It's been a long time coming for Olubowale Victor Folarin. The DMV emcee, better known by his stage name Wale (pronounced wah-lay), has been releasing classic free mixtapes since 2006, including three of my favorites, 100 Miles & Running, The Mixtape About Nothing (an ode to Wale's favorite show, Seinfeld), and Back To the Feature (a mixtape which, as the name implies, features guest apearances on each and every track...Wale manages to outshine an impressive list of artists that includes Talib Kweli, Black Thought, J. Cole, and Royce Da 5'9"). Earlier this year, Wale joined J. Cole, Rihanna, and Melanie Fiona by signing a distribution deal with Jay-Z's Roc Nation. Wale's first album, Attention: Deficit drops in October.
Pay attention to Wale, he's one of the next big things in hip hop (and has been for a while) and is finally about to blow up. I've included the latest leak off of Attention: Deficit, "World Tour," as well as a couple of my favorite Wale tracks. On "W.A.L.E.D.A.N.C.E." Wale remakes Justice's "D.A.N.C.E." On "The Kramer," off of The Mixtape About Nothing, Wale uses Michael Richards' outburst to discuss race issues on this hard hitting track. "Rediscover Me" isn't Wale's best song, but it does bear witness to what I believe to be one of his best lines. By rhyming that Now I'm not the next Biggie, I'm not the next Jay/ I'm not the next Nas, I'm the first Wale, he acknowledges that all up and coming artists will be compared to the past greats, but the best he can do is to try and forge his own path. If you like what you hear, I definitely reccomend downloading Wale's mixtapes (link above) and copping Attention: Deficit come October.
"W.A.L.E.D.A.N.C.E."
"Rediscover Me"
"The Kramer"
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