It's finally, really, actually happening. Lil Wayne's long-delayed Tha Carter V is—no joke—dropping this week on his birthday.
Of course, given the fruitless teases fans have endured for years now since the release of Tha Carter IV, some may be looking for a combination explanation/apology tour leading up to its release this Friday. Though many of the technicalities behind the album's delay seemingly involve Wayne being mired in Cash Money-related legal disputes, Young Money Entertainment president Mack Maine has taken it upon himself to offer fans some thanks for sticking it out.
"Sorry about that it was tough to see y'all so [up] then so disappointed but we never confirmed the 21st (sh*t was fun tho)," Maine said Tuesday night, shortly after Wayne formally announced a release date. "Well after waiting for years we HERE babbbbyyyy! Thanks for all the prayers and support promise it never went unnoticed or unappreciated." Maine also thanked Kobe Bryant, Benjamin Mendy, and others for helping with the countdown, which he conceded also "confused the majority."
The Sept. 21 date mentioned in his comment is a reference to a Twitter-circulated release date that was never—not even once—mentioned by anyone on Wayne's team. Still, thanks to this era of easily widespread falsehoods, the rumor tricked many into publicly stating with misguided conviction that the album would be arriving last Friday.
"I am nothing, absolutely nothing, without my fans," Wayne said in his announcement video Tuesday. "I hope you guys love this album."
With Tha Carter V, which arrives seven years after the previous Carter entry, Wayne is promising to give fans "years of work." Presumably, this is a signal that the album will contain the results of both older and more recent recording sessions. A final tracklist, however, has not been revealed.
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