By Alex Gonzalez

Lil’ Wayne as a rock star?  Ever since he was strumming his guitar at the end of his ‘Leather So Soft’ video with Birdman, he’s been headed in this direction.  Maybe not to the point where he’d be making a full length rock album, but Lil’ Wayne was definitely thinking outside of the box with his latest single, ‘Prom Queen.’  As reported here on Desi Hits!, this is the first single off of his new album, ‘The Rebirth,’ due April 7. 

Lil’ Wayne’s definitely been dabbling in the rock scene for a while now, even as he has ascended to the top of hip-hop.  He signed rocker Kevin Rudolf to his Cash Money Records label and from that came the monster hit, ‘Let It Rock.’  He’s also appeared on pop rock sensation Fall Out Boy’s latest album ‘Folie a Deux’ on the song, ‘Tiffany Blews.”   Let’s not forget that Lil’ Wayne has gone from wearing throwback jerseys and white tees to mismatched plaid and jeans two sizes too small, all in the spirit of mastering the punk rocker look.  The endless amounts of tattoos Lil’ Wayne has only accentuates the look he’s trying to pull off.

‘Prom Queen’ is definitely catchy as you’ll probably find yourself singing this song around the house, even if you weren’t intending to do so.   The autotune really did not have to be used here.  I’ve gotten used to him using the voice enhancer, but sometimes it works.  Other times it doesn’t.  This was one of those times where it was just unnecessary.  Lil’ Wayne, we know you can’t sing.  Autotune won’t cover that up.   If I had to compare this song to any sort of band, it would have to be Blink 182.  ‘Prom Queen’ definitely has that punk pop vibe to it.  You can mix this up with your rock playlist and it fits in very well.

The lyrics aren’t exactly gibberish either.  The song at least makes some sense, which is a step up for Lil’ Wayne, who while talented lyrically, can usually get lost in an attempt to string random punchline after random punchline together.  The hook goes: “She had it all figured out /but she left me with a broken heart /f---ed around and turned me down /‘cause she didn’t think I could play the part /but now the prom queen the prom queen /is crying sittin’ outside of my door /she never know how /how everything comes back around”

All things considered, ‘Prom Queen’ isn’t a song that will blow you away upon hearing it for the first time, but it is definitely something that will grow on you the more you hear it.  He definitely gets credit for taking a huge risk creatively with his music, so if this fails, it won’t be due to a lack of effort.

Will Lil’ Wayne successfully cross over and be successful in two of music’s biggest genres?  Personally I can’t see this thing lasting past this one album.  Some fans might be turned off by the idea of a rock album by Lil’ Wayne, but hey, people weren’t exactly embracing Andre 3000 of OutKast singing on ‘The Love Below’ or Kanye West using autotune for ‘808’s and Heartbreak,’ but those albums turned out to be pretty good.  We don’t know what the finished product will be, but if it sounds like ‘Prom Queen,’ Weezy F. Baby might just have some alternative success of his own.  Drop your thoughts and let us know what you think of his new song