Lil Wayne closed out 2017 with a bang.
After previously releasing a slew of freestyles throughout December, he dropped Dedication 6 on Christmas, a much-appreciated gift for his fans. Still beleaguered by label woes which are holding up his long-awaited Carter 5 album, Wayne didn’t bother throwing potential singles at the wall, he went back to the freestyle format that first ascended him into rap superstardom — and showed that he still has it. It’s fitting that with the dozens of freestyles on the project (and more to come), Lil Wayne, a champion of wordplay, was able to achieve a dual purpose. Not only did he re-affirm his status as the forefather of this hip-hop generation, he also placed another bid for king of the freestyle.
Before we continue, let’s be clear: I’m not saying Wayne is a pro at improvisational, off-the-top rhymes, I’m referring to the freestyle in the sense of what Big Daddy Kane deemed a written rhyme “free of style” or concept. I’m talking about a two-to-three-minute exhibition of your raw lyrical ability, wit, and mastery of flow. With projects like Da Drought series — specifically Drought 3 — Wayne is perhaps the lone southern artist who stood toe to toe with fellow kings of the freestyle format like Jadakiss, Cassidy, Lloyd Banks, Fabolous, Juelz Santana and others.
Many may know Gillie Da Kid primarily as “the guy that accused Wayne of ghostwriting,” but he has his own legacy as a member of Philly-based group Major Figgas — who were allegedly Rocafella’s first choice for a Philly group before State Property. When Gillie signed to Cash Money, it’s obvious that he influenced Wayne, whose delivery went from a simpler flow more reminiscent of Cash Money comrades B.G. and Birdman to a more intricate technical approach on songs like “B.M. Jr.” Gillie left Cash Money in 2003, then began throwing the ghostwriting rumors on rap DVDs in the mid-‘00s. Regardless of how involved Gillie was in Wayne’s rhymes, it’s telling that Wayne got even better after Gillie fell out with the label.
By then, Wayne already had the technical rhyme ability, and his skills were further sharpened when he started running with Juelz Santana, who was a burgeoning star with Dipset, in the early ‘00s. In 2005, Wayne dropped The Carter 2, on which his knack for memorable wordplay such as “Coke transactions on the phone we call it ‘blow jobs’” really started to shine. Being around witty MCs like Juelz Santana, Cam’ron, and even JR Writer and Hell Rell no doubt influenced his craft. Dipset is known for deeply assonant rhymes and amusing, rewind-worthy one-liners. Being in that mix helped Wayne soak up those attributes, which we started to hear on projects like Dedication 2 and the Drought series.
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