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Wale Became the First Rapper to Open the State of the Union Last Night

He also snapped some selfies with rather important people.

President Obama gave his final State of the Union Address last night (January 13) and prior to the speech, Wale made history in his own right.

The D.C. rapper became the first hip hop artist to open the State of the Union. He performed tracks like “Chillin’” and “LoveHate Thing” in what looked like a jumping pre-game event.

He also took a selfie with the vice president's wife, Jill Biden.

During Barack Obama’s final State of the Union, he proclaimed the United States “the most powerful nation on Earth, period,” and pushed back against detractors (presumably Donald Trump) who claim his presidency was a disaster for the economy, saying they are “peddling fiction.”

Just yesterday, Kendrick Lamar revealed via his “pay it forward” video that he met with President Obama in the White House and discussed “topics concerning the inner cities, the problem, the solutions,” and ways everyone can start “embracing the youth.”

2016 is already starting to look better than 2015 for hip hop in politics, and we’re loving it.

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(Photos from left: Charley Gallay/Getty Images for Revolt TV, Evan Vucci - Pool/Getty Images)

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