You pronounce his name Wah-Lay! Born the son of Nigerian immigrants and raised in our nation’s capital ( Washington D.C. ), Wale was exposed to all sorts of music growing up that has helped to influence his unique sound. Twenty-six-year-old Wale Folarin first broke out and broke ground in 2005, appearing in the Source Magazine’s “Unsigned Hype” column – the same column that launched the careers of the Notorious B.I.G., Common and Mobb Deep. In 2007, after the independent release of his record “Good Girls”, world-renowned DJ and producer Mark Ronson signed Wale to his label Allido Records, which in turn led to the successful releases of his 2008 superlative Mixtape About Nothing and more recent Back To The Feature. All of his hard work would culminate later that year as Wale graced the cover of 2008’s XXL Magazine alongside Asher Roth, Kid Cudi and Charles Hamilton as part of the magazine’s prestigious yearly Freshman 10 feature.
After releasing his critically acclaimed debut album Attention Deficit in 2009 under Interscope Records, Wale has since found his niche signing with hip-hop superstar Rick Ross’ Maybach Music Group (MMG). In partnership with Warner Bros. Records, the release of MMG’s Self Made Vol. 1 compilation album debuted Top 5 on the Billboard chart and won Wale rave reviews as a force to be reckoned with in hip-hop. Now coming off the heels of a #2 Billboard Chart debut with the release of his sophomore project Ambition, Wale has definitely proven himself to be “a lyricist, a fly dude and someone that is going to make a really huge impact over the next few years.” – Rick Ross
