Cam’ron has shed light on the real reason why Juelz Santana and Lil Wayne’s long-anticipated collaborative album, I Can’t Feel My Face, never saw an official release.
During the mid-2000s, the Dipset and Young Money rappers had fans eagerly awaiting the project, but despite heavy anticipation, it never materialized. A version of the album eventually leaked online, but it lacked the impact it could have had with a proper rollout.
On the latest episode of his Talk With Flee show, which aired Tuesday (February 11), Cam addressed speculation that he personally blocked the project, while also explaining the industry politics that played a role in its demise.
“Lil Wayne wasn’t the super superstar [yet],” Cam’ron explained around the 33-minute mark. “He was a star, but remember, Wayne emerged into a superstar after Tha Carter [albums] and ‘A Milli’ and all that. So [when this was happening], he didn’t put out his first album yet.”
Cam continued, detailing how the label disputes caused a roadblock. “Juelz and Wayne had a project. Def Jam is under Universal, which Lil Wayne was signed to. So when they wanted to put this project out, Universal told Def Jam, ‘Well, Lil Wayne still didn’t give us his album yet, so if y’all wanna put this project out, we’re taking 95%, and Def Jam, y’all could take 5%.’”
According to Cam, Def Jam’s then-head lawyer, Steve Garley, was left with little choice. “We had a joint venture deal with Def Jam, so if that project came out, Def Jam would get 2.5%, and me and Juelz would get 2.5% of the album,” he said. “And they said, ‘Cam, we love you and all that, but we’re not doing that. We can’t do that.’”
Def Jam’s hesitation, Cam added, was largely due to Wayne’s own contractual obligations. “They was more on that tip because Lil Wayne didn’t even hand in his project yet. So they like, ‘How we gonna okay the Juelz and Wayne project if Lil Wayne didn’t even hand in his project? Maybe we can revisit it after Lil Wayne’s project comes out, but until then, no.’”
He concluded, “So, Steve Garley and Def Jam at that particular time didn’t okay it – but I get the blame.”
Lil Wayne released Tha Carter in 2004 and Tha Carter II followed in late 2005. Juelz and Wayne began teasing I Can’t Feel My Face around 2005-2006, meaning that by that point, Weezy was already several albums deep into his career.
In a 2022 interview with VLAD TV, Juelz Santana echoed similar sentiments, attributing the album’s failure to “politics.” He explained that the involvement of multiple labels—Def Jam, Universal, Cash Money, and Diplomats—made it difficult to get all parties on the same page.
“As you see, Wayne was supposed to drop an album with T-Pain, the T-Wayne album. That album never came out. Just so you know, it wasn’t a Juelz and Wayne [issue],” Juelz said at the time.
Despite never seeing an official release, I Can’t Feel My Face remains a highly discussed project among fans of both artists, representing a moment in hip-hop history that, unfortunately, never fully came to fruition.
