REVIEW: I Am Not A Human Being By Lil Wayne

2.5 Stars

Much like Lil Wayne’s career, I Am Not A Human Being has moments of greatness mixed with bad decision-making and sheer laziness.

Lyrically, the album is just okay, with some witty lines that are worth listening to. However, Weezy’s definitely not at the top of his game with recycled ‘life’s a beach/bitch’ and ‘we in the building, you in the front yard/apartments’ puns.

Mr Carter also re-uses an old freestyle on Right Above It and the over-played chorus from Young Money’s Bedrock for Popular.

Which brings my first problem into the spotlight, if you are releasing only 10 songs, follow the example of Rick Ross and make them all solid.

We also have stale collaborations from Young Money signees who aren’t good enough to appear on Wayne’s Carter albums, but feature on these mediocre compilations.

Yes, I’m looking at you Lil Twist, T-Streets (Who??) and Jay Sean. The latter of which sounds like positively boy band-like on That Ain’t Me.

However, it isn’t all negative either. There aren’t any Birdman guest-spots on here so listeners do manage to avoid his typically weak flow.

There are some diamonds in the rough also thanks to solid instrumentals on I’m Single, the title track and With You.

I’m Single has Wayne taking a subtle approach to his usual punch-line flow and instead, we are treated to narrative storytelling reminiscent of the Weezy classic I Feel Like Dying with its woozy beat and Martian vocals.

Simply put this is a mediocre album released to make money off the Lil Wayne brand while he was in prison and to keep the hype machine moving.

And in that respect, it’s pretty successful. The songs are listenable, there are some good verses from Weezy, and it definitely makes me want to hear a more solid album.

I can’t critique Cash Money Records on their business sense either; over-saturation of the music industry seems to be working in their favour.

Dozens of hits and tons of mixtapes released every year, and Weezy is still as popular as ever. But the fans will catch on soon so it’s time for an actual good album, especially after having to deal with this and Rebirth last year.

Review by Jimmy Ness.