June 11, 2008

Lil Wayne's New Album And Upcoming Film Focus On His Hometown, New Orleans

By Shaheem Reid (MTV.com)

For now, Lil Wayne doesn't have aspirations to be a full-time actor, but he definitely was happy to score a role in the new film Hurricane Season. The movie centers on a New Orleans high school basketball team called the Patriots in the wake of Hurricane Katrina.

"My character's name is Lamont," Wayne explained while sitting on the set in the middle of a gymnasium. "The character is, I would say, a hustler. He goes to the school. He always bets against the school. He's trying to make the best bet. Anything to get money. He sells shoes. ... Towards the end of the movie, he makes his way to becoming a full-blown Patriots fan and representing the school he's with. He enjoys the Patriots as much as everybody else at the end of the day."

The film also stars Academy Award winner Forest Whitaker, as well as Wayne's longtime friend Bow Wow. While Bow will tell you that his priorities have changed from music to films, Weezy is fully enthralled with his microphone.

"If it comes around, it's cool," Wayne said about future Hollywood parts, noting the differences between acting and making music. "I'm not going to be trying out for no roles. I'm not going to be at castings."

Wayne did say he is enjoying making the movie and loves the fact that it actually is being filmed in New Orleans. And one of Tha Carter III's most stirring moments comes via "Tie My Hands," a musical commentary on his hometown that features Robin Thicke.

"I'm just speaking about the city in general," he said of the track. "How we were before the hurricane and how we are after. [I'm saying] everything about the city that somebody that's not from here can't do. I'm from here, born and raised. Telling them what I think about the situation. The way this movie ties into it is that I think the song is positive and gives motivation."

Wayne's Tha Carter III is in stores - finally - on Tuesday (June 10). And while the verdict is still out on how fans will embrace the album, Weezy has one admirer who has gone public with a solid co-sign. "The Lil Wayne album - a lot of times you get a lot of hype on cats and they don't totally deliver," Diddy said in a video blog. "I was surprised by his selection of beats, his variation of flows, his content. The boy really delivered: He's a genius, the album is genius, it's a classic. It far exceeded my expectations."