Tha Carter II

Tha Carter II
Tha Carter II
Studio album by Lil Wayne
Released	December 6, 2005
Genre	Hip hop, hardcore hip hop, R&B
Length	77:22
Label	Cash Money; Young Money; Universal;
Producer	Birdman (also exec.); Ronald "Slim" Williams (exec.); The Runners; DJ Nasty & LVM; Robin Thicke; Young Yonny; The Heatmakerz; Cool & Dre; Deezle; Bigg D; DVLP; Filthy; T-Mix; Batman; Matlock;
Lil Wayne chronology
Singles from Tha Carter II
	"Fireman"; Released: October 25, 2005; "Hustler Musik"; Released: January 10, 2006; "Shooter"; Released: April 9, 2006;

Tha Carter II is the fifth studio album by American rapper Lil Wayne. It was released on December 6, 2005, by Cash Money Records, Young Money Entertainment and Universal Records. Recording sessions took place from 2004 to 2005, with Birdman and his brother Ronald "Slim" Williams serving as the record's executive producers. Additional producers on the album included The Runners and The Heatmakerz, among others. The album serves as a sequel to his fourth album Tha Carter (2004), and was supported by three singles ("Fireman", "Hustler Musik" and "Shooter").

Tha Carter II received critical acclaim and ranks highly in retrospectives of Lil Wayne's best work.^[1]^[2] The album debuted at number two on the US Billboard 200 chart.^[3] The album was later certified double platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) in September 2020.^[4]

Singles

The lead single from the album, called "Fireman" was released on October 25, 2005. The song was produced by DVLP and Filthy. While they were recording the song at the time, both DVLP and Filthy first burst into a music scene as the production duo, called Doe Boys.

The album's second single, "Hustler Musik" was released on January 10, 2006. The song was produced by T-Mix and the unknown producer named Batman. A music video was released for this song that was directed by Benny Boom.

The album's third single, "Shooter" was released on April 9, 2006. The song features guest vocals from an American R&B singer-songwriter Robin Thicke, who also produced this track. The song also was later included on Thicke's then-upcoming album, titled The Evolution of Robin Thicke (2006).

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	^[5]
Blender	^[6]
Entertainment Weekly	B^[7]
The Guardian	A^[8]
Houston Chronicle	^[9]
Pitchfork	8.1/10^[10]
PopMatters	8/10^[11]
Rolling Stone	^[12]
USA Today	^[13]
The Village Voice	B+^[14]

Upon its release, Tha Carter II received widespread acclaim from music critics, with several praising the lyricism and artistic growth demonstrated by Wayne on the album. AllMusic's David Jeffries praised the album's balance of "hookless, freestyle-ish tracks" and "slicker club singles", commenting that "the well-rounded, risk-taking, but true-to-its-roots album suggests he can weather the highs and lows like a champion."^[5] Entertainment Weekly's Ryan Dombal wrote that Tha Carter II "transcends [Wayne's] inflated ego" and complimented the album's "sturdy funk-blues tracks... that offer genuine value".^[7] David Drake of Stylus Magazine called the album "one of the year's best releases" and lauded his "entire persona, an aura, a rap creation that seems fully-developed and fascinating".^[15] Despite writing that "Wayne's verses need a good polish", Nick Sylvester of Pitchfork wrote that the album contains "jaw-droppers aplenty" and complimented Wayne's growth as a lyricist, stating:

People who met Wayne on "Go DJ" and thought him a lunchroom hack emcee – who knows what's happened since then, but damn has he learned how to write. His squeak is now a croak, his laugh a little more burly, his flow remarkably flexible. Sometimes he's deliberate like syrup cats ("But this is Southern, face it/ If we too simple then yall don't get the basics") but when he needs to be, he's nimble as that Other Carter: "I ain't talking too fast you just listening too slow." Remy and weed, fast things and women, the corner – these are Wayne's wax since B.G.'ing with B.G., putting piff on the campus before he ever enrolled in college.^[10]

IGN writer Jim During gave the album an eight out of ten and commented that Wayne "[punishes] the mic with hard-hitting verbal tenacity", and wrote that the album shows him "at his most focused, and is a strong next step for a relatively young career."^[16] Matt Cibula of PopMatters wrote ambivalently towards that album's production, writing that "the producers here are mostly no-namers who do their jobs well but not spectacularly", but praised Wayne's "amazing" words and remarked that "Straws really IS the best rapper alive, at least when he tries".^[11]

In 2020, Rolling Stone ranked it number 370 on the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time.^[17]

LA Weekly included the track "Best Rapper Alive" in their list of "Ten Rap-Rock Songs That Are Actually Awesome".^[18]

Commercial performance

Tha Carter II debuted at number two on the US Billboard 200 chart, selling 240,000 copies in its first week.^[3] This became Wayne's fourth US top-ten debut.^[3] The album also debuted at number one on the US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart, becoming Wayne's third number-one album on this chart.^[3] As of March 2008, the album has sold 1.3 million copies in the US.^[19] On September 25, 2020, the album was certified double platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for combined sales and album-equivalent units of over two million units in the United States.^[4]

Track listing

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Producer(s)	Length
1.	"Tha Mobb"	Dwayne Carter, Jr. Gregory Green Sean Thomas Wilson Turbinton	The Heatmakerz	5:20
2.	"Fly In"	Carter, Jr. Tristan "T-Mix" Jones Bryan Williams	T-Mix Batman	2:23
3.	"Money on My Mind"	Carter, Jr. Andrew Harr Jermaine Jackson Johnny Mollings Lenny Mollings	The Runners DJ Nasty & LVM	4:31
4.	"Fireman"	Carter, Jr. Bigram Zayas Matthew "Filthy" DelGiorno	DVLP Filthy	4:23
5.	"Mo Fire"	Carter, Jr. Ronald "Young Yonny" Ferebee, Jr.	Young Yonny	3:23
6.	"On tha Block #1"			0:38
7.	"Best Rapper Alive"	Carter, Jr. Derrick Baker Steve Harris	Bigg D	4:53
8.	"Lock and Load" (featuring Kurupt)	Carter, Jr. Ricardo Brown Jones Williams	T-Mix Batman	4:46
9.	"Oh No"	Carter, Jr. Ferebee, Jr. W. Matlock	Young Yonny Matlock	3:11
10.	"Grown Man" (featuring Curren$y)	Carter, Jr. Shante Franklin Jones Williams Paul Harden	T-Mix Batman	4:06
11.	"On tha Block #2"			0:26
12.	"Hit Em Up"	Carter, Jr. Zayas DelGiorno	DVLP Filthy	4:07
13.	"Carter II"	Carter, Jr. Jones Williams	T-Mix Batman	2:24
14.	"Hustler Musik"	Carter, Jr. Jones Williams	T-Mix Batman	5:03
15.	"Receipt"	Carter, Jr. Green Thomas O'Kelly Isley, Jr. Ronald Isley	The Heatmakerz	3:48
16.	"Shooter" (featuring Robin Thicke)	Carter, Jr. Robin Thicke Robert Daniels James Gass Robert Keyes	Robin Thicke	4:35
17.	"Weezy Baby" (featuring Nikki Kynard)	Carter, Jr. Nikki Kynard Darius Harrison	Deezle	4:18
18.	"On tha Block #3"			0:13
19.	"I'm a D-Boy" (featuring Birdman)	Carter, Jr. Williams Jones Eric Barrier William Griffin, Jr.	T-Mix Batman	4:00
20.	"Feel Me"	Carter, Jr. Zayas DelGiorno	DVLP Filthy	3:48
21.	"Get Over" (featuring Nikki Kynard)	Carter, Jr. Leary Andre Lyon Marcello Valenzano Phill Hurtt Walter Sigler	Cool & Dre	4:42
22.	"Fly Out"	Carter, Jr. Jones Williams	T-Mix Batman	2:25
Total length:				77:22

Sample credits

"Tha Mobb" samples "Moment from Truth", written and performed by Wilson Turbinton.
"Best Rapper Alive" samples "Fear of the Dark", written by Steve Harris, and performed by Iron Maiden.
"Grown Man" samples "Sparkle", written by Paul Harden, and performed by Cameo.
"Receipt" samples "Lay-Away", written by O'Kelly Isley, Jr. and Ronald Isley, and performed by The Isley Brothers.
"Shooter" samples "Oh Shooter", written and performed by Robin Thicke, also written by Robert Daniels, James Gass and Robert Keyes; as well as Wayne's "Shooter" or Thicke's "Oh Shooter", also it contains the interpolation from "Mass Appeal" performed by Gang Starr.
"I'm a D-Boy" samples "Paid in Full", written and performed by Eric Barrier and William Griffin, Jr.
"Get Over" samples "Love Is What We Came Here For", written by Phill Hurtt and Walter Sigler, and performed by Garland Green.

Personnel

Credits for Tha Carter II adapted from Allmusic.^[20]

Birdman – producer
Derrick "Bigg D" Baker – composer, producer
Katina Bynum – project manager
D.P. "Dad" Carter – composer
Dwayne "Lil Wayne" Carter – composer, vocals
Cool & Dre – multi instruments, producers
Andrews Correa – audio engineer
Shante "Curren$y" Franklin – composer
April DeVona – assistant engineer
Brian "Big Bass" Gardner – mastering
Gregory Green – composer
The Heatmakerz – producers
David Karmiol – bass guitar
Lil' Hollywood – engineer
Patrick Magee – assistant engineer

Jonathan Mannion – photography
Tommy Mara – assistant engineer
Fabian Marasciullo – audio engineer, engineer, mixing
Kevin Mayer – assistant engineer
Nikki – vocals
Danielle Premone – assistant engineer
Jose Luis Rodríguez – assistant engineer
Walter "Bunny" Sigler – composer
Tristan "T-Mix" Jones – producer
Sean Thomas – composer
Javier Valverde – engineer
Ronald "Slim" Williams – executive producer
Bryan "Baby" Williams – executive producer
Genevieve Zaragoza – A&R

Charts

Weekly charts

Chart (2005-2006)	Peak position
US Billboard 200^[21]	2
US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Billboard)^[22]	1
US Top Rap Albums (Billboard)^[23]	1

Year-end charts

Chart (2006)	Position
US Billboard 200^[24]	47
US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Billboard)^[25]	6
US Top Rap Albums (Billboard)^[26]	2

Certifications


Region	Certification	Certified units/sales
United States (RIAA)^[4]	2× Platinum	2,000,000^‡
^‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

References

^ Nguyen, Dean Van (October 4, 2018). "Lil Wayne's albums – ranked!". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved December 1, 2019.
^ Lockett, Sam Hockley-Smith, Craig Jenkins, Dee (September 28, 2018). "What's the Best Album in Lil Wayne's Carter Series?". Vulture. Retrieved December 1, 2019.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d "Eminem Scores Fourth No. 1 Album In A Row". Billboard. December 14, 2005. Retrieved March 1, 2020.
^ ^a ^b ^c "American album certifications – Lil Wayne – Tha Carter II". Recording Industry Association of America.
^ ^a ^b Jeffries, David. "Tha Carter II – Lil Wayne". AllMusic. Retrieved March 13, 2020.
^ "Lil' Wayne: Tha Carter II". Blender. Archived from the original on January 13, 2006. Retrieved November 25, 2017.
^ ^a ^b Dombal, Ryan (December 9, 2005). "Lil Wayne: Tha Carter II". Entertainment Weekly. No. 853. p. 88.
^ Westhoff, Ben (December 5, 2014). "Lil Wayne's Tha Carter series, from best to worst". The Guardian. Retrieved November 25, 2017.
^ Hardimon, Zharmer (December 18, 2005). "N'awlins son keep things interesting". Houston Chronicle. Retrieved November 25, 2017.
^ ^a ^b Sylvester, Nick (January 12, 2006). "Lil Wayne: Tha Carter II". Pitchfork. Retrieved June 17, 2015.
^ ^a ^b Cibula, Matt (January 25, 2006). "Lil' Wayne: Tha Carter II". PopMatters. Retrieved February 2, 2012.
^ Hoard, Christian (November 28, 2005). "Tha Carter II". Rolling Stone. Retrieved June 17, 2015.
^ Jones, Steve (December 12, 2005). "Lil' Wayne, Tha Carter II". USA Today. Retrieved June 17, 2015.
^ Christgau, Robert (February 14, 2006). "Consumer Guide: Forever Young". The Village Voice. Retrieved June 17, 2015.
^ "Lil Wayne - The Carter II - Review". Stylus Magazine. Retrieved June 17, 2015.
^ "Lil' Wayne - Tha Carter II". IGN. January 25, 2006. Archived from the original on December 1, 2017.
^ "The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time". Rolling Stone. Retrieved April 25, 2021.
^ "Ten Rap-Rock Songs That Are Actually Awesome". LA Weekly. April 6, 2012.
^ Mariel Concepcion (March 25, 2008). "Lil Wayne's 'Carter III' Finally Has Street Date". Billboard. Retrieved March 1, 2020.
^ "Tha Carter II > Credits". Allmusic. Rovi Corporation. Retrieved December 10, 2011.
^ "Lil Wayne Album & Song Chart History: Billboard 200". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved December 10, 2011.
^ "Lil Wayne Album & Song Chart History: R&B/Hip-Hop Albums". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved December 10, 2011.
^ "Lil Wayne Album & Song Chart History: Rap Albums". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved December 10, 2011.
^ "2006 Year-End Charts – Billboard 200 Albums". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved February 28, 2015.
^ "2006 Year-End Charts – Billboard R&B/Hip-Hop Albums". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved February 28, 2015.
^ "2006 Year-End Charts – Billboard Rap Albums". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved February 28, 2015.

[1] Nguyen, Dean Van (October 4, 2018). "Lil Wayne's albums – ranked!". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved December 1, 2019.

[2] Lockett, Sam Hockley-Smith, Craig Jenkins, Dee (September 28, 2018). "What's the Best Album in Lil Wayne's Carter Series?". Vulture. Retrieved December 1, 2019.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)

[BB200-3] "Eminem Scores Fourth No. 1 Album In A Row". Billboard. December 14, 2005. Retrieved March 1, 2020.

[RIAA-4] "American album certifications – Lil Wayne – Tha Carter II". Recording Industry Association of America.

[Allmusic-5] Jeffries, David. "Tha Carter II – Lil Wayne". AllMusic. Retrieved March 13, 2020.

[6] "Lil' Wayne: Tha Carter II". Blender. Archived from the original on January 13, 2006. Retrieved November 25, 2017.

[Entertainment_Weekly_review-7] Dombal, Ryan (December 9, 2005). "Lil Wayne: Tha Carter II". Entertainment Weekly. No. 853. p. 88.

[8] Westhoff, Ben (December 5, 2014). "Lil Wayne's Tha Carter series, from best to worst". The Guardian. Retrieved November 25, 2017.

[9] Hardimon, Zharmer (December 18, 2005). "N'awlins son keep things interesting". Houston Chronicle. Retrieved November 25, 2017.

[Pitchfork-10] Sylvester, Nick (January 12, 2006). "Lil Wayne: Tha Carter II". Pitchfork. Retrieved June 17, 2015.

[PopMatters-11] Cibula, Matt (January 25, 2006). "Lil' Wayne: Tha Carter II". PopMatters. Retrieved February 2, 2012.

[12] Hoard, Christian (November 28, 2005). "Tha Carter II". Rolling Stone. Retrieved June 17, 2015.

[13] Jones, Steve (December 12, 2005). "Lil' Wayne, Tha Carter II". USA Today. Retrieved June 17, 2015.

[14] Christgau, Robert (February 14, 2006). "Consumer Guide: Forever Young". The Village Voice. Retrieved June 17, 2015.

[Stylus-15] "Lil Wayne - The Carter II - Review". Stylus Magazine. Retrieved June 17, 2015.

[Ign-16] "Lil' Wayne - Tha Carter II". IGN. January 25, 2006. Archived from the original on December 1, 2017.

[17] "The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time". Rolling Stone. Retrieved April 25, 2021.

[18] "Ten Rap-Rock Songs That Are Actually Awesome". LA Weekly. April 6, 2012.

[19] Mariel Concepcion (March 25, 2008). "Lil Wayne's 'Carter III' Finally Has Street Date". Billboard. Retrieved March 1, 2020.

[20] "Tha Carter II > Credits". Allmusic. Rovi Corporation. Retrieved December 10, 2011.

[US200-21] "Lil Wayne Album & Song Chart History: Billboard 200". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved December 10, 2011.

[USR&BAl-22] "Lil Wayne Album & Song Chart History: R&B/Hip-Hop Albums". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved December 10, 2011.

[USRapAl-23] "Lil Wayne Album & Song Chart History: Rap Albums". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved December 10, 2011.

[24] "2006 Year-End Charts – Billboard 200 Albums". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved February 28, 2015.

[25] "2006 Year-End Charts – Billboard R&B/Hip-Hop Albums". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved February 28, 2015.

[26] "2006 Year-End Charts – Billboard Rap Albums". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved February 28, 2015.

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Tha Carter II

Singles

Critical reception

Commercial performance

Track listing

Personnel

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

References

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