Lil Wayne Talks New Rappers, Black Lives Matter & 'Tha Carter V'

Lil Wayne’s new book, Gone Til November: A Journal of Rikers Island is now in stores and he recently did some press in New York in promotion of it. It’s his prison diary where he speaks on his experiences during his jail term at the dangerous jail Rikers Island.

Kendrick Lamar Shakes Up The Super Bowl With Bold Drake Diss And Surprise Guests

Kendrick Lamar's Super Bowl 59 halftime performance was nothing short of legendary, leaving fans buzzing with surprise cameos and bold moments that took his long-running feud with Drake to new heights. Kicking off with an unreleased song snippet and followed by “Squabble Up” from his latest album GNX, Kendrick immediately set the tone for a game-changing performance. Fans eagerly waited to see if Kendrick would play his diss track Not Like Us, especially with Drake's ongoing lawsuit against him and his label for defamation and harassment. Lamar's performance included an unexpected appearance by SZA and a quirky cameo from Serena Williams, along with Samuel L. Jackson’s comedic interruptions, all building the suspense around the Drake drama. In the middle of his performance, Kendrick turned up the heat, looking straight into the camera and directly addressing Drake with his famous lyrics, “I heard you like them young," as fans held their breath. Despite the tension, Kendrick censored himself when it came time to call Drake a "certified lover boy" and avoided saying “pedophile,” which had been widely speculated. Social media lit up with mixed reactions, with some fans mocking the performance as a "mid mashup" and others noting the intense hostility toward Drake. With the hashtag #KendrickBowl trending, it’s clear that Kendrick’s performance was a cultural moment that pushed boundaries—but has he gone too far, or is this just another chapter in hip-hop history? Only time will tell, and Drake has yet to respond.

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During an interview with The New York Times, he spoke on his recent collaborations with Chance The Rapper & Solange, status of Tha Carter V, thoughts on new rappers in the game, Donald Trump, his recent comments about Black Lives Matter and more.

On his recent collabs with Solange & Chance The Rapper:

I would say so. It’s different. These people are turning the clock right now. They are the trendsetters of tomorrow, and I actually pay attention to what they send me. If [my manager] Tez sends me a song and says, ‘I need you to do this verse for whoever,’ I knock it out in that one night and send it right back. When I get the Solange or Chance song, I’m actually riding in my car, banging that. When I put my verse on it, I’m telling my engineer, “Let me get a copy.” The other ones, I’m just sending back to Tez.

On new rappers like 21 Savage, Lil Yachty, Lil Uzi Vert & Kodak Black:

I swear to God I didn’t know you were saying people’s names just now, so that should probably answer that question. I just do my own thing.

On Donald Trump:

Who’s that?

On Tha Carter V:

It’s done, sitting and wrapped as is. I just listened to it for the first time in months the other day. I had forgotten every single word on it, because I work every day. I popped it in, and I was like, it’s still so much better than everything I’ve ever heard. Not what’s going on right now — everything I’ve ever heard.

On Black Lives Matter:

“I was on a sports show recently, and I was asked a question like that about black lives or whatever. When we got off the air, [the host] Shannon Sharpe said: “I really want to commend you for answering like that, because you didn’t make something up just to make yourself one of us. And to make yourself a victim.” I’m not that. And honestly, I don’t care. I care what’s going on with me and my kids and my world and my mom and who’s going to pay this next bill. That’s what matters to me.”

On Gone Til November book:

“I haven’t read it, and I don’t plan on reading it. I’m not one of those people who revisit things. I don’t remember [expletive]. I could meet the president and forget it. Of course I thought it was because I smoke too much. But somebody told me: ‘The reason why you don’t remember things is that it’s not the same for you as it is everybody else. Because you are it.’”

Gone Til November is available for purchase here.