Tha Carter V
by Lil Wayne
Metascore
72

Generally favorable reviews - based on 14 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 10 out of 14
  2. Mixed: 4 out of 14
  3. Negative: 0 out of 14
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  1. Clash Music
    Oct 5, 2018
    80
    Tha Carter V was never going to be flawlessly executed--the odds were too stacked against it--but it certainly gives the audience the thrill we were hoping for. It’s a return to form, and a triumphant return for one of the greatest of all time.
  2. XXL
    Oct 2, 2018
    80
    If anything lets Tha Carter V down, it’s the track sequencing and transitions, which can start to make the project feel like it’s dragging about halfway through. However, that should hardly dissuade Wayne’s most diehard fans, as even in its slowest moments, the album never loses its heady sense of rapture. ... The album is indeed memorable, as much for the journey that led to its release as the previously unseen layers that Weezy reveals.
  3. Variety
    Sep 28, 2018
    80
    The good news: Musically, despite the age of some of the songs, V is fresh, flush and even frenetic at times, with the crunch of the Southern trap and ropey rap-rock sounds that Wayne pretty much started in the first place.
  5. The A.V. Club
    Oct 5, 2018
    75
    Like any fifth installment in a series, you’re going to need to care about those early entries to care about this one, and, at 90 minutes, it’s way more than anyone needs. But the highlights are so many--Mannie Fresh reunion “Start This Shit Off Right,” gonzo Kendrick collab “Mona Lisa,” the mixtape-style freakout of “Let It Fly,” heartbreaking coda “Let It All Work Out”--that you sort of give him a pass on the duds.
  6. Pitchfork
    Oct 1, 2018
    74
    The most surprising takeaway from Tha Carter V, it turns out, isn’t that Wayne still has music this vital in him. It’s that after all these years, there’s still more to learn about him.
  7. AllMusic
    Oct 4, 2018
    70
    For all the excess and buildup, this exhibits Wayne on an upswing, lucid and invigorated.
  8. Exclaim
    Oct 3, 2018
    70
    Relationships with women are at the forefront of Tha Carter V, including a desperate cry for help from his mother on "I Love You Dwayne," which leads into the sorrowful "Don't Cry," featuring a chorus from the late XXXTENTACION. ... Despite the revelations, the album is not without its expected bangers.
  9. Spin
    Oct 2, 2018
    70
    What we have is an album that’s mostly pretty good. It’s certainly an improvement over Tha Carter IV--likely his least memorable album ever--but it’s also not a record that is going to reignite a second peak from Wayne, if that was the hope.
  10. Rolling Stone
    Oct 2, 2018
    70
    Tha Carter V can’t compare to the first three Carter installments, or his epochal 2005-2007 mixtape run. But it doesn’t need to.
  11. Entertainment Weekly
    Oct 1, 2018
    67
    Wayne is, by nature, an exciting rapper. His breathless, consistently accelerating flow is still present here, though not varied enough to work as well as it used to. .... Ultimately, Tha Carter V sounds like someone chasing after their own glory days, with half-hearted energy, barely even believing themselves.

Awards & Rankings

35
#35 Most Discussed Album of 2018
54
#54 Most Shared Album of 2018

User Reviews

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User Score
8.1

Universal acclaim- based on 248 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 202 out of 248
  2. Mixed: 32 out of 248
  3. Negative: 14 out of 248
  1. Yeezyducky
    Sep 29, 2018
    10
    It's great, it doesnt have those cringy lines that IANAHB 1 and 2 and C4 had, it's lil wayne that matured, and sounds like a new person, alsoIt's great, it doesnt have those cringy lines that IANAHB 1 and 2 and C4 had, it's lil wayne that matured, and sounds like a new person, also when it comes to music, it's also fantastic.… Full Review »
  2. Wandile
    Sep 29, 2018
    10
    The album is truly amazing, from this piece you are able to observe Wayne's growth as an artist, with him performing at his best on everyThe album is truly amazing, from this piece you are able to observe Wayne's growth as an artist, with him performing at his best on every track. The album also gives a reflection of hip hop, whether you're looking for beats or hard-hitting bars, the flow or the message in the lines, old school or new school, the album combines those elements and it gives life. This album is for everybody… Full Review »
  3. Nick_Mad
    Sep 29, 2018
    10
    It is rap masterpiece? Yes it is it’s as awesome as Wayne itself. Best rap album of year
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