Lil Wayne declared himself the “Best Rapper Alive” on his 2005 album Tha Carter II, and he still believes he deserves the title 17 years later.
Weezy reiterated his GOAT status while weighing in on Billboard’s Top 50 Greatest Rappers of All Time, fresh off the release of his new single “Kant Nobody” with DMX.
When he spoke with Apple Music’s Zane Lowe, he was informed that he was ranked seventh on the list, behind JAY-Z, Nas, and Eminem.
“Man, who the hell is in front of me? Was the list inclusive of ALLLL hip-hop, both before and after?” Wayne inquired.
After displaying some humility (“I can deal with that”), he went on to declare himself the GOAT, implying that his peers would agree.
“I will tell you that I am a motherfu**ing 1. Everyone whose names you mentioned is aware that I am number one. Ask them. They know what it is,” Wayne added.
But the Young Money boss does not view his craft as a competition. “This is creativity. “No one gets behind a microphone, approaches a song, and says, ‘I’m making a song so it can be better than this one,'” he said. “If we all approached it that way, it would be a competition. This is what it means to be creative. This is the uniqueness of any individual who creates.
Drake and Nicki Minaj also made the top ten, ranking eighth and tenth, respectively, behind Wayne. JAY-Z was the number one artist, followed by Kendrick Lamar, Nas, Tupac Shakur, Eminem, and The Notorious B.I.G.
Wayne can be heard on his new Swizz Beatz-produced single “Kant Nobody,” which arrives ahead of his long-awaited album Tha Carter VI, alongside another great, the late DMX.
“I never imagined it. “That didn’t even sound right a few years ago,” Wayne reflected on his sixth album in the series. “I can’t believe we’ve made it to Carter VI. My fans know I always give it my all. Go listen to my previous feature and know it’s going to be a thousand times better.”
