Lil Wayne performed  “A Milli” live on MTV’s “FNMTV” on June 20, 2008.  “A Milli” is Lil Wayne’s latest remix, which celebrates his newly released album, “Tha Carter III” which became the first album to sell 1 million in a week since 2005. With such phenomenal sales, the music industry is taking notice.

Sales slump? What sales slump? Rapper Lil Wayne’s latest album, “Tha Carter III” (Cash Money), sold a million copies in its first week — the first release to cross the seven-figure threshold since 2005.

In matching the feat last accomplished by 50 Cent’s “The Massacre” three years ago, Lil Wayne has solidified his reputation as hip-hop’s next great MC. And he also defied conventional wisdom that says nobody buys CDs anymore. The industry is in a prolonged slump that has seen sales drop 25 percent since 2000, but the numbers for “Tha Carter III” suggest that Wayne isn’t just a compelling artist but a savvy businessman.

How’d he do it? With an astonishing work ethic, an enlightened attitude toward Internet file-sharing, and an anything-goes policy toward cameos. Wayne showed up on countless records by other artists since his previous album, “Tha Carter II,” was released in 2005. In guest spots on tracks by Chris Brown, Jay-Z, Britney Spears and even Enrique Iglesias (!!!), he inevitably left asphalt-scalding tread marks that attested to his formidable rapping skills.

At the same time he was feeding his increasingly voracious fan base by releasing eight CDs’ worth of tracks on the Internet; many of these featured Wayne rapping over established hits and tracks by well-known artists, but with a level of inventiveness that made the originals seem tame by comparison. Many artists treat mix tapes as teasers for their commercially legitimized work, but the Wayne mixtape barrage put most rap albums released in the same period to shame.

Source: Lil Wayne defies industry slump with 1 million sales: Here’s how he did it

See related posts:

• Lil Wayne’s “Tha Carter III” Tops Charts, May Be No. 1 Selling Album of the Year
• Lil Wayne’s ‘Tha Carter III’ First Week Sales More Than 1 Million

Video: Lil Wayne Performs “A Milli” Live on FNMTV 6-20-08