Lil Wayne Reflects To Missy Elliott How "Tha Carter III" Changed His Career

BYGabriel Bras Nevares3.2K Views
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Lil Wayne Missy Elliott Tha Carter III Changed Career
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Weezy recently told his favorite rapper about how his 2008 album ushered in a new era of commercial and critical success for him, which also extended to his peers.

Lil Wayne's Tha Carter III is undoubtedly one of the best hip-hop albums of the 2000s, whether for its quality or its influence. What's more is that Weezy got the chance to reflect on how the 2008 classic changed his career with his favorite rapper Missy Elliott across the room. Moreover, their conversation will form part of TV One's upcoming "UNCENSORED" series, which will touch on many different perspectives and careers. Furthermore HipHopDX obtained a clip on Friday (May 5) that provides some insight into the two's interview. During their talk, he spoke on how the metrics of success have changed, and how Tha Carter III brought him to previously unimaginable heights.

"I think that was the first time for me I started really getting that praise,” Lil Wayne told Missy Elliott. “I started really loving it, embracing it, at that time around that album was when I was seeing people in the street or hearing from other artists, so the confidence was strong." For those unaware, Tha Carter III became the fourth-ever hip-hop project to sell over a million units in its first week.

Missy Elliot Hears Lil Wayne Reminisce On Tha Carter III

"I come from the days we as in artists — we as in Juvenile and B.G. we checking the Billboard magazine to see where this and that. That don’t exist now,” Lil Wayne continued. "When we dropped Tha Block Is Hot it sold like 114,000 or 95,000 the first week and that was the equivalent or the impact of selling a million and I remember I was like, ‘I can’t do nothing but thank God.'" Overall, it was quite the sweet moment, especially considering how much Missy Elliott and Tunechi admire each other.

"That would be why I was making so many sounds,” he said of her talents. “Missy was into the who- brrrrr- the whole heeheeheeHA. And so when Mannie Fresh would get you in the studio, he gon’ remind you ‘hey, you need to throw that ha ha in there.’ I was like ‘man, he want me to do a sound for every damn line!’ And so the ‘Block Burner’ song was my best favorite song because my favorite artist was Missy Elliott." On her end, the "Lobby" MC praised the Young Money boss' impact. "You have Birthed a whole generation after you & Its easy for people to acknowledge Some1’s GREATNESS when their no longer around but I want you to know YOU ARE LEGENDARY no matter who thinks differently,” she tweeted. “YOUR BLUEPRINT is PRESENT! No debate." For more on Missy Elliott and Lil Wayne, return to HNHH.

About The Author
Gabriel Bras Nevares is a staff writer for HotNewHipHop. He joined HNHH while completing his B.A. in Journalism & Mass Communication at The George Washington University in the summer of 2022. Born and raised in San Juan, Puerto Rico, Gabriel treasures the crossover between his native reggaetón and hip-hop news coverage, such as his review for Bad Bunny’s hometown concert in 2024. But more specifically, he digs for the deeper side of hip-hop conversations, whether that’s the “death” of the genre in 2023, the lyrical and parasocial intricacies of the Kendrick Lamar and Drake battle, or the many moving parts of the Young Thug and YSL RICO case. Beyond engaging and breaking news coverage, Gabriel makes the most out of his concert obsessions, reviewing and recapping festivals like Rolling Loud Miami and Camp Flog Gnaw. He’s also developed a strong editorial voice through album reviews, think-pieces, and interviews with some of the genre’s brightest upstarts and most enduring obscured gems like Homeboy Sandman, Bktherula, Bas, and Devin Malik.
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