Lil' Wayne is the self-proclaimed 'best rapper alive.' Is he now?

I'm conflicted by Lil' Wayne's music. Lollipop is probably the most brilliant song ever. But... he didn't write it. And it's not even a rap song. It's a musical masterpiece and you can bet he added his own touch, but having this song even if it is as I believe, the best hip-hop song ever, does not qualify him to be the 'best.'

The second single off of Tha Carter III is 'A Milli' and that may be spelled wrong, but I just don't get how Terrence from 106 & Park would dare call this the 'hottest song out right now.' Second to 'Get Silly,' it's the worst song out right now. There is no musical talent to it. It's just some lunatic saying 'A Milli' over and over in the background and Lil' Wayne trying to rap to it. There are a few drum beats, but for the most part there are no instrumentals. Some guy repeating 'A Milli' is not what I would call rhythmic. Meanwhile, Lil' Wayne does not rhyme on this song at all. There is no fluidity, it really is just talking. All I learn from it is that Lil' Wayne is "ill" and that he doesn't write his rhymes. Which I believe. Because the song has maybe, three or so actual rhymes. It just comes off as if there is absolutely no forethought in the song at all.

And that's the problem with going into the studio and not writing anything beforehand, just rapping. Most of his songs have no choruses, no focal points for him to wrap up at the end. It's just a mashup of words. And for what it's worth, he's pretty good at that, but it prevents any of his songs from carrying themes and telling stories---something that Kanye West has mastered---and something that in itself is creativity and gives us some of the best songs ever. The exception to his rule of not going into the studio and just rapping is, of course, Lollipop, and it gave us his best song.

So, Lil' Wayne really may be the best talker alive---and I may very well buy Carter III... but the best rapper alive period?

Naah.