The Review

Issue date: 4/24/07 Section: Mosaic

Media Credit: Courtesy of Wireimage.com [Click to enlarge]

Lil' Wayne is the best rapper alive.

At least that's what he repeatedly tells listeners on his mixtapes, freestyles and albums. And while his critics and haters cry foul, they might want to slow down. Lil' Wayne is about to unleash his latest mixtape masterpiece, "Da Drought 3," and with it, he will rightfully take the crown he claims is his.

This has been building for awhile: Wayne gained prominence after releasing "Tha Carter" in 2004 and continued his hype with the DJ Drama mixtapes "Dedication" and "Dedication 2." When he released "Tha Carter II" at the end of '05, a charismatic, unconventional MC had fully emerged.

Now, to whet his fans' appetites until he releases "Tha Carter III," Wayne will soon release "Da Drought 3" - online and free of charge.

In the simplest terms, the mixtape is a double-disc behemoth of freestyles over popular Hip-hop beats like Rich Boy's "Throw Some D's" and Nas' "If I Ruled the World."

"Da Drought 3" separates itself from other mixtapes because of its efficiency. Lil' Wayne is in top form, freely associating "Jurassic Park," "La Macarena" and former San Diego Chargers running back Eric Bieniemy - all flawlessly.

Just like the Notorious B.I.G. before him, Lil' Wayne's MC-excellence isn't just in what he says but how he says it.

Over Young Dro's "Shoulder Lean," Wayne spits, "Even in the dungeon, I glow / Even if it ain't sunny, I glow / If it ain't about money, I go / No where / I'm nailed to the floor / Money controls where I go / It is the sail to my boat / And it's going down, it's going down like there's a whale in the boat." Even music majors can appreciate the verse because Wayne is well aware of his own cadence and its power.

On the same track, Wayne continues his ascendance as best rapper alive by making the most simple lines sound fresh. The MC's charisma, which is heard on songs through the way he changes his voice and intonation, bleeds through the Young Dro staple: "And to the kids, drugs kill / I'm acknowledging that / But while I'm on the drugs, I don't have a problem with that." The last lines experience reverse accentuation as Wayne slows his flow to mimick a person having a bad trip. Another message to the kids - quit while you're young, because rap isn't going to get more fun or simple than this.

The past two paragraphs were dedicated to one song out of 26. This sort of dissection could be done to any of the tracks on "Da Drought 3," as the mixtape is a testament to a rapper matching his money to his mouth. Each song is what Hip-hop could use more of - pure fun. Wayne knows this, as on every song, whether he's describing a threesome or delivering death threats, he can be found laughing. The rap game is his for the taking and "Da Drought 3" is his prologue before "Tha Carter III" and its expected greatness.

If this doesn't make sense yet, perhaps Wayne can explain it better. He rhymes over the latest epic Mike Jones' beat "Mr. Jones," "I'm probably in the sky, flying with the fishes / Or maybe in the ocean, swimming with the pigeons / See, my world is different."

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