Hardware and content

1.       How long did it take to record their latest album?

It took Lil Wayne 5 years to record Tha Carter V. Through the process of recording, he told his audience that the album was all about growth, and also that this may be his final album. This may lead to his audience recommending his album to other friends and family who may consider his music. This expands his music because of the curiosity that is audience feel as the album is released to the public. As they wait, it increases the albums value as they aren’t able to get more of Lil Wayne’s music as he proclaims that it is the last one that he is going to release.

2.       Where was their last album recorded (studio/ bedroom/ on tour etc)?

Lil Wayne recorded Tha Carter V in a studio, with the majority of his albums recorded in a studio.

3.       How many tracks on each of their last two album releases?

Free Weezy was one of the two albums that Lil Wayne recently recorded, it contents 16 tracks within the album. Also I am not a human being ii is another recent album that Lil Wayne released. It contains 15 tracks within the album, which is almost similar to the other album.

4.       How many singles were released from each if their last two albums?

One of Lil Wayne’s latest albums is Free Weezy, which has a track list of 15 songs, among them there are 8 singles. These singles all have a different purpose to the album, some are similar but most of them tell a different story. Lil Wayne’s other album that he also released recently is Tha Carter V, which has a track list of 16, among these tracks there are 6 singles.

5.       What formats were their last two albums released on? (CD, digital download, vinyl, deluxe album)

Both his recent album was released on CD but today, everything is commonly released online through either iTunes or other applications. The way the market distribute their music today is gradually changing throughout the years. This changes the way the music industry markets their product to their audience.

6.       Have your artist ever enabled user generated content?

The hit show on HBO “Ballers” had featured a track from Lil Wayne’s 2010 hit “right above it” this was considered an efficient way of marketing his music by using cross media convergence. Releasing their music across different platforms allows his target audience to widen, thus expanding his revenue.

7.       Has their music ever been used to promote a new piece of hardware?

Lil Wayne released “Go Dj” on the play station 2 game Midnight Club 3. This song was well recognised because of how it was marketed, Lil Wayne’s music featuring on a video game is an example of cross media convergence.

8.       Have they used a new piece of hardware in the production of their music?

Lil Wayne hasn’t promoted any new piece of hardware at all.

9.       Have tacks been pre-released or exclusively available on artist’s apps?

Lil Wayne released an app called Squvd Up, which features under the album The Carter iii, this is an efficient way of promoting his product by releasing it onto another platform.

10.   Has any of their music ever been repackaged because of the new piece of hardware?

None of Lil Wayne’s music has ever been repackaged due to the new release of hardware that could potentially affect the way he distributes music.

11.   Have any of their videos or other promotional material featured product placement of hardware?

Lil Wayne also featured in an advert which promotes the new piece of hardware that Samsung released (Samsung Galaxy S7), this video was sponsored by Samsung by allowing Lil Wayne to feature on the video to market their new piece of hardware to the public.

Audience behaviour and consumption

1.       What were the total sales of their last two albums?

The total sales for “free Weezy” was estimated at 10 million dollars.

2.       How did they chart in

3.        A) The UK: Lil Wayne’s “Free Weezy” charted top 10 in the UK as it was first released on July 4^th.

4.       B) the US: Lil Wayne charted 28^th in the US for his free Weezy album, when it was released on July 4^th

5.       What percentage of sales for their last two albums were:

A) CD sales: 40%

B) Vinyl sales: 3%

C) streamed/e.g. Spotify: 25%

D) Downloaded: 32%

4. What is the estimated number of illegal downloads in their last two albums?

Free Weezy was estimated at 10 million downloads online. Tha Carter V also received 14 million downloads and streams online. This shows the change in the way people access their music in many different ways, one of them being the most common (online downloads). There are some downloads that were taken online from pirated websites. These websites break the copyright law. It is very difficult to prevent the artist’s audience to access free music online where they can easily find it.