Lil Wayne

Lil Wayne, released?

Pending any violations or infractions for behavioral issues, the rapper was able to see the light of day eight months after entering prison.

While Wayne has been away, however, his presence has remained potent. His protégé Drake debuted atop the charts with Thank Me Later, on which Wayne served as an executive producer.

The Toronto MC visited Lil Wayne in prison last month and told MTV News about the experience. "He kept looking to the window," Drake said. "He'd look up at the window almost like he's looking right through it. It's frosted, so you can't see out. I was like, 'Why does he keep staring through the window? There's nothing out there.' To him, there's a whole world moving out there that he hasn't seen for so long."

In addition to Drake, Diddy and Fat Joe have also ventured to Rikers Island to see Lil Wayne. Joe said the New Orleans native was in good spirits and appeared to be making the best of a bad situation through humor.

"He's doing fairly well," Joe told MTV News. "Way better than I thought he would be doing. He was telling me some crazy funny story about him and this older guy. They always going back and forth with each other, arguing. To hear him say it, it's like Archie Bunker [with this guy]."

Recently, Wayne's manager Cortez Bryant announced that an EP from the rapper would be released in September, and there are tentative plans in place for Tha Carter IV to hit shelves by the end of the year.

Another Wayne protégé and member of the rapper's Young Money collective, Jae Millz, said he expects his boss to get back to work right away on the day of his release. The Harlem rapper told MTV News that Lil Wayne is likely to perform a concert as soon as he gets out.

"That's the day," Millz said of the November 4 mark. "I hear when he comes home, he's hitting the stage. I hope they let him keep his inmate uniform. He needs to come onstage with that, the whole Bruce Leroy [jail attire] and take it off and throw all the jewels on and tear it down for everyone. 'Cause they waiting for him."

[mtv.com & weheartit.com]