Tha Carter III is the sixth studio album by American rapper Lil Wayne, released on June 10, 2008, by Cash Money and Universal Motown. It follows a long string of mixtape releases and guest appearances on other hip hop and R&B artists records, helping to increase his exposure in the mainstream. The album's cover art features a baby picture of Wayne and is similar to covers of hip hop albums such as Nas's Illmatic (1994) and Notorious B.I.G.'s Ready to Die (1994).