Cash Money/Universal Motown 011033
Producers: David Banner, Jim Jonsin, Angelo Morris, D. Smith, Swizz Beatz, Robin Thicke, Kayne West, Betty Wright
Track listing: 3 Peat / Mr. Carter / A Milli / Got Money / Comfortable / Dr. Carter / Phone Home / Tie My Hands / Mrs. Officer / Let the Beat Build / Shoot Me Down / Lollipop / La La / Playing with Fire / You Ain’t Got Nuthin / Dontgetit
June 28, 2008
3 weeks (nonconsecutive)
He calls himself “the best rapper alive.” Still, few could have predicted that the New Orleans native born Dwayne Michael Carter, Jr. would be the artist to — at least temporarily — shake the music industry out of the sales doldrums. The hip-hop star, known professionally as Lil Wayne, accomplished the feat with his sixth official solo album, Tha Carter III.
What surprised many in the music business was not the fact that Tha Carter III topped the chart, but the numbers it racked up in doing so. With sales of more than 1 million copies in its first week on the street, Tha Carter III became the first album to hit seven figures in its debut week since 50 Cent’s The Massacre crossed the million mark in March 2005. Making Lil Wayne’s triumph even more impressive was the fact that not a single album sold more than 800,000 in a week in all of 2006. The following year, Kanye West (who guests on Tha Carter III) scored a rare sales smash when his Graduation sold 957,000 copies after its September 11, 2007 release, but that couldn’t match Tha Carter III impressive debut.
Prior to the release Tha Carter III, Lil Wayne had certainly racked up some impressive chart peaks. Before breaking out as a solo artist, Wayne was a member of the Hot Boys. The hip-hop foursome reached number five and topped the Top R&B/Hip Hop Albums chart in 1999 with Guerrilla Warfare. As a solo artist, Wayne topped the R&B/Hip Hop Albums chart four times. His previous chart high on The Billboard 200 came in 2005 when Tha Carter II debuted at number two with sales of 238,000.
What’s astonishing is despite the rampant file sharing of the album’s tracks prior to its official release and the fact that Lil Wayne hadn’t released an official album since 2005, Tha Carter III nearly quadrupled the first week sales of its predecessor. Sylvia Rhone, president of Universal/Motown Records, credited Wayne’s appearance on various mixtapes and guest spots on big hit singles by Destiny’s Child, Lloyd, Wyclef Jean and Fat Joe, and the release of a digital-only five-song EP called The Leak, with creating anticipating for Tha Carter III.
“He stayed connected and nurtured his audience,” Rhone told Robert Levine of The New York Times. “He was always working. And I think the rabid following he’s cultivated is reflected in those sales numbers.”
Also fueling the fire was “Lollipop,” Lil Wayne’s scorching summer single featuring Static Major, which became his big crossover pop hit, topping the Hot 100 for five weeks leading up to the album’s release. Meanwhile, another single, “A Milli,” was creating a serious buzz on the Hot Rap Tracks chart, showing signs of crossing over. Even after Coldplay’s Viva la Vida knocked Tha Carter III from the top spot, Wayne came back three weeks later and regained the summit for two additional weeks. For a least part of the summer of 2008, it really did seem as if it was Wayne’s world.
Unfortunately for Wayne, his celebration was rocked in late July 2008 when Abkco Music, the publishing company that owns the rights to the Rolling Stones’ song “Play with Fire,” sued the rapper for releasing a similar song without permission. In the suit, Abkco claimed that Lil Wayne’s “Playing with Fire” is clearly derivative of the Stones’ song’s music and lyrics. In addition, the suit said that Lil Wayne’s version includes “explicit, sexist and offensive language” that could prompt fans to believe the company and the Rolling Stones approved of and authorized the Lil Wayne track.
THE TOP FIVE
Week of June 28, 2008
1. Tha Carter III, Lil Wayne
2. Definition of Real, Plies
3. NOW 28, Various Artists
4. Indestructible, Disturbed
5. Here I Stand, Usher