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The debut of a true legend with banging Mannie Fresh beats with a lot of Cash Money features. To be honest, it's not one of my favorites (I prefer Lights Out) but this debut is solid and OK. I'm going to do a usual track-by-track review and let you know what I think.
Tha Block is Hot (1999)
01 - Intro [No Rating]
02 - Tha Block is Hot (Feat. Juvenile & B.G.) [5/5] - A classic way to start out the album. With funny sound effects, a nice hook and poppy production. This song is definitely top 10 material.
03 - Loud Pipes (Feat. Big Tymers, Juvenile & B.G.) [3/5] - Me personally, I don't care for the Big Tymers. Both Baby and Mannie Fresh are mediocre rappers. But, Juvenile really does his part in this track and the production is really good.
04 - Whatcha Wanna Do [4/5] - Wayne's flow is a little sloppy in this track and it does feel a bit repetitive at points. But it's still fairly solid. It really starts out kinda weak, but kicks off at the second verse.
05 - Kisha (Feat. The Hot Boys) [4/5] - I actually find this track to be hilarious. Me personally, I don't care for it, but it's all right.
06 - High Beamin' (Feat. B.G.) [2.5/5] - A little bit weak, and it seems like there's way too much hook with this one.
07 - Lights Off [4.5/5] - One of the better tracks of the album. A little bit of storytelling and a nice Mannie Fresh beat to add to it. Very good.
08 - Fuck Tha World [5/5] - An emotional track that tells of Lil Wayne's struggles and how it's too much weight for this 17 year old's shoulders. You can really tell that he's upset and feel his emotion in the track.
09 - Remember Me [3/5] - A decent way to kick off the second half of the album. Not one of the better tracks on the album, but it was OK.
10 - Respect Us [2/5] - I'd rather not talk much about this one... It's not necesarely "wack" but it's borderline wack. Maybe it's just me, but I think this is where the album starts to slow down...
11 - Drop It Like It's Hot (Feat. B.G. & Mannie Fresh) [2/5] - Back Dat Azz Up 2? Meh... I don't care for this track much, but it's... Eh... An attempt to outshine Juvenile, who, at this point, was far superior to Wayne.
12 - Hot Playa (Feat. Big Tymers) [2/5] - A little bit boring, and the Big Tymers really did no justice to this track.
13 - Enemy Turf (Feat. Juvenile) [2/5] - Really nothing special here. This half of the album get's better over time, but this isn't the spot where it gets better, sadly.
14 - Not Like Me (Feat. Big Tymers) [2/5] - Yawn.
15 - Come On (Feat. B.G.) [2.5/5] - A little repetitive, but the album starts to get slightly more tolerable at this point.
16 - Up to Me [4/5] - One of the better tracks of the album. Wayne, also in this track, talks about his rise to this point and how it's up to him to keep it up and perfect his craft. Pretty inspirational.
17 - You Want War (Feat. B.G.) [4/5] - A good way to end off the LP. Nothing too special here, to be honest, I would've put Up to Me at the end instead of this track, but maybe that's just my opinion.
Best tracks on the album:
1. Tha Block is Hot
2. Fuck Tha World
3. Lights Off
4. You Want War
5. Kisha
Overall: 51.5/80 Aight
Nothing spectacular, mainly due to being a debut. Not too many tracks are memorable and some tracks or boring and repetitive. The production can get a bit repetitive and Wayne's lyrical content and flow are sloppy and weak. But, I can't criticize this album harshly. The only great debuts that i've listened to are Illmatic and Reasonable Doubt. This one was meant to be raw/rough, Wayne was young and was probably nervous. So, overall, this album is a solid piece of work.
Next up is Lights Out!
http://www.lilwaynehq.com/forums/lil...ut-review.html
Tha Block is Hot (1999)
01 - Intro [No Rating]
02 - Tha Block is Hot (Feat. Juvenile & B.G.) [5/5] - A classic way to start out the album. With funny sound effects, a nice hook and poppy production. This song is definitely top 10 material.
03 - Loud Pipes (Feat. Big Tymers, Juvenile & B.G.) [3/5] - Me personally, I don't care for the Big Tymers. Both Baby and Mannie Fresh are mediocre rappers. But, Juvenile really does his part in this track and the production is really good.
04 - Whatcha Wanna Do [4/5] - Wayne's flow is a little sloppy in this track and it does feel a bit repetitive at points. But it's still fairly solid. It really starts out kinda weak, but kicks off at the second verse.
05 - Kisha (Feat. The Hot Boys) [4/5] - I actually find this track to be hilarious. Me personally, I don't care for it, but it's all right.
06 - High Beamin' (Feat. B.G.) [2.5/5] - A little bit weak, and it seems like there's way too much hook with this one.
07 - Lights Off [4.5/5] - One of the better tracks of the album. A little bit of storytelling and a nice Mannie Fresh beat to add to it. Very good.
08 - Fuck Tha World [5/5] - An emotional track that tells of Lil Wayne's struggles and how it's too much weight for this 17 year old's shoulders. You can really tell that he's upset and feel his emotion in the track.
09 - Remember Me [3/5] - A decent way to kick off the second half of the album. Not one of the better tracks on the album, but it was OK.
10 - Respect Us [2/5] - I'd rather not talk much about this one... It's not necesarely "wack" but it's borderline wack. Maybe it's just me, but I think this is where the album starts to slow down...
11 - Drop It Like It's Hot (Feat. B.G. & Mannie Fresh) [2/5] - Back Dat Azz Up 2? Meh... I don't care for this track much, but it's... Eh... An attempt to outshine Juvenile, who, at this point, was far superior to Wayne.
12 - Hot Playa (Feat. Big Tymers) [2/5] - A little bit boring, and the Big Tymers really did no justice to this track.
13 - Enemy Turf (Feat. Juvenile) [2/5] - Really nothing special here. This half of the album get's better over time, but this isn't the spot where it gets better, sadly.
14 - Not Like Me (Feat. Big Tymers) [2/5] - Yawn.
15 - Come On (Feat. B.G.) [2.5/5] - A little repetitive, but the album starts to get slightly more tolerable at this point.
16 - Up to Me [4/5] - One of the better tracks of the album. Wayne, also in this track, talks about his rise to this point and how it's up to him to keep it up and perfect his craft. Pretty inspirational.
17 - You Want War (Feat. B.G.) [4/5] - A good way to end off the LP. Nothing too special here, to be honest, I would've put Up to Me at the end instead of this track, but maybe that's just my opinion.
Best tracks on the album:
1. Tha Block is Hot
2. Fuck Tha World
3. Lights Off
4. You Want War
5. Kisha
Overall: 51.5/80 Aight
Nothing spectacular, mainly due to being a debut. Not too many tracks are memorable and some tracks or boring and repetitive. The production can get a bit repetitive and Wayne's lyrical content and flow are sloppy and weak. But, I can't criticize this album harshly. The only great debuts that i've listened to are Illmatic and Reasonable Doubt. This one was meant to be raw/rough, Wayne was young and was probably nervous. So, overall, this album is a solid piece of work.
Next up is Lights Out!
http://www.lilwaynehq.com/forums/lil...ut-review.html
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