Last week we reported on yet another delay regarding the long-awaited release of Lil Wayne's 'rock' album, Rebirth. Now we know why. Currently scheduled for a February 1 release, the disc's due date now nips at the heels of the date the Louisiana-born rapper is ordered to begin a year-long relationship with the criminal justice system. Starting on February 9, Weezy will begin incarceration on firearms charges resulting from an arrest in 2007, when officers recovered a gun from his tour bus. If we could make an educated guess, we would have to assume that the new Rebirth release date, in accordance with his prison sentence, is a result of Wayne's desire to either save money or ensure his family is provided for while he is away. Dude's got four kids! Free mixtapes won't be putting them through college (no matter how much better they are than his actual records). In related news, online retail giant Amazon decided to just go ahead and release the album anyway. More on that after the jump!

According to reports by Billboard, a 'shipping mishap' saw around 500 lucky fans receiving their copies of Rebirth via Amazon before the album's new official release date. With the album now most likely in open circulation on the web, it will be interesting to see how Weezy's camp will respond to the leak. Two-disc special edition? Autographed copy? Or our personal favorite: "that's not the finished version!"