," Tha Carter III influenced rappers of that time and today's spitters.
-
DJ Booth
Tha Carter III was the rare album that became a classic, not because of what it sounds like, but because of what it meant, and what it still means today.
-
The Young Folks
Weezy uses his third installment in the Carter series as a victory lap, not only for his blossoming career, but also for his struggling hometown dealing with devastation and heartache, waiting to find any sign of light amidst the darkness.
-
Common Sene
Wayne is a great rapper and this album is such a good piece of work. One of the best albums of all time.
-
Tiny Mix Tapes
Now, equipped with the stylish, but too-often substance-less Tha Carter III, Lil Wayne seems poised to flip the script on the “rapper racists” (radio stations, MTV) by evolving into the “biggest” rapper alive.
-
The Escapist
In spite of the album lacking in shortcomings, however, it doesn't really shoot for a higher level of hip-hop. It's just about perfect on the level it's aiming for, but it's not attempting to be a masterpiece.
-
Mother Jones
But too often, the album has been over-polished, to the point that Wayne’s sharp wit has been dulled.
-
NPR Music
Tha Carter III's first-week sales, which were easily pop's strongest since Kanye West's Graduation last September, were spurred by a daring marketing strategy that doubled as a cocky musical challenge.
-
Gumbo Monster
All in all this was a well put together album, and like every album Wayne has put out before this one, its a good listen
-
Passion of the Weiss
Tha Carter III is a good album. A three-star effort on the Times scale or in more rap-friendly terms, a four- mic album back when the phrase meant something.
-
Akira The Don
In a world full of overthunk punchline raps, Wayne is a musician first, unafraid to talk what seems to be gibberish in a dope way, because that’s what the beat demands.
-
Vulture
Lil Wayne's Tha Carter III has sold more than a million copies in a single week (exact number: 1,005,545), the first album to do so since 50 Cent's The Massacre in March 2005.
-
Now
On Tha Carter III, Lil Wayne raps like a robot – overusing the pitch-correcting Auto-Tune to ridiculous effect. He also claims to be a Martian and says he’s “rare like Mr. Clean with hair.” Wayne is either years ahead of his time, from another planet or just one of a kind.
-
Prefix
Tha Carter III soars because of Wayne’s to-date under-appreciated ability to turn himself down.
-
All Music
Tha Carter III should be considered as a wild, somewhat difficult child of Weezy's magnum opus in motion, one that allows the listener an exhilarating and unapologetic taste of artistic freedom.
-
Rap Reviews
This album probably won’t become his major international breakthrough (if we are talking diamond certifications and all that), and should help to moderate the Messianic status being heaped upon him, but it provides a solid stepping stone for future greatness.
-
Los Angeles Times
When Wayne's mad alchemy works, "Tha Carter III" evinces shades of brilliance that merit the wild hype, but in its transparent attempts to define its era, it fails, falling victim to the imperial bloat of its big-budget mishmash of styles.
-
The A.V. Club
He's the man of the moment, but the disc's best moments strive for timelessness and attain it.
-
Hot Press
Gifted MC loses the run of himself without Mannie Fresh
-
Coke Machine Glow
Though wrong and stupid kinda work (in a good way!), Tha Carter III is more a balanced, self-conscious synthesis of everything viably great about Lil Wayne, hyperbolic or not, than the penultimate statement of the MC’s “legendary” status
-
Paste
Tha Carter III sounds wild and loose, a testament to Lil Wayne’s inimitable, iconic voice.
-
Plugged In
He has the words fear and God tattooed on his eyelids, but despite comparing himself to Martin Luther King Jr., this artist's raunchy, misogynist gospel espouses thug hedonism.
-
City Pages
The Carter III does not disappoint. As an album, it's a five-star stunna, the hip hop equivalent of Sgt. Peppers.
-
Scene Point Blank
Overall, this album is very reflective of Wayne as an artist. At points, he is a brilliant, introspective lyricist, and other times an incoherent, coked out mess.
-
Lil Wayne HQ
Now, I'm still not going to say this album is good compared to Wayne's older works (I say it's lukewarm) but I will say it's okay for the new Lil Wayne
-
Pop Matters
an album that will almost certainly have a lasting legacy, despite what some might see as its glaring design flaws.
-
All Hip Hop
Tha Carter III is a respectable effort. But with all of the incessant chatter of being the best, this disc should have been damn near perfect.
-
Entertainment Weekly
Tha Carter III should be an anointment, proof of his arrival in rap’s elite. Wayne’s genius is of the mad sort, though, and this schizoid album (packed with Wayne-as-alien metaphors, love songs, psychedelic boasts, and more) is alternately mesmerizing and inscrutable.
-
Hot New Hip Hop
Ten years after its release, "Tha Carter III" holds up in spite of— or maybe because of— its pop crossovers and weirdo ambition.
-
The Early Registration
Tha Carter 3 is an album that never gets too comfortable in any one position. Its restless, dizzying and a whole lot of fun.
-
Crack Magazine
Carefully balancing touching themes of home with a novel delivery that carved out an eccentric future for commercial hip-hop. Rewriting rap’s DNA and phoning home from a distance.
-
The Telegraph
What makes Lil Wayne stand out from his peers is his distinctive drawling delivery, which entwines itself lazily around the beat, and he undercuts gangsta posturing with an emotional frankness and a zany, freewheeling lyrical approach that make for consistently compelling listening.
-
The Independent
no act currently has their finger as firmly on the pulse of contemporary American culture as Dwayne "Lil Wayne" Carter,
-
The Quietus
amidst the gibberish, are true moments of perfect clarity. Wayne is a simply a conduit. A wet brained receiver of non localised consciousness.
-
Entertainment IE
Tha Carter III's success looks distinctly like the beginnings of world domination - even if it doesn't completely sound like it.
-
The Boston Globe
it's not an instant classic, but it is the best rap album since Kanye West dropped "Graduation"
-
The National
highly impressed by Lil Wayne's unrivalled style and flow - and his unique ear for melody. A roster of single-worthy tracks.
-
Study Breaks
One decade later, it’s safe to say Wayne’s lasting impression hasn’t shifted in the slightest, and “Tha Carter III” is merely a flawless embodiment of that very character.
-
The Advocate
Tha Carter III was his biggest commercial hit, but it’s one of his strongest efforts as a lyricist in breathless, three-minute streams of metaphors and similes that double as one-liners (all three minutes of “A Milli”)
-
Uproxx
No matter what kind of rap you like — lyrical, melodic, conceptual, or throw-everything-at-the-wall-and-see-what-sticks quirky — you can trace at least a thread of its roots to Tha Carter III.
-
Barstool Sports
A personal achievement for him, but a true, undisputed classic robbed from the rest of us.
-
Memphis Flyer
Lil Wayne may well be the "greatest rapper alive," but he's never made a wholly undeniable album, and that includes this 77-minute career-best.
-
Sound Opinions
he sees this release as a very carefully executed and marketed attempt at a crossover. The subject matter isn’t without subtlety, but some of the production is terrific.
-
Cleveland Scene
Cuts like "Mr. Carter" and "Got Money" elevate Tha Carter III right up there with Dark Side of the Moon and Goodbye Yellow Brick Road — albums that are classics not in spite of, but because of, their grandiose absurdity.
-
Grammy Awards
Few hip-hop albums are referred to as an "event" rather than a "release." However, on June 10, 2008, Lil Wayne created an event with the third installment of his Carter album series, the aptly titled Tha Carter III.
Rate This Album and Leave Your Comments