MTV Names Lil' Wayne "Man of The Year"

MTV News has named Dwayne Michael Carter Jr. 'aka' Lil' Wayne, as 2008's "Man of The Year"...

...Really??

Couldn't they have chosen a more appropriate candidate? Barack Obama, perhaps? Nevertheless, here is the MTV list of Weezy's accomplishments that won him the prestigious title.



Lil' Wayne's 2008 Highlights:

*Rolled into '08 with the "Hottest MC in the Game" championship belt over his shoulder.
* Promised his long-awaited Carter III album would be coming this year, and touted the long list of cameos he recorded by dubbing himself "Featuring Lil Wayne"
* Arrested in Arizona when his tour bus is pulled over by border patrol agents who perform the aforementioned bust ...Facing felony drug and weapons charges, he pleads not guilty. The case is still pending.
*Attempted to reunite the Hot Boyz at a concert during the NBA All-Star Weekend in New Orleans, but the event was canceled at the last minute due to shootings outside the venue.
*Visited his old secondary school, promising Tha Carter would drop "in April" and being asked to the prom by a girl named Julie .
*Showed up three hours late for a concert in New Jersey, did not apologize, ended show by donning a bathrobe, shouting "sexual f---ing chocolate has left the building, bi---" .
*Discussed his "drank" of choice, syrup .
* "Lollipop," the first single from Carter III, tops the Billboard Hot 100 .
*Premiered the now-iconic Carter III cover, featuring a photo of him as a baby, complete with a pinkie ring and digitally added tattoos.
*Refused to freak out when the album leaked two weeks early.
*"Elated" when Carter III defies industry expectations and sells 1 million copies in a single week, the first album to do so since 50 Cent's The Massacre in 2005.
*Congratulated by 50, Kanye West and a host of others after accomplishing the feat.
*Played a "modern-day Robin Hood" in the "Got Money" video.
* Lost his pants during his performance at the Video Music Awards.
*Hopped a plane immediately following the VMAs to make a court date in New York City.
*Prepped Dedication 3 mixtape and Tha Carter IV.
*Appeared on Fall Out Boy's Folie à Deux.
* Appeared on Kanye West's 808s & Heartbreak.
*Named MVP at the BET Hip-Hop Awards.
*Announced plans to reissue Carter III, only with completely different songs.
*Shared the stage with Jay-Z but did not actually perform with him.
*Described the birth of his son as "nasty, but wonderful".
*Strapped on a guitar to back up Kid Rock at the CMA Awards, only vaguely playing said guitar.
*Plotted I Am Music Tour with T-Pain, Gym Class Heroes and Keyshia Cole.
* Nominated for eight Grammy Awards, more than any other artist.
*"A Milli" is named "Best Song of 2008" in MTV's Bigger Than the Sound column ... "A Milli" is named "Hip-Hop Single of the Year" by our Mixtape Monday family.
*Tha Carter III is named one of the "Best Albums of 2008"


Ok, there's no arguing the fact that Lil' Wayne dominated the Hip-Hop mainstream in 2008. If it was bizzare, controversial, or a mainstream hit, you could most certainly find Lil' Wayne behind it, but do you agree with MTV? Does his list of "accomplishments" merit a "Man of The Year" title? Let us know what you think!

Staying Power: Real Artists Can Span the Decades

In an era where the mp3 reigns supreme and artists are able to stream their original tunes over the net with about as much ease as it takes to nuke a poptart, it seems that any and everybody can become an artist. You don’t even have to be particularly talented anymore — the only requirement is that your song be catchy enough to be made into a passable 20-second ringtone. (Case in point: songs like ‘Chicken Noodle Soup’ or overnight youtube sensation, ‘Chocolate Rain’).

One can’t help but wonder whether our recent willingness to support music that is really little more than a jazzed-up nursery rhyme with a danceable beat is causing us to pump out an entire generation of one-hit wonders rather than real artists.

Who are the ‘real’ artists, you ask? I’ll put it this way: Decades ago the world was listening to the songs of Beatles, Queen, Marvin Gaye, Jimmy Buffet and the Rolling Stones. And guess what; I’m still listening to them. So are millions of other people across the globe. Their lyrics, melodies and stories still ring as true to me as they did to my parents when they were at the quarter-century mark (sometime in the stone age).

Real artists — the ones who have long ago faded from the spotlight, but whose music is still being aired on the radio, sampled in rap songs, and added to soundtracks — create art that withstands the test of time. I’ve no doubt that 40 years from now, my grandkids might be slow dancing to Leonard Cohen’s ‘Hallelujah’ at some wedding reception or prom. The question is, will they also be ‘Cranking that Solja Boy’ or lip-syncing to Miley Cyrus’s greatest hits? I think not.