On Thursday, October 22nd, 2009, New Orleans rapper Lil Wayne entered a Manhattan courtoom and plead guilty of attempted criminal possession of a weapon. The initial charge came about following Lil Wayne’s first headlining show in New York City in 2007. According to the NYPD that boarded the rappers tour bus following his New York City concert, police found a .40-caliber handgun. Who got the blame? Weezy F. Baby. Getting busted in New York City with a gun, no matter how famous you are, will result in mandatory jail time. See this MTV article for more details about the night Lil Wayne was arrested in 2007.
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Loading ...Legal experts indicate that Lil Wayne will have to serve 8 to 10 months as a result of his guilty plea. The question on many fans minds, however, is will Lil Wayne’s time in prison help or hurt his career. Obviously the absence alone is enough to hurt any superstars career, but long term, Hiptics believes it will help. Here’s why:
Since the 2007 arrest, Lil Wayne has become a worldwide superstar. His 2008 album, Tha Carter III , sold over one million copies in it’s first week in stores, and earned Weezy four Grammy Awards. Even today, any record Wayne touches turns to gold or platinum (unless it’s rock influenced ). So how can nearly a year behind prison bars help Wayne’s career?
Remember when 50 Cent and Kanye West released their albums on the same date? 50 Cent’s Curtis was outsold in the first week by Kanye West’s Graduation , despite the fact that 50 Cent’s previous albums sold more copies than Kanye West had in his entire career. Hiptics refers to this phenomenon as the “Michael Jackson Theory.” The public (that’s us) tends to build up celebrities from the underground up only to destroy them for the sake of entertainment. More specifically, to see if they can bounce back from personal and/or professional turmoil. Even if the given celebrity does not ever bounce back during their lifetime, like Michael Jackson, the public will let out its suppressed love in the wake of their death. In 50 Cent’s case, he had seen so much success since his Shady/Aftermath debut (Get Rich Or Die Tryin ) that the public practically wanted him to fail in his face-off with Kanye West. The public got what it wanted; Kanye West outsold 50 Cent by a significant amount. However, 50 Cent successfully bounced back, and the public is beggining to love him like it’s 2002/2003 all over again. But how does this apply to Wayne?
Lil Wayne’s career is where 50 Cent’s career was in 2007. Weezy has been so successful in recent years that the public is looking for Wayne to fail. Well, instead of failure in the form of less-than-anticipated album sales, Wayne will instead be humbled by a prison sentence. If Lil Wayne keeps his head on straight while in prison, and doesn’t freak out from the lack-of THC and syrup, the public will embrace Dwayne Carter like it’s 2007 all over again following his release from prison in 2010/2011. After all, the Young Money CEO is talented as can be.
Thats Hiptics.com’s prediction, but what do YOU think? Let your voice be heard in the comment section.
Editors Note: Hiptics tends not to focus on gossip, rumors, or the personal lives on rappers. We care about hip hop music, business, and culture. However, as you can see by the above paragraphs, Lil Wayne’s prison sentence is far more significant than a personal problem. It has the potential to re-shape his career, and will surely be reflected through his rhymes.
Written by Chris Franco exclusively for Hiptics.com
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Honestly i think wayne has lost his lust for outdoing others since he belives he cant b touched so he doesnt seem to focus on subject matter as before. but wat else is he gonna do for the whole time ?? might as well WRITE DOWN some lyrics no? seems highly doubtful one person can remember lyrics for 8 months….