The album debuted at number two on the Billboard 200, with first-week sales of 108,000 album-equivalent units, out of which 35,000 were pure album sales.[2]
Background and recording
If there's one thing about this album that's different, it's me approaching it like, "Man, what would I sound like on something with such and such?"
Prior to the release of Tha Carter VI, Lil Wayne was featured on a cover story for Rolling Stone's May 2025 issue, where he spoke about the background and recording of the album, while also speaking about its potential collaborators.[1] He revealed that Kanye West and Wheezy had production on the album, however, the former's assisted track would potentially be removed due to the recent controversy surrounding West.[1] It was also revealed that Miley Cyrus, Andrea Bocelli, and his son Kameron would be possible features on the record. There is also a yet-to-be cleared Billie Eilish sample, who was mistakenly credited as a feature until the publication's correction.[1] Fellow artist and collaborator, Wyclef Jean, played a major role in the production and recording of the album. He stated that he and Wayne recorded over 30 tracks for the album: "Leaving Wyclef Jean and Lil Wayne in a studio for 24 hours is a dangerous thing. You don't know what's going to pop out".[1]
Release and promotion
After Wayne declared that Tha Carter V would be his final album, Young Thug announced that his debut album would be titled as Tha Carter VI, in honor of Wayne.[3] This led to Wayne's displeasure, in part contributed to troubles with his former Cash Money Records label boss, Birdman,[3] whom he later sued due to financial disputes.[4] With the threat of legal action, Young Thug renamed his project to Barter 6.[5]
On July 3, 2020, in an interview with Variety, Wayne was asked of which album from Tha Carter album series was his favorite, to which Wayne replied, "the next one", and refrained from going into detail.[5] In August 2020, Wayne announced Tha Carter VI, while stating that his mixtape, No Ceilings 3, would be released before the record.[6][7] On August 6, 2022, Wayne, alongside Drake and Nicki Minaj, held a Young Money Reunion Concert in Toronto, from which he hinted at the release of Tha Carter VI: "I'm working on Carter VI, coming soon".[8] Following the concert, through the Young Money Instagram page, Wayne shared a pre-save link for the album.[9] In early September 2023, Wayne was spotted in the studio with Juelz Santana, captioning the post, "CARTER 6 In Process...#ICFMF".[10] On September 29, 2023, Wayne released the mixtape, Tha Fix Before Tha VI, building fan anticipation for the album's release.[11]
On January 20, 2025, in an interview posted on social media by AT&T at the 2025 College Football Playoff National Championship, Wayne stated that Tha Carter VI would be "guaranteed" to release in 2025.[12] During at the Super Bowl LIX in the New Orleans market on February 9, Cetaphil broadcast a local commercial, starring Wayne. After joking about not being selected for the halftime show, the performer retreated into a recording studio with signs on its door reading "CARTER VI" and "DO NOT DISTURB 'TIL 06-06-2025".[13] Republic Records subsequently confirmed that The Carter VI was scheduled to be released on June 6.[14] On April 22, Wayne announced his first-ever solo headline at Madison Square Garden that would be held on the same night of his album's release.[15] Two hours later, he unveiled the official cover artwork of Tha Carter VI, depicting his baby self with facial tattoos in the similar manner of his previous Tha Carter records. He captioned in the post, "Captain Carter C6" followed by a double post, "June 6 We C6 The Carter Six June 6 We C6 Ain't a problem I can't 6 June 6."[16][17]
Tha Carter VI debuted at number two on the US Billboard 200 with 108,000 album-equivalent units. Of that sum, stream equivalent album units comprise 73,000 (equaling 97.06 million on-demand streams), album sales comprise 34,000, and track equivalent album units comprise 1,000.[2]
Tha Carter VI received mixed to negative reviews from critics. According to the review aggregator Metacritic, Tha Carter VI received "mixed or average reviews" based on a weighted average score of 50 out of 100 from 6 critic scores.[20] Robin Murray of Clash magazine wrote that the album "doesn't reach the heights of III but probably crests V". Murray highlighted "Hip-Hop", "Bein Myself", and "Cotton Candy" as "[t]he best cuts", believing them to be among Lil Wayne's "finest work".[22] In a more critical review, Paul Attard of Slant Magazine referred to Tha Carter VI as "one of Wayne's most meandering, insular, and uninspired to date", though he identified "Banned from NO" and "Hip-Hop" as the album's high points.[26] Meanwhile, Mosi Reeves of Rolling Stone felt that Wayne's once groundbreaking sound evolved into a more mainstream pop persona. While Wayne still delivered punchlines and incorporated old school hip-hop samples, there lacked a sense of urgency and fans who resonated better with his past music.[25]AllMusic's Fred Thomas felt the song "Bein' Myself" to be sentiment of the rapper's earlier works. However, he continued that most of the tracks "miss," describing these as "loud and bewildering," such as the beat for "If I Played Guitar" or Bono's hook on "The Days".[21] Paul Thompson of Pitchfork was less favorable in his review, feeling the album was not well-thought-out and "nearly every verse defaults to the same dense, superficially complex style".[23] Michael G. Barilleaux of RapReviews called the album "an album that feels more akin to an oddly shaped misfire of a satirical take than it does the latest installation of an ultra-successful series of rap albums."[24] Kabelo Chirwa of Spectrum Culture said, "Wayne can bring poignant bars between the bravado and violence. However, many of the out-of-pocket bars and explicit punchlines just hit different coming from a 42-year-old father."[27]
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