His album Tha Carter IV was the biggest debut of the year, moving nearly a million units in its first week, and Lil Wayne did big numbers on the road, too. His 69 shows racked in $46 million.
Lil Wayne is staying loyal.
The rapper, who has been signed to Cash Money records since he was 11 years old, has inked a deal with the label to put out another four albums under his Young Money imprint. Wayne made the announcement during an interview with MTV’s Hip Hop POV, while also revealing details about his contract with the label and what fans can expect from his new releases.
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“Contract-wise, I only get paid for 12 songs. Maybe on a Carter album, you probably only gonna get 12 songs, maybe a bonus 13,” Weezy said. “But on this I Am Not a Human Being thing, I don’t really care … you’re probably gonna get 16 on there.”
Cash Money is gearing up to put out Wayne’s I Am Not a Human Being II, though an official release date has not been set. In a January interview with Billboard, Cash Money co-founder Birdman said that the album is slated to drop “before summer.”
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As a follow-up to Wayne’s polarizing ode to women, “How to Love,” the rapper also said that he is working on an album of unconventional “love songs.” The album will be called Devol — “loved” spelled backward — and was dreamt up while Wayne was serving his eight-month jail sentence back in 2010.
In an interview with GQ late last year, Wayne said that he plans to be retired by age 35. Weezy’s 29, so the new contract does not appear to be derailing those plans. In addition to the two aforementioned releases, Wayne also is working on collaborative albums with both Birdman and Juelz Santana.
Wayne’s Tha Carter IV made its debut immediately following the MTV Video Music Awards in early September 2011. The album bowed at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 with 964,000 copies sold. Last week, Young Money put forth Nicki Minaj’s Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded, which also bowed atop the Billboard chart.
