C4 (mixtape)

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C4
Mixtape by
ReleasedJanuary 30, 2009 (2009-01-30)
GenreHip hop
Length77:13
LabelTop Dawg
Producer
Kendrick Lamar chronology
No Sleep Til' NYC
(2007)
C4
(2009)
Kendrick Lamar
(2009)

C4 is the third solo mixtape by American rapper Kendrick Lamar, then known as K.Dot, released on January 30, 2009, through Top Dawg Entertainment. Heavily inspired by Lil Wayne's sixth studio album Tha Carter III (2008), the mixtape primarily consists of freestyles over the production from Tha Carter III, in addition to a few original songs.[1] C4 includes guest appearances from Lamar's TDE label-mates Ab-Soul, Punch, Jay Rock, Schoolboy Q, and BO.

Critical reception[edit]

When retrospectively speaking on the mixtape, Mosi Reeves of Rolling Stone described it as "a wrongheaded homage to a year-old, well-worn album."[2] Peter A. Berry of XXL wrote: "Compared to what he would evolve into over the next five years, fans have argued that the rapper didn't really find himself or his sound by the time this project came out. K-Dot's starpower resided in the future rather than present at this point in his catalog."[3]

Track listing[edit]

C4 track listing
No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
1."Intro"
0:22
2."Best Rapper Under 25"
  • Duckworth
Maestro3:15
3."Mr. Carter 2 (New Wayne Verse)"
  • Duckworth
  • Carter, Jr.
4:12
4."A Milli"
  • Duckworth
  • Cha Lo
  • Bangladesh
3:13
5."Bitch I'm in the Club"
  • Duckworth
T-Pain & Play-N-Skillz2:38
6."West Coast Wu Tang" (featuring Ab-Soul and Punch)RZA4:22
7."Phone Home" (featuring Punch)
  • Duckworth
  • Henderson Jr.
Cool & Dre2:51
8."Compton Chemistry"
  • Duckworth
Swizz Beatz2:22
9."Take Off Your Pants" (performed by Ab-Soul)Stevens IVRobin Thicke3:40
10."Shot Down" (featuring Punch)
  • Duckworth
  • Henderson Jr.
D. Smith4:23
11."Play With Fire"
  • Duckworth
StreetRunner4:27
12."Friend of Mine"
  • Duckworth
The Neptunes5:05
13."Still Hustlin" (featuring Ab-Soul and Jay Rock)
  • Duckworth
David Banner4:25
14."Welcome to C4" (featuring Ab-Soul, Jay Rock, Schoolboy Q and BO)
The Alchemist6:41
15."G Code"
  • Duckworth
4:01
16."Famous Pipe Game" (featuring Ab-Soul)
  • Duckworth
  • Stevens IV
Deezle3:10
17."Misunderstood" (featuring Jay Rock)
  • Duckworth
  • McKinzie
  • Rodnae
  • Mousa
4:44
18."Young & Black" (bonus track)
  • Duckworth
Sounwave3:22
Total length:77:13

Notes

References[edit]

  1. ^ "Kendrick Lamar (aka K.Dot) – C4 (Throwback Mixtape))". Archived from the original on November 6, 2011. Retrieved October 30, 2011.
  2. ^ Reeves, Mosi (July 14, 2017). "Mixtape Primer: Reviewing Kendrick Lamar's Pre-Fame Output". Rolling Stone.
  3. ^ Berry, Peter (February 25, 2021). "Every Kendrick Lamar Project Ranked". XXL.