Lil’ Wayne - The Drought 3

Is Lil’ Wayne really the best rapper alive?  Weezy’s status in the game has been hotly debated in radio, print, and barbershops, but we’re still no closer to an answer.  Luckily New Orleans favorite son has released a new mixtape, The Drought 3, full of fresh evidence.  Despite its name, The Drought 3 is dripping wet with the kind of rasping originality that makes Weezy the go to MC for every guest verse on the radio.  None of the 14 tracks on the mixtape are disses, but if we seriously want to find out how good Weezy is, we need to treat the mixtape like a battle.  Last MC standing wins. 

This Is Why I’m Hot is huge, and while Mims’ basic rhyme scheme on the original was perfect for a hit single, it wasn’t exactly a display of MC skills.  In contrast Weezy’s flow is explosively dynamic; he inexplicably adopts a Jamaican accent at times, and even occasionally sings.  Wayne is New Orleans to the bone and so it only makes sense he’s absorbed the city’s jazz roots.  Wayne works the mic like Miles Davis worked the trumpet; improvising at will and dangerously unpredictable, but still on point.  Mims’ is no match for Wayne’s flurry of verbal punches.  The winner is Weezy in a first-round knockout. 

Rich Boy’s ability to perfectly match the bouncing beat of Throw Some D’s shows he’s got some legitimate talent, but Wayne’s cadence is so strong he makes the beat follow him.  Wayne’s lyrics can resemble the late Old Dirty Bastard’s, they simply don’t make any sense, but he certainly keeps you listening to every word.  In the span of a few bars he goes from “my words are poetic like Langston’s,” to “your girl love my dick, she treats it like a bone.”  There’s nothing he won’t say.  Rich Boy puts up a fight, but Weezy emerges victorious.

This is a battle of two vastly different styles, T.I.’s cool swagger against Weezy’s franticly hurried flow.  T.I. has the rare ability to spit dope verses about wood-grained wheels that also include some social commentary.  For his part Lil’ Wayne references the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina repeatedly, showing he’s capable of doing more than just making it rain.  Ultimately Weezy’s voice is what makes him so unique; his ability to follow a violently deep growl with a high-pitched laugh is captivating.  T.I. lands some serious blows, but Weezy pulls out a narrow victory.

This is the moment we’ve all been waiting for, the title fight.  Nas and Hov are legends for their potent mix of flawless delivery and expertly built lyrical content.  On Weezy’s side is his original style.  He raps “my mind is on another continent,” and it often sounds like he’s on another planet.  Nas seems to have lost a bit of the fire that made him so dangerous and Weezy eventually tires him out, but Jay just has too much experience.  It’s a classic, but Hov manages to barely hang onto the title.  There’s no doubt the aging Jay is hearing Lil’ Wayne’s footsteps, and The Drought 3 proves Weezy F. Baby’s on the verge of knocking him out of the top spot.  It’s only a matter of time before he truly becomes “the best rapper alive.”