![]() ![]() The people who knew him when he was just the shorty who had (and lost) a college football scholarship liked when he was the local boy who made good, then hated him when he made it “too good” and no longer made amusing mixtapes inspired by Seinfeld. ![]() He went from being Unsigned Hype in The Source to being a million dollar baller signed to Rick Ross’ imprint. rapper seems intimately aware of the impossibility of pleasing everybody. More than most artists who have risen to prominence in the short time Wale did, the D.C. The Rihanna remake tries to drown out the squeaking springs in the production, and it’s no longer a rough shot of whiskey – it’s now a froo froo drink. The original version was a charmingly rough song – a squeaking bed for a beat, Wale’s crass sexuality and odes to “oceans between legs,” and the husky voiced Thomas sounding just like a bad girlfriend you’d still want to take to bed after a fun night at the bar. The fact he had MexManny remix “Bad” and replace Tiara Thomas with Rihanna only increased those concerns. I would just as soon refer to Jay Soul’s “Ambition” reviewas a starting point because it addresses my biggest concern about Wale as an artist – whether or not he’s “fast food rap” that is quick and enjoyable but lacks the minerals and vitamins, irons and the niacins to be good for you. I know we tend to be self-referential on RR at times, but it’s almost impossible to review Wale’s “The Gifted” in a vacuum anyway.
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