Hip-Hop
by Lil Wayne (featuring BigXthaPlug)

Album: Tha Carter VI (2025)
Charted: 36
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • "Hip Hop" is a braggadocios track where Lil Wayne flexes about his massive influence in the halls of rap history and how he's made a living spewing for nearly three decades. It's swagger, it's spitfire, and there's also a dash of long-simmering beef.
  • The track opens with BigXthaPlug's streetwise hook. He declares he's "feelin' like 2Pac," which, in hip-hop terms, is basically saying you just walked on water wearing Air Force 1s.
  • Jay Jones, who closes the track, has a history with Wayne dating back to when he signed with Young Money in 2017. This is their seventh collaboration.
  • Wayne seems to lob a few lyrical grenades in the direction of Drake, his former Young Money protégé. The two have a famously complicated history that's swung between family-love and icy distance. On "Hip Hop," Wayne doesn't name names, but there are several subliminals, including interpolating Pusha T's Drake diss track "The Story of Adidon." There's also:

    These ni---s Teddy Grahams, ni---s teddy bears

    This line plays on Drake's surname ("Graham") and uses "Teddy Graham" - a sweet, bear-shaped snack - as a metaphor to call the target "sweet," a term often used in hip-hop to imply softness or lack of toughness. The reference to teddy bears doubles down on the implication that the target is soft and harmless.
  • The beat, built by Infamous and Ben Billions, is classic head-nod material: booming bass, sharp snares, and just enough melodic texture to keep things interesting without stealing the spotlight.

    Infamous (aka Marco Rodriguez-Diaz) has been working with Wayne since 2007, co-producing "Mr. Carter" with Jay-Z on Tha Carter III and contributing to nearly every major project since.

    Ben Billions, whose résumé includes work with Beyoncé ("6 Inch") and Yo Gotti ("Down in The DM"), also contributed to Tha Carter V and Funeral.
  • "Hip-Hop" is the fourth track on Tha Carter VI, the 14th solo album released by Lil Wayne and the sixth installment of Tha Carter album series. It fits into Tha Carter VI as both a celebration of Lil Wayne's roots while simultaneously reminding everyone that he's still here, still sharp, and still capable of out-rapping a generation he helped inspire.
  • The song debuted at #36 on the Billboard Hot 100, making it the highest-charting track from the album's 19-song lineup.

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

Carol Kaye

Carol KayeSongwriter Interviews

A top session musician, Carol played on hundreds of hits by The Beach Boys, The Monkees, Frank Sinatra and many others.

Bass Player Scott Edwards

Bass Player Scott EdwardsSong Writing

Scott was Stevie Wonder's bass player before becoming a top session player. Hits he played on include "I Will Survive," "Being With You" and "Sara Smile."

Emilio Castillo from Tower of Power

Emilio Castillo from Tower of PowerSongwriter Interviews

Emilio talks about what it's like to write and perform with the Tower of Power horns, and why every struggling band should have a friend like Huey Lewis.

Steven Tyler of Aerosmith

Steven Tyler of AerosmithSongwriter Interviews

Tyler talks about his true love: songwriting. How he identifies the beauty in a melody and turns sorrow into art.

Emmylou Harris

Emmylou HarrisSongwriter Interviews

She thinks of herself as a "song interpreter," but back in the '80s another country star convinced Emmylou to take a crack at songwriting.

Movie Stars In Music Videos

Movie Stars In Music VideosSong Writing

Johnny Depp, Angelina Jolie, Mila Kunis and John Malkovich are just a few of the film stars who have moonlighted in music videos.