You ever have that friend? You know, that one that everyone knows is really talented, but for some reason just never finds it out for himself? Maybe he could have been a great basketball player or created the next million dollar website. Whatever it was, he was either too lazy or did not have enough drive to live up to his potential. I like to put those types of people into the not-so-nice category of “wasted talent.” As of late, Lil Wayne, the world-renowned rapper from Louisiana, fits perfectly into this category.

This past Monday, Wayne linked up once again with DJ Drama for the fourth installment in their “Dedication” mixtape series. As Wayne fans know, this compilation of mixtapes is not to be taken lightly; they are one of the main reasons Wayne is the star he is today. That is why special interest arose when the fourth mixtape installment was initially announced about a month ago.

Many Wayne detractors won’t give a tape like this a chance, but of course his hardcore fans will eat it up. As for those of you straddling the fence on whether to give Wayne another try, this review is for you, my friends.

I, myself, have been trying to figure out what to do with Wayne, at one point my personal favorite artist by a long shot. It will be hard to bring myself to not even check for his music, but at the rate he has been releasing sub-par material recently, that day seems to be looming.

Similar to past mixtapes, the “Young Money” boss takes all of the hottest industry rap beats and puts his personal spin on them. The formula has always been simple for Wayne-take other peoples’ instrumentals and use clever metaphors and wordplay to one-up them on their own songs. It is a concept that for years the entire rap game feared. From about 2006 to 2009 Wayne was releasing endless amounts of songs in his pursuit to stake his claim as the greatest rapper alive. Even if you hate him now, it’s hard not to admit that at least for that three or four-year span, you kind of believed him. Wayne became feared and the praises came rushing in, all culminating in two of the biggest rap albums ever: 2008’s “Tha Carter III” and 2009’s “No Ceilings.” Then he served a prison sentence and has not been the same since.

With praise comes complacency and for Lil Wayne this sums up just about everything he does now. Music has taken the backseat for him as clothing lines and skateboarding are now in the forefront. This whole complacent syndrome can be perfectly expressed in a statement made by the man himself.

“Usually I kill all the hot songs that’s out, but I’m on all the hot songs that’s out,” Wayne said. “So now I have nothing to kill.”

He’s bored, and on “Dedication 4,” it shows. Every song consists of metaphors and similes trying to be clever. When he’s not doing that, he’s speaking about his girls’ private parts or his clothing line. The mixtape seems thrown together-from the lyrics to the beat choices to how it was announced and ultimately released. Outside of the J. Cole verse on “Green Ranger,” a head-scratching Nicki Minaj verse on “Mercy,” and the endorsement of a thirteen year old aspiring thug named Lil Mouse on “Get Smoked,” there is little to no variety to be found in the beats, flow or lyrics . To sit down and listen to the entire thing was a struggle in its own right.

So back to that “wasted talent” friend that I spoke about earlier. Where is he now? Did he ever put it together? Did he make that website or get that scholarship? Well, Wayne did, but did so in a teasing way to fans. He gave us three incredible years of solo work and then realized he could make just as much, if not more money while putting less time and effort into his music. Once a man who dedicated his life to his music, he now has other interests, and that, I would hope, most fans can respect. The man gave us a lifetime’s worth of music in less than five years. Now he should just move on as he clearly wants to. To Lil Wayne we as former fans say: Ride off into the sunset while there’s still some left.