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''Dedication 5'' is the twelfth
mixtape In the modern music industry, a mixtape is a musical project, typically with looser constraints than that of an album or extended play. Unlike the traditional album or extended play, mixtapes are labeled as laid-back projects that allow artists mo ...
by American rapper
Lil Wayne Dwayne Michael Carter Jr. (born September27, 1982), known professionally as Lil Wayne, is an American rapper. He is often regarded as one of the most influential hip hop artists of his generation, as well as one of the greatest rappers of all ...
. It was hosted by
DJ Drama Tyree Cinque Simmons (born April 22, 1978), known professionally as DJ Drama, is an American disc jockey (DJ), record executive and music promoter. He initially gained recognition as the DJ for Atlanta-based rapper T.I., and continued to gai ...
and was released on September 1, 2013. It is the fifth installment of
Lil Wayne Dwayne Michael Carter Jr. (born September27, 1982), known professionally as Lil Wayne, is an American rapper. He is often regarded as one of the most influential hip hop artists of his generation, as well as one of the greatest rappers of all ...
's "''Dedication''" series, following its predecessors '' The Dedication'', '' Dedication 2'', '' Dedication 3'' and ''
Dedication 4 ''Dedication 4'' is the eleventh mixtape by American rapper Lil Wayne. The mixtape, hosted by DJ Drama, was originally supposed to be released on August 15, 2012, but got delayed several times and was released on September 3, 2012. It is the four ...
''. It's also the fifth installment of
Lil Wayne Dwayne Michael Carter Jr. (born September27, 1982), known professionally as Lil Wayne, is an American rapper. He is often regarded as one of the most influential hip hop artists of his generation, as well as one of the greatest rappers of all ...
's "Gangsta Grillz" series. The mixtape features
guest appearance The term guest appearance generally denotes the appearance of a guest in an artistic or pop-culture setting. The guests themselves (referred to as guest artists, featured artists, guest stars, or guest fighters, depending on context), are disting ...
s from
the Weeknd Abel Makkonen Tesfaye (; born February 16, 1990), known professionally as the Weeknd, is a Canadian singer-songwriter, record producer, and actor. He is best known for adding Pop music, pop, electronic music, electronic and hip-hop stylings ...
,
Chance the Rapper Chancelor Johnathan Bennett (born April 16, 1993), known professionally as Chance the Rapper, is an American rapper. Born and raised in Chicago, Illinois, he released his debut mixtape '' 10 Day'' (2012) during one of his high school suspension ...
, Jae Millz,
Future The future is the time after the past and present. Its arrival is considered inevitable due to the existence of time and the laws of physics. Due to the apparent nature of reality and the unavoidability of the future, everything that currently ex ...
, Birdman, Mack Maine,
T.I. Clifford Joseph Harris Jr. (born September 25, 1980), known professionally as T.I. or Tip, is an American rapper and singer raised in Atlanta, Georgia. Harris is credited as a pioneer of the hip hop subgenre trap music, along with fellow Georgi ...
, Vado and
Kidd Kidd Curtis Stewart (born November 26, 1983), better known by his stage name Kidd Kidd (formerly known as Nutt Da Kidd), is an American Rapping, rapper and singer and songwriter and record producer from New Orleans, New Orleans, Louisiana. He was one ...
among others.


Background

On June 10, 2013
Lil Wayne Dwayne Michael Carter Jr. (born September27, 1982), known professionally as Lil Wayne, is an American rapper. He is often regarded as one of the most influential hip hop artists of his generation, as well as one of the greatest rappers of all ...
released a freestyle over
Ace Hood Antoine Franklin McColister (born May 11, 1988), known professionally Ace Hood, is an American rapper. Born in Port St. Lucie and raised in Deerfield Beach, Florida, he was discovered by DJ Khaled and became the first act to sign with his rec ...
's hit ”Bugatti” instrumental featuring fellow Young Money artist Boo, which was later confirmed to be the first song from ''Dedication 5''. Later that day
DJ Drama Tyree Cinque Simmons (born April 22, 1978), known professionally as DJ Drama, is an American disc jockey (DJ), record executive and music promoter. He initially gained recognition as the DJ for Atlanta-based rapper T.I., and continued to gai ...
confirmed on his
Twitter Twitter, officially known as X since 2023, is an American microblogging and social networking service. It is one of the world's largest social media platforms and one of the most-visited websites. Users can share short text messages, image ...
that the mixtape is coming by stating: "Yup. D5. Tunechi. Dram. YM. Stay tuned. But pleaaaase.... b patient." hinting that the mixtape was still in development. Mack Maine intensified the topic when he tweeted ''D5'' hinting the tape would be soon released. On August 14, 2013, Lil Wayne hinted on his Twitter account that the mixtape would be finished in 10 days after he was asked by a fan. On August 25, 2013, it was announced the mixtape would be released on August 30, 2013. The mixtape was later pushed back two days and was released on September 1, 2013, at 12AM PST. The graphic artwork of Dedication 5 was made by the graphics team OllyCarterzGFX (Olly Tas and Abidul Ahad).


Critical reception

''Dedication 5'' was met with mixed reviews from
music critic '' The Oxford Companion to Music'' defines music criticism as "the intellectual activity of formulating judgments on the value and degree of excellence of individual works of music, or whole groups or genres". In this sense, it is a branch of m ...
s. William E. Ketchum III of
HipHopDX ''HipHopDX'' is an online magazine of Hip hop music, hip hop music criticism and news. ''HipHopDX'' has over 3.5M monthly readers, the website encompassing hip hop news, interviews, music, and reviews. The website's founder and CEO is Sharath C ...
gave the mixtape a positive review, saying "To Wayne’s credit, ''Dedication 5'' is the best the series has showcased since its legendary sequel from seven years ago, even if it pales in comparison. Occasionally, the YMCMB head honcho shows that he still has a portion of the skills that earned him his spot among rap’s elite. If he can find recapture the consistency from that same era, he won’t have to apologize to his fans for much longer." Brian Josephs of '' XXL'' gave the mixtape an L, saying "Surprisingly, one of the more intriguing moments of ''Dedication 5'' comes in a skit. On one of the final tracks, Lil Wayne is asked if he considers himself a living legend. He doesn’t know, but he concludes by saying being Lil Wayne is “amazing.” Is this just contentment or a positive outlook on things to come, like the entertaining, but flawed ''Dedication 5'' is? Fans could speculate, but it's much easier to realize how refreshing it is to hear Lil Wayne sounding like he gives a damn." Corban Goble of
Pitchfork Media ''Pitchfork'' (formerly ''Pitchfork Media'') is an American online music magazine founded in 1996 by Ryan Schreiber in Minneapolis. It originally covered Alternative rock, alternative and independent music, and expanded to cover genres includin ...
gave the mixtape a 5.1 out of 10, saying "Though he’s still got an ear for the beat and can manipulate his flow to fit-- and, again, most of these bars are rapped without rehearsal, so adjust your mindset accordingly-- ''Dedication 5'' is uneven, front-heavy, and too long for one sitting. But with both recent mixtapes as well as recent projects, Wayne has set the bar very low. What more can he say? It’s hard to know until the artist himself decides, but ''Dedication 5''-- a release whose DatPiff page earnestly reads "Welcome back Mixtape Weezy”—shows that some gears are still moving." Chris Coplan of
Consequence of Sound ''Consequence'' (previously ''Consequence of Sound'') is an independently owned New York-based online magazine featuring news, editorials, and reviews of music, movies, and television. History ''Consequence of Sound'' was founded in Septem ...
gave the album three and a half stars out of five, saying "In just a few words, Wayne lends all sorts of gravity to claims that he wants to get better and to do away with the laziness, fear, and negativity of recent years. He’s got a long way to go before he’s ever the Best In The World again, but he’s nothing if not totally, totally… committed. Good to have ya back, Mr. Carter." Adam Finley of
PopMatters ''PopMatters'' is an international online magazine of cultural criticism that covers aspects of popular culture. ''PopMatters'' publishes reviews, interviews, and essays on cultural products and expressions in areas such as music, television, ...
gave the mixtape a six out of ten, saying "Medical troubles, legal troubles, self-doubt, the crushing weight of expectation – any one of those on its own could cripple an artist. Wayne has stumbled hard in recent years, but with ''Dedication 5'' he seems to have temporarily caught himself. He even apologized to fans on Twitter recently and promised to work harder. ''Dedication 5'' is not the best Lil Wayne mixtape ever. It’s not even in the Top 5, but it is the best that he’s released in four years. More importantly, it’s evidence that Mixtape Weezy still exists in some form, if Wayne can stop cashing checks and doing skateboard tricks long enough to let him out." On December 23, 2013, ''XXL'' ranked it at number 16 on their list of the best mixtapes of 2013.


Track listing


References

{{DJ Drama 2013 mixtape albums Lil Wayne mixtape albums DJ Drama mixtape albums Sequel albums Young Money Entertainment mixtape albums