Although Young Money boss Lil Wayne was set to release his ninth studio album Tha Carter IV right after the 2011 MTV Video Music Awards Sunday (August 28), a leak of the LP hit the web tonight (August 24) well before its official release date.
It took no time for fans to start buzzing on Twitter, driving top trending topics throughout the night.
“Carter IV is very descent,” tweeted fan @JCorerra10. Twitter user @Qadeem_Ali added, “Tha Carter IV is growing on me more and more. #WeezyAfterEffects.”
User @husbndmaterial was feeling the record in real time, tweeting, “i’m about halfway through tha carter iv and it is way better than i thought it was going to be. that’s a real nice feeling.”
Ahead tonight’s surprise leak, the track “It’s Good” made its round around the Internet earlier this evening with the song being the first track from Tha Carter IV heard publicly that wasn’t a commissioned single. There has been some speculation that Wayne’s verses in the song were directly aimed towards Jay-Z and his wife Beyoncé as a result of a perceived dis line Jay spit on the WTT debut track “H.A.M.”
With the tracklisting revealed earlier this month for the project, fans had some idea of what to expect from the project even while nabbing the premature release. Links have exploded via Twitter and the blogosphere with sites pointing to the project as news of the release spread like wildfire.
Nine of the reported eighteen tracks showcase a feature with first single “6 Foot 7 Foot” featuring YM soldier Cory Gunz. The album’s current single “She Will” features Drake, who also appears later on the track “It’s Good” along with Jadakiss which leaked earlier this evening (August 24). T-Pain shows up for “How To Hate” while Kansas City star Tech N9ne is featured on “Interlude.”
Another single from the album “John” features Maybach Music Group boss Rick Ross while R&B crooner John Legend joins the festivities on the track “So Special.” A high powered lineup appears for “Outro” featuring the likes of Bun B, Nas, Shyne and Busta Rhymes. Fellow VMA performer Bruno Mars closes out the features list on the bonus track “Mirror.”
Wayne, meanwhile, is focused on the VMA stage. With such an extensive catalog, Lil Tunechi could perform any number of songs. Will he croon out “How to Love,” or invite Drake onstage for their recently released Tha Carter IV single “She Will”? Maybe Wayne will do a medley that includes Rick Ross for a performance of “John” and DJ Khaled for “I’m On One.”
MTV News caught up with Weezy’s musical director Gil Smith who wouldn’t confirm specific details, but did hint that the multifaceted rapper might pull any combination of tricks from his sleeve.
“We’ve been brainstorming and taking from things that we put together on the road, so I think they can just expect a new and improved Wayne, a different Wayne,” Smith said. “You know, he always comes different: one day he’s a rock star, one day he’s a skater; he’s singing R&B. I think we can expect a little bit of everything in this performance.”
