Lil Wayne Welcomes Us To "Tha Carter VI" On Our New "Fire Emoji" Playlist Update

Now that June is officially upon us, we're ready to dive into the summer on our latest Fire Emoji playlist update. While there are plenty of new hip-hop releases to talk about this week, there's really only one that deserves to be at the forefront for its moment-creating release and the divisive conversation it inspired.

Of course, we're talking about Lil Wayne's long-awaited new album Tha Carter VI. It had been five years since the last Weezy project, and seven years since the last installment in the legendary Tha Carter series. While some fans hated the production and some fans loved the lyricism, all haters and glazers are missing out on some key aspects of this record. But over time, the reception will surely evolve in either direction.

Look at a track like "Bells," for example. Whether you love the deep bass or the homage to LL COOL J's classic "Rock The Bells," this is a pretty interesting fusion of the old and new. In fact, it might represent Tha Carter VI's mission as a whole. Elsewhere on the tracklist, there are moments like that in spades.

But another Fire Emoji highlight this week is a bit more forward-moving, even if its sample use evokes some palpable nostalgia as well. The new Lil Yachty single "Murda" continues his ethereal, hazy, and addictive drill flips, relying on some smoky synth pads and background vocals this time around.

As far as Yachty's mic performance, it's as smooth and charismatic as it's been for the past few years, even if he could've used some more switch-ups to provide more dynamism on the cut. Nevertheless, he keeps improving as an MC and giving folks plenty of reason to come back.

Finally on Fire Emoji, we wanted to shout out the relentless, dominant, and engaging EST Gee single, "Take my time Geeski SH Feb 23." He absolutely refuses to slow his bars down over a simple but effective trap beat, with a light sample in the back leaving him plenty of space to impress. Gee has been on quite the tear in 2025 so far, and we hope he keeps it up with skill and excitement..