How Lil Wayne Recorded Tha Carter III

How did Lil Wayne rebuild Tha Carter III after his songs leaked—and still sell over a million copies in its first week? Through archival footage and firsthand accounts from Wayne, Drake, Bangladesh, Cortez Bryant, and Drew Correa, we trace Wayne’s recording process and the stories behind “A Milli,” “Lollipop,” and “Mr. Carter,” featuring Jay-Z. From The Leak EP to the pressure of choosing the final tracklist, this is how Tha Carter III came together. CHAPTERS 0:00 Drake explains Lil Wayne’s recording process 0:51 The leak that forced Wayne to start over 2:18 Back in the studio with Bangladesh 3:01 How “A Milli” reached Lil Wayne 4:30 Static Major and “Lollipop” 5:49 Making “Mr. Carter” with Drew Correa 6:53 How Jay-Z joined “Mr. Carter” 8:18 Choosing the final tracklist 9:04 Tha Carter III leaks again 10:21 A million copies in one week What’s your favorite song on Tha Carter III? Let us know in the comments. Subscribe to WAXD for more stories behind the music. Sources Cortez Bryant and Andrew Barber on the Carter series, album leaks, and Wayne’s mixtapes, Fake Shore Drive (2020):    • Cortez Bryant & Andrew Barber talk Lil Way...   The Carter documentary, opening ten minutes, QD3 Entertainment (2009):    • Lil Wayne Carter Documentary Premiere (1st...   Drake explains his and Lil Wayne’s writing process, interview clip uploaded 2009:    • Drake explains his and lil waynes writing ...   Lil Wayne on Static Major and “Lollipop,” interview clip uploaded 2009:    • LIL WAYNE Talks about STATIC MAJOR in inte...   Drew Correa breaks down “Mr. Carter,” Music By Mattie (2026):    • The Producer behind Lil Wayne and Jay-Z Br...   Bangladesh on how “A Milli” came together, VladTV (2010):    • Exclusive: Bangladesh talks about how "A M...   Bangladesh discusses “A Milli,” One Song Podcast (2025):    • Lil Wayne "A Milli" w/ Special Guest Bangl...   Lil Wayne on Tha Carter III, Uncensored, TV One (2023):    • Lil Wayne Speaks on Tha Carter III | Uncen...   Lil Wayne on the Carter III leak, Come Up DVD interview, JordanTower throwback upload (2020):    • Lil Wayne Talks The Carter 3 Leak and How ...   “Tha Carter III 6/10/08 — I Work Hard,” Universal Motown promo (2008):    • Tha Carter III  6/10/08 - I Work Hard   Lil Wayne’s recording process, The Carter documentary excerpt, QD3 Entertainment (2009):    • From "The Carter" Documentary... A  sneak ...   The Carter documentary, official trailer, Adam Bhala Lough (2009):    • Lil Wayne's 'The Carter' Documentary Trail...   Dates refer to publication or upload, unless otherwise noted. Throwback upload dates do not establish when the original interviews were filmed. A WAXD Behind the Record episode. Also on TikTok and Instagram as WAXD TV. #LilWayne #ThaCarterIII #WAXD