Tha Carter V

Tha Carter V finally appeared after years of delay and a dispute over Lil Wayne's record contract. The long wait gives its reflective passages additional weight, but the album also makes room for the quick turns of phrase and changing deliveries that shaped his reputation.

“Mona Lisa,” with Kendrick Lamar, develops its story through two contrasting performances. Other songs turn more directly towards family, memory and survival. Across the record's generous length, those personal concerns sit beside tracks designed around the immediate pleasure of hearing him work through a beat.