Young Thug picks his favourite Lil Wayne songs of all time
Young Thug is a rapper out of the South who was highly influenced by artists from the region as a youngster growing up in the late 1990s and 2000s. From T.I. and Outkast to Future and Jeezy, Thug’s style was inspired by a range of MCs. However, one of the most impactful was Lil Wayne.
Akin to T.I., Lil Wayne was an integral part of the rise in popularity of Southern hip-hop during the late ’90s and early-2000s. From the rise of Crunk to the emergence of trap music, Lil Boosie, Young Dro and many others were part of the movement. Still, Tha Carter musician was the emcee who shifted music and advanced the culture.
The Young Money founder set many trends in his time, and many have identified him as the godfather of autotune in rap. However, aside from his music, the artist has also inspired rappers regarding style and vocal delivery.
In the early noughties, Young Thug was an awe-struck child watching on as, Wayne had one of the most successful mixtape runs in rap history. By the end of the 2000s, the Louisiana rapper had his own imprint of Cash Money, Young Money which shaped rap culture for the next decade.
The label launched the careers of Nicki Minaj, Tyga and Drake, to name a few. With Maybach Music Group being their only competition in the early 2010s, colloquially known as YMCM, Young Money was untouchable and was responsible for hits such as Tyga’s ‘Rack City’, Drake’s ‘Best I Ever Had’ and more.
Young Thug entered the culture shortly after Drake began to enter the mainstream. As soon as he started making music, he began seeing returns. After the success of his mixtapes, including I’m Up, Slime Season 3, and Jeffery, in 2019, Thug put out his chart-topping debut studio album, So Much Fun.
Following Wayne’s mixtape blueprint, the kinds of business ventures the Louisiana mogul had entered into during the 2000s inspired Young Thug to set up his own label, YSL. However, the Atlanta label now stands accused of being a front for a street gang responsible for racketeering and corruption.
As such, it wasn’t as successful as Young Money. Although no one would ever claim Young Thug is a lyricist, it is indisputable that he has had the same impact on many that Lil Wayne had on him. As such, he continues to carry the torch for the South as a force in the mainstream.
Regardless of this, to pay homage to the rapper he considers to be the greatest of all time, Atlanta legend Young Thug spoke about his love for Lil Wayne during an interview with Complex and selected his five favourite Lil Wayne songs of all time.
Young Thug’s favourite Lil Wayne songs ever:
- ‘Let The Beat Build’, Tha Carter III, (2008)
- ‘No Problems’ ft Chance The Rapper & 2 Chainz, Colouring Book, (2016)
- ‘Eat You Alive’ ft ludacris & Shanell, The Drought is Over 6: The Reincarnation, (2008)
- ‘Ms Parker’, We Are Young Money, (2009)
- ‘Ill’, (unreleased)