Mixtape; No Rating Given.

    It’s official – the south has it’s own super-emcee. Originally pigeonholed as the “kid rapper” of the Ca$h Money Records family, Lil’ Wayne has officially come into his own within the last few years, really starting to show his talent on 2005′s The Carter 2. Once the buzz began, he further solidified things by teaming up with DJ Drama for the Dedication 2 mixtape, which was recognized as “mixtape of the year” by several media outlets. Since then, Wayne has kept busy with the series of The Dought mixtapes, featuring the young emcee rhyming over whatever hot beats are currently in the streets. But None Higher is something different….

   Enter DJ Benzi. Benzi made his name known last year with his Clipse We Got The Remix mix CD, an innovative disc that featured several unreleased songs from Malice and Pusha T, as well as exclusive “re-fixes”, which featured Benzi blending little heard beats and overlooked acapellas into brilliant new songs. After this mix CD garnered him a spot on Urb’s Next 100 list, he now looks to give Lil’ Wayne the same treatment with None Higher. 

   Wayne’s last couple of mix CD’s have had their moments – one common complaint is the lack of care in their production. Songs playing at different volumes, a few lazily penned, forced freestyles, lousy transitions, and of course, the pet peeve poor quality slim line CD-R, which never looks good on your shelf. Instead, None Higher solves all of these issues and then some. It’s more of a labor of love, rather than simply a bunch of freestyles from Wayne. First and foremost, the CD is professionally manufactured and pressed, shipping in a full-size jewel case. Despite the fact that the tracklist is still off by 1, this makes a huge difference in noticeable quality right off the bat. Secondly, the transitions between each song are flawless. There are no explosions or annoying shout outs to cover up bad “deejaying”; instead each song is either blended into the next, or smoothly bridged – hence the term “mixtape”. 

      But all that wouldn’t matter if the content weren’t on point, right? Benzi takes a different approach to making a mixtape, by enlisting a team of up-and-coming producers to remix or “refix” a series of acapellas from Wayne, lending an entirely new sound than what you hear on every other mix CD. Ghislain Poirier kicks things off properly with his remix of Yo Gotti’s “I Got ‘Em” (here known as “Dopeman”), instantly capturing your attention with a set of ceremonial horns and bouncy reggae synth, while a lo-fi Birdman walkie-talkies the hook. Diplo’s remix of “Grey Goose” reinvents the 2005 Allstar Cashville Prince track that never seemed to make it big, by deleteing the original artist and leaving the rhyming chores up to Wayne and Yo Gotti. Diplo’s new beat combines sticky, southern 808 bass, and a catchy keyboard melody, actually making it a marketable single for the project. 

     Les Biches add a totally different sound for Wayne with their remix of “Bring It Back”, trading the original versions stereotypical southern sound for a rolling, 80′s pop-synth sound. Wayne’s duet with Robin Thicke “Shooter” is reborn as Nick Catchdubs’ “88 Shots”, exchanging the original’s bluesy cool with a backdrop consisting of a souped up version of Masta Ace’s “Born To Roll” beat. In another classic jack move, another stinker from 2005 is reworked – Trina’s “Don’t Trip”. The song is brilliantly reformed by The Stylists, who brilliantly merge the beats from Mims “This Is Why I’m Hot”, Kanye’s “Jesus Walks”, and Jay-Z’s “Takeover” into one brand new concoction. Sounds sketchy, but it works. 

      The CD isn’t all merely remixed versions of old Wayne material however. There is some familiarity found on songs like “I Ain’t Heard Of That” (previously by Slim Thug), “Colors” (still featuring Sean Kingston), and “Ghetto Story” (originally by Baby Cham), each of which get the Weezy freestyle treatment. Thankfully Benzi avoids going after the same five beats every other mixtape deejay is using, instead focusing on some of those more slept on tracks that never got the shine they deserved. 

     And that’s is only the half of it. 32 tracks deep, None Higher shows remarkable consistancy, garnering heavy replay value. That’s probably what makes None Higher so refreshing. Benzi and crew have taken classic Wayne verses, new freestyles, and even bad songs of the past, and completely reinvented them for this mixtape. If the south isn’t your thing, but you are curious about Lil’ Wayne, this is indeed the perfect jumping on point, as Wayne’s verses aren’t overpowered by the sound usually associated with the region. Benzi’s got the remix once again, and another contender for mixtape of the year.