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The Mass Media

The Mass Media

The Mass Media

Lil Wayne’s New Album Falls Flat

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One of rap’s biggest super- stars, Lil Wayne, has released his latest musical endeavor “I Am Not a Human Being” even before being released from prison. This past March Wayne was booked on pos- session of a weapon and was ordered to serve an 8 month sentence. Wayne, a four time Grammy Award winner be- gan his career at the tender age of 14. However, it wasn’t until 2008 that he would find mainstream success in the pop genre that would even- tually lead him to work with artists such as Madonna, Weezer, and Enrique Ingle- sias. While this may be a far cry from what catapulted the artist into conventional triumph (“The Carter III”), “Human Being” still captures good beats and free flows that have made him so ad- mired among his fans. Never one to censor himself, the al- bum’s opener “Gonorrhea”, is a typical Weezy joint that can get anyone’s head nodding along with lyricslike “call it how I see ya, wish I never met ya/I wouldn’t wan- nabe ya” and would make a decent filler for facebook. One of the more unnecessary tracks on this record is the raunchy cut “I’m Single”. This song with mediocre produc- tion was most likely better off on a mix tape rather than an actual studio release. While Lil Wayne is famous for re- cording a majority of his music based on free styling sometimes the concept just doesn’t work. Smooth and “fancy” Drake make a few cameos that act as somewhat of a safety net while the track “Popular” uses excerpts from Young Money’s smash single “Bedrock” with Wayne echo- ing “She Michael Jackson bad…” throughout the song. “With You” is a smooth break that highlights Drake’s sexy singing and complimented by female background vocals that recall the infamous girl bands of the sixties. “Right Above it” was an excellent choice for a first single and possibly the stand out of this entire record. It has all the makings of a brilliant hip-hop song complete with a catchy beat and witty lyrics that will penetrate your mind (“I been fly so long I fell asleep on the fucking plane”) – a song with enough energy that could get any athlete pumped up for a big game. While this may not be a defining moment in Lil Wayne’s career, fans will find something on “I Am Not A Human Being” to remind them of why they appreciated him in the first place.