By Genoa Barrow | OBSERVER Senior Staff Writer
In Wayne’s world, there’s smoke and fire.
New Orleans rapper Lil Wayne made a stop at Sacramento’s Golden 1 Center on Saturday, bringing with him his signature blend of swagger, lyrical skill and versatility.
The local show was a special North American run following the release of Wayne’s latest album, “Tha Carter VI” and celebrated the 20th anniversary of his chart-topping “Tha Carter” album series.
Now six albums in, the series has brought fans such songs as “Go D.J.,” “A Milli,” “Hustler Musik,” “Lollipop” and “Mr. Carter.”
Wayne sang a few fan favorites from other albums and brought out a version of himself he referred to as “Mixtape Weezy.” He is considered one of the most influential and successful mixtape artists in hip-hop history. His first studio album, “Tha Block Is Hot,” was released in 1999.
“Tha Carter,” which takes its name from the rapper’s government name, Dwayne Michael Carter, Jr., was Wayne’s fourth studio album. It debuted in 2004. Tha Carter II was certified double platinum.
Its Tha Carter III sequel went 6x platinum and earned the rapper three Grammy Awards in 2008. Its 2011 follow up, Tha Carter IV, went 5x platinum. Tha Carter V was released in 2018; its own success included having the second-largest streaming week for an album in history. Every song on the album charted on the Billboard Hot 100 and Wayne became the first artist to debut two songs on Billboard’s top 5 list.
“Young Carter” is 42 years old now and enjoys the status of a hip-hop icon. He has a vast discography, but can still pull in fans with his easy-going vibe and the simple refrain of “Young Moula baby.”
Wayne and opener, Tyga, both used pyrotechnics during their sets, but the concert featured a streamlined production with just the artists and their mics, foregoing background dancers and elaborate staging. It was enough. For his part, Wayne’s only props were a white guitar and the blunt he kept lit during his performance.
Both Wayne and Tyga, called out to their “day ones”– fans who have rocked with them since the beginning of their careers – treating them to early hits from their individual repertoires.
The “Ayo” singer is a former artist on Wayne’s Young Money Entertainment label and the two are frequent collaborators and features on other popular artists’ songs. They didn’t share space on the local stage, however, even performing snippets from their parts in Chris Brown’s “Loyal” separately.
Even after years in the game, Wayne appeared genuinely humbled by his enduring success and ability to command large crowds. After every song in his 90-minute set, he said a simple, “Thank you.” It was enough.