Just take a look at this perfectly absurd sequence from the opener: вЂњDrive-bys in a Winnebago/Snipers never hit a baby, crib, or cradle/Sit tomatoes on your head and split tomatoes/From a hundred feet away, now itвЂ™s a halo.вЂќ Listening to Wayne on Funeral is a bit like watching a skateboard trick compilation: He wipes out a few times but itвЂ™s always in service of some epic stunt and when he does land one, it can be awe-inspiring. His вЂњBall HardвЂќ verse is a free-associative word game, bouncing from one character to the next until they begin to blur together. On the Mannie Fresh-produced вЂњMahogany,вЂќ which warps lyric fragments from Eryn Allen KaneвЂ™s вЂњ Bass SongвЂќ into jazz scatting, Wayne bends in and out of shape around her interjections. HeвЂ™s still a volume shooter, but like Rockets guard James Harden (who gets a song named after him here), his low-percentage play is offset by his high degree of difficulty, his ability to break the game with crafty maneuvers and extreme skill.

WayneвЂ™s down years were largely the product of a diminishing punchline-to-clunker ratio. Which is to say: funneling what is likely countless hours in the booth spitballing and freestyling into something coherent. With his rebound record finally liberated and the pressure alleviated, Funeral gets back to business as usual for Wayne. Wayne has said Carter albums are the only projects that require any specific preparation and focus, and that his other albums and mixtapes are simply born from his marathon recording sessions. Released at the conclusion of legal battles with his surrogate father and lifelong mentor Birdman, the album felt like the beginning of a second (or third) act. Tha Carter V reestablished Lil Wayne as a force, answering many longstanding questions about his viability as an artist.

Lil wayne albums and mixtapes list