I can understand why people don’t fux with Kid Cudi because his themes are darker and more delusional. I can understand why people don’t follow Asher Roth on a larger scale either because his shelf life appears to be somehow similar to a loaf of white bread. But all the h8 that gets thrown towards Wale baffles me. What did he do to y’all? His Mixtape About Nothing was on my 2008 year end list at the top and I never like to qualify mixtapes but Wale’s joint was definetly some of the best music to drop in a long while.
The report cards from XXL mags 2008 Freshmen class aren’t all submitted yet and frankly, I’m not checking for Ace Hood’s debut disk either, but between Asher Roth, Kid Cudi and now Wale’s debut ‘Attention Deficit’ I think you have a clear view of rap music for the next decade. Wale has created his own lane along with Cudi by not just pushing forth lyrics but also re-introducing go-go and afrobeat music to Hip-Hop. I think it works because Wale’s flow is a unique stop and go staccato.
Wale isn’t into over-rhyming like, say a Talib Kweli might on a track that featured a Fela Kuti sample. He’s in control and clearly thoughtful of how he wants his lyrics to be received. My only complaint for this debut album is that there isn’t enough of Wale in here. All the ideas he expressed on the Mixtape About Nothing are diluted by the number of guest features on this album. I feel like this project became a Mark Ronson disk highlighted by some Wale tracks. The album is still dope though and the tracks that I love are really, rwally good.
Triumph is the type of song that I would make Wale wear a ‘Coming To America’ lionhead sash in the music video for. 90210 is definitely that ‘Ye Tudda track. It makes me want to sniff some yayze and play Super Nintendo for 36 str8 hours. Prescription is a listen to the boastful Wale persona at his lyrical best. Wale is clearly the most talented rhymesayer from the XXL freshmen ’08 class. Let’s see what he does as a sophomore before we randmly h8 on dude.
Triumph
90210
Prescription
Quite frankly, i can’t dig his voice and flow. He aint a bad rapper, but i just dont think he is any thing special neither. You dont understand why people “h8” but i dont understand what the hype is around him.
I’m listening to the three songs that you posted, and they only verify that he is overrated.
Shout to all my african dudes though, no Hate. I still dont wale and ’em new niggas.
Same goes for Kid Kudi, i havent heard anything worthy of deeming him the future. These niggas corny, put some bass in your voice.
So if I’m hearing you right you fux with the more gravely voiced rappers like Ja-Rule and such.
Wale is cool, I didn’t quite like ‘nothing’ but Back to feature was on point, but it sounds as if the his album is the same ‘feature’ which is disappointing…too many features on album can kill future projects….
sorry..there other cats is a waste of a cd….just cant feel their noise!
I still fux with Curren$y, CuDi, B.O.B. and Faktz before Wale (tied with Blu) but Wale deserves his acclaims as well. The freshmen class should include Jay Elec too even though he seems much older and I would also put him above Wale.
On the same note, I dont mean to discredit anyone because from what I have heard they all have made a joint or two that gets played like crazy.
Wale is getting a lot of love lately and I dont think his hate is more than usual. He is not the reincarnation of a hip-hop legend so he is not going to get love off that, he earned his fans the hard way and it keep him relevant longer enough to leave his mark on the game (no jayceon, II).
“I think it works because Wale’s flow is a unique stop and go staccato.”
That’s cool for about 5 tracks but then you realize he raps the same way ALL. THE. TIME. I call it Cormega syndrome.
Don’t get me wrong, I used to promo for this guy HARD when I had a blog and before he ever had that record deal…aka when the promo was needed. After that I fell back and just watched the shit unfold.
A brief list of why I don’t mind complaining about Wale:
1) He calls himself an “ambassador” and there’s only enough room for one of us. Even worse we’re both from the same geographic region. Move over!
2) A lot of the other rappers from the area that are quite talented but that most people that don’t live here have no clue about seem to base their chances for success on Wale’s success. Apparently none of them can make it if he can’t because he has the best chances of anyone in the area. I disagree. Um, hello, Substantial is from Baltimore and he’s fuckin with QN5. And if anyone ever goes to their megashow they realize what a following they have. Why are people banking on someone else’s success to further their own? Hellooooo he’s not doing mixtapes anymore. You won’t get shout outs or features. He’s fuxin with Gucci Mane now. Say bye bye to your neighborhood friend.
3) He’s fuxin with Gucci Mane now. On the one song that definitely had an obvious go-go influence to it he features GUCCI MANE. What happened to your “artistic integrity”, sir? We all know that one of your DC rap buddies “prA’li” coulda bodied that verse way better. Why not feature *gasp* one of the vocalists from a gogo band? That would be integrity. Gucci mane? That’s just a desperate attempt for tweens to cop your record on iTunes. Sell out!
3) UCB continuously outshines Wale on stage, yet they never seem to get the credit they are due. Wale just walks on stage looking like he just rolled outta bed.
4) one of the weirdest writing experiences of my life involved that guy but that’s a story in itself.
5) His ego is a problem. He could be the next gay fish. Word to @WalesEgo.
6) the previously mentioned ‘mega syndrome.
…get my point?
I think I put a personal pigeonhole on dude. I was digging that Roots track he was on and expected more of that. What I heard since wasn’t quite. And for wahtever reason, I can’t seem to circle back.
I didn’t get anywhere near hate though.
str8 h8. i think dude is dope, even though i haven’t listen to this album yet.
i think ambassodor’s 6 point essay on why he hates wale actually makes him the gay fish.
stop complaining about ego in hip hop son. that shit is ass backwards
I like him. I think he’s probably one of my favs of the new class. Who I can’t stand is fuckin’ Drake. Don’t get me started on that John Mayer-Kanye hybrid…
politrix aside. Wale is my favorite rapper since say 06. BUT I am disappointed in the album. but i guess i can only expect so much when you get on a major. I’ve also heard he does have a wild ego now, but then again, he gave me and the homie dap at his show. so the fan boy in me will let him live
Impressive analysis by Ambassador; I respect DP’s taste (ll) like the essence of crabmeats themselves but so far haven’t given Wale any attention; I’m more tempted to check out K’Naan based on his guest spot on Buckshot & KRS-One, tho’ he’s more a Wyclef type it seems?
re: Cormega, haven’t heard the new one yet but any ya’ll try to fux with AZ over the years? Talk about one flow…
Cudi is just not an interest of mine, at all, tho’ I appreciate whatever help did with Yeezy on “808s”– whose advocacy by DP helped me appreciate more, tho’ check those SERIOUS Michael Jackson ripoffs (homages?) in the videos.
Still, ANYTHING with fucking Common on it any way is highly suspect (as dogshit, not (ll)) so… maybe I’ll catch up someday, maybe not.
So if I’m hearing you right you fux with the more gravely voiced rappers like Ja-Rule and such.
^^
Nah, gotta have lyrics to go along with a unique voice. Example Jada, Busta, Nas, and DMX just to name a few MCs that held down Hip Hop since they entered the game. Made an impact right away. Made me want to listen to what they have to say.
Prodigy needs to come home and throw a tv at these niggas…
You wouldn’t put Blu over Wale?
hey jredmond, I’m a WOMAN, get it right, asstwat.
it’s one thing to have battle rap braggadocio. it’s another to constantly yap about havin the capitol of the nation on your back in AND outta raps, yet look like a pigeon tried to nest on your dome. sneakers don’t make up for that shit homie. plus he has, on more than one occasion, made an ass out of himself in interviews or after them.
my favorite Wale moments are his creative ones. I’m talking gogo or Baltimore club-influenced. “Elevators” goes hard and any straight man out there should enjoy “Ice Cream” when it’s done live.
…but then again, forget Wale, just give me UCB.
….actually fuck it all Blitz the Ambassador is runnin that live band rap shit. Now THAT’S a guy I can share my name with.
With alot of these (top) rappers getting 1 year terms in the pen, My prediction is that the whole sound of mainstream rap will change. Finger-snapping jams will fade away slowly if that whole west coast jerk stuff fails, and we my see a hip-hop scene similar to the golden age. It’ll be interesting to see how some of the jailed rappers will adapt when they get out.
JAY ELECTRONICA. (The only thing that matters to me.)
Shouts to Wale though, get your shine playboy and thanks again for casting the god in your video.
Truth, D.
Why I fux with Wale is because his shit is multidimensional in the same way that some of the greats are. On a purely topical level, not even addressing stylistics – because that is every man & woman for him/her-self – he keeps switching it up. CuDi and Roth – not to talk about Gunz (who i would say has the best spit game [||] on a technical level, i like young head’s abilities) and some of the others – aren’t seeing Wale in terms of the breadth of what he will touch on.
I don’t even fux with his discography like that, and just from the mixtape about nothin and that first tape he dropped a couple years back, i see a lot of potential in Oluwale to be a great griot. That said, ambassador’s right… sonn gotta keep his head straight and not let his own hype carry him away. He could be what’s hot for 2009-2010, or he could be a lifer in the game. His choice.
wale lost me on the BET Cypher. amongst his peers he mumbled and hid in his hoodie like “Rabbit”. im glad these internets are free because i would have been mad if i spent any $$$ on his music. you posted the only three cuts i liked. the biggest challenge he and all the freshman is their second relaese. i think CuDi has the best chance because he’s laid a storied foundation. like big with “ready” you see the beginning and the “nite terrors” so on the next disk he can explain how fame, money,and success either changed his life for the better or makes his pain that much worse.
do your thing though Wale. you definately rap better than me but you cant get with me in the window and door game. deuces
no h8 at all, just no concern………………… I’m a ol head tho’ so I like to listen to cats who are real wit it off the mic too…..met Wally in Atl, he’s a cornball……….Gucci Mane>>>>>
I think the album is dope. As for the features there are too many however, the majority of them are singing hooks and the features work and don’t seemed force. Even the Gucci feature doesn’t seem forced as that was a straight label move. Being on a major label an artist has to sacrifice some to reach their goal….Gucci was that sacrfice and the features are that sacrifice as well. As I said before the features work and he made them work. Gotta remember major label is about making money so they gonna put things in place to recoup their money. The O.G. “Pretty Girls” is only him.
Guru has rapped the same way for almost 20 years…not a problem why is it for Wale, Mega, AZ, etc? Not comparing skill just presentation.
I don’t find his cockiness a problem at all….this is a sport where you as the participant has to have confidence in self to succeed right? No issue for me.
I’m from Md (not in the technical “DMV area,” but close enough to the city) and he bigs up DC, PG, Mo. County, etc all the time. He has taken UCB on tour with him. Weensey (BYB) is on his third single. That isn’t big? I can’t recall any other DC artist doing that…even the so called “real hip hop artist” in the area.
UCB is great, but they aren’t the headliner he is. They shouldn’t get any shine. The shine they are getting is playing on the VMA’s (that he at least mentioned them), taking them on tour with Jigga and his own little tour this past summer.
I could go on, but the dude is young and trying to find his way around in these shark waters called the music business. Thus far he has a B+ for me….negatives and all.
ohh your a woman. no wonder you have poor tastes
Cudi’s album is nice. I finally settled into it and it’s really dope to me. My people aren’t feeling it but oh well. Wale though? BOOOORING!
I have to rail on the complaints everybody is issuing about the push that Wale gets from being under Ronson’s mentorship. Is there another artist that isn’t being looked at or considered enough because Wale is being pushed? People speak as though Wale’s promotion thru the music biz is somehow cutting off the lights from shining on the next Rakim or NaS. It isn’t that serious. Mark Ronson isn’t a dummy either. He brought you Amy Winehouse. She is the one that got her own situation all fuxed the fux up.
Also Wale’s sports metaphors trump Lil Wayne’s. As a CT resident, that line in the BET cypher about pushing a black Yukon/UConn coupled with a Khalid El-Amin reference put a smile on my face.
“Wale is clearly the most talented rhymesayer from the XXL freshmen ‘08 class.”
Blu >> Wale
listen Below The Heavens
Fuck that, listen to Johnson&Jonson
EGC,
I forgot Blu was on that cover. BelowThe Heavens dropped before that mag was issued too. Notwithstanding Blu’s skills Wale is as proficient as him if not as prolific.
EncyclopediaBlack,
I see that you caught those Air Maxims @ Goliath. Dope. Wale had a line on the Mixtape About Nothing that endeared me to him immediately [ll]. Son said this shit about the Nets not being able to put in work even tho’ they had 2 carters and how they were losing the kid(d) like a miscarriage. That shit was brilliant. Boy got his SportsCenter game on proper
Whoa, ambassador hatin wale? She put me on to wale in the first place a coupla yrs ago. no shots amanda, just surprised
ima wale fan but was dissapointed with the album. wont stop me from checkin out his future realeases tho
and was gonna say somethin bout blu bein the best from that freshman list, but got beat to the punch
Yo jredmond…that’s all you could come back with? Step your insult game up and get back to me. I thought the dp.com commenters came a little harder with their shots. Is that a pauseworthy statement?
And rob, that’s another thing. I’ma keep my mouth shut on specifics but just ask yourself the possible ‘why????’s of that scenario. Besides the fact that there came a point when my hype and free publicity of the guy was no longer needed because more powerful entities were doing a sufficient job.
Times have changed.
PS – was leaving NYC tonight when Peter Rosenberg’s show came on Hot 97. He played that Wale and Bun B joint “mirrors”. How the fuck does a New York Jewish man play a joint like that and yet Wale won’t ever get love like that in the foreseeable future on the radio in his own hometown except from MAYBE DJ Alizay on a rare occasion??? I swear, NYC must love this guy more than DC does. Or there’s some kinda behind the scenes connect. Wasn’t Rosenberg the same one to play that Mambo Sauce single up there, too?
What we REALLY need to be worried about when it comes to DC is how Angel Lola Luv’s ass is so large, and her waist is so small. Is it the tap water? Was she collecting the mutant snakehead killer fish from the nasty ass potomac and grilling them in her backyard as a diet? Implants? Or like…you know, worry about politics and running the nation and shit.
AND ONE MORE THING!!!! Why is there not more ‘conscious’ rap coming from the area? I’ve looked for it, for real. We are the epicenter not only of national politics but in many cases global politics as well. Our police force is crooked as shit. Crime rate? Check. Highest HIV rate in the nation? Yup, it’s ours. Yet all most of these young fucks wanna rap about is their sneakers (no shots to the sneaker fiends here) and worst of all they’re all starting to sound like Wale to me when they rap.
Wale is good but he can only go so far he is hella one dimensional and after a while witty sports metaphors get boring after I say all the features he has on his album I think I’ll pass on buying it on another note is Lupe’s album def coming out in December Imma be the first person in the UK to cop that
@ Ambassador Angel waist to ass ratio is not the problem it’s those skinny ass table legs! I’m a native to the “DMV” (I hate that saying) and I work in one of the last music stores left here, think of the most popular one that’s been around a while and I work there. The sales for “Attention” has been very good but the customer reviews have been “meh”, but it’s still good to see people support him especially being that this is (Insert your favorite crappy southern rapper) country. Go-Go goes without saying.
Me personally I like the album I could do without so many features but overall it’s a good listen. I’ve met Wale on a couple of ocassions when he came to buy CDs he came off as being humble, but I’m sure that can change quick. Honestly though there’s not many local rappers pushing themselves like they used to, and I’ve been managing music stores for a good 13 years now.
Wale is definitely one of the best out of that whole XXL freshman class…but then again that’s not sayin’ much. I think “Attention Deficit” is a very solid 1st album. But I agree with everybody that says he could’ve done without so many features.
Btw, check out “Beautiful Bliss”…unfortunately for Wale, J. Cole had the best verse on the whole album.
I’ll keep my opinion about Mr. Folarin to myself, but I will say there more people who have bought into his “image” moreso than his “artistry”.
He knows it, his streetwear obsessed team knows it, and his label gets it.
Hence why he shipped so little, Interscope is taking temperatures.
Im from DC noone here Fux wit dude he is wack and he aint from DC he from the burbs in MD so he is looked at as a poser
^^^Shut up.