And when the production complements rather than clouds, Weezy is in top form: 'Dreams' sets the tone with some hair-raising braggadocio, 'Harden' continues the warm reflection of Carter V gems like 'Demon,' and the virile 'Not Me' entertains with classic bars like 'I'm rollin' like my n*gga on Degrassi!' The 'A Milli'-esque looping of 'Mahogany' and 'Line Em Up' demonstrates this to a T, letting the rapper's inimitable flows and endless charisma take the wheel. Yet when Weezy's formidable rap skills are the focus, he can still produce something spectacular. At its worst, the album strips away all character in favor of flavor-of-the-month styles: the flute-trap of 'I Don't Sleep' is painfully generic, the XXX-featuring 'Get Outta My Head' is a ghastly attempt to adapt to SoundCloud sonics, and 'Sights and Silencers' sounds like a the-Dream B-side with a lackluster Wayne feature. The trendy bass-driven sonics of 'Ball Hard,' 'Bing James,' and 'Bastard (Satan's Son)' constrict Wayne's personality into a low-energy drawl, resulting in tracks that would be better left on the cutting-room floor.

When garish production and newer styles are given prominence over the rapper's bars, the result is utterly forgettable material. The project's 24 tracks flip through a number of styles in order to see what sticks, fitting throwback club anthems and kitschy guitar-trap alongside modern updates of Wayne's original approach. After regaining his footing through this string of releases, the rapper's 13th studio album is a sounding board. Funeral arrives, then, on a wave of change. Coming off the lean-drenched, autotune-laden career lows of Rebirth, IANAHB2, and Dedication 4, the Louisiana rapper rebuilt his style from the ground up with thoroughly compelling results: Dedication 6 and D6 Reloaded replicated the sheer fun of mixtape-era Weezy, while 2018's Tha Carter V teased refreshing new sonic directions. As any longtime listener of Lil Wayne can attest, his late-2010s return to form has been truly remarkable.

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