10 Things We Learned From Wale's Interview With The Breakfast Club
The DMV MC bares his soul about the industry.
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Wale Chills With The Breakfast Club - Wale checked in with The Breakfast Club this week and gave the skinny on his new album as well as a few changes in the industry that's he's spearheading. He dropped jewels and wished a bunch of people "the best." Check out 10 things we learned from his latest sit down with Angela Yee, DJ Envy and Charlamagne Tha God. — Michael Harris (@IceBlueVA)(Photo: 105.1 Breakfast Club via YouTube)
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Moving On - Wale recently jumped ship from Jay Z’s Roc Nation and has now signed with 77 Management Group, the same company that manages NBA star LeBron James. While it’s still love with him and Hov, Wale revealed it was time to move on from the company he's been with since when it was called S. Dot Enterprises. "For me, personally, they’re going into another direction. ... but I wish those guys the best."(Photos from Left: Johnny Louis/WENN.com, AP Photo/Steve Dykes)
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Don't Believe the Hype - It wasn't actually Mark Ronson who "discovered" Wale, it was a Lil Wayne co-sign that put him and his "Nike Boots" on the map. Wale explained, “We’re big boys now, so I can tell you the real story… Leah Rose from XXL actually called Rich Kleiman and told him you need to sign this kid, he’s hot…Rich Kleiman told Mark to sign me…[and he was still unsure]. Lil Wayne did the 'Nike Boots' remix and then [Mark got on board].”(Photos from left: Dave Hogan/Getty Images, Shareif Ziyadat/PictureGroup)
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Brotherly Love - A boss has more important issues to worry about. Wale stated that Rick Ross didn’t even acknowledge Meek Mill catching feelings on Twitter against his labelmate. As far as peacing it out with Meek and if they have since spoken, Wale added, “It’s hard to speak to Meek because he’s away right now, but I spoke to everyone in his set … It came out the blue … but you never know what somebody’s going through but I still love him. I wish nothing but the best for him.” (Photos from left: Bennett Raglin/BET/Getty Images for BET, John Ricard/BET)
Photo By Photos from left: Bennett Raglin/BET/Getty Images for BET
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Breathe In, Breathe Out - Not afraid to wear his insecurities on his sleeves, Wale admitted that he suffers from anxiety but doesn’t take medication for the inner turmoil. (Photo: Larry Busacca/Getty Images for the 2014 Tribeca Film Festival)
Photo By Larry Busacca/Getty Images for the 2014 Tribeca Film Festival
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Record Company People Are Shady - Leaks still continue to be a problem for artists. Wale insinuated that someone leaked his hit single “The Body” with Jeremih, which prevented it from having a huge marketing and promotional roll out. There's no album release date set yet, but he did add that he’s also been working with legendary producers Peter Rock and DJ Premier as well as R&B star Usher.(Photo: Jason Merritt/Getty Images For BET)
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More About The Album About Nothing - When asked how his relationship with famed comedian Jerry Seinfeld came about and how he got him to host his upcoming project, The Album About Nothing, Wale stated, “I keep it all the way funky with him and he keep it real with me. All people from all walks of life appreciate that. This is probably the richest dude I know and he’s sitting there chopping it up with us talking about life and we share a lot of the same similarities and that’s what the album is about. The album is essentially me and him talking in metaphors and we have all these conversations and I go in and write music that brings it all back.”(Photos from left: Moses Robinson/Getty Images for BET, Jemal Countess/Getty Images)
Photo By Photos: Moses Robinson/Getty Images for BET; Jemal Countess/Getty Images
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These Fans Is Loyal - "We’re doing something special in hip hop right now. Even Kendrick, he doesn’t care about the charts right now with this record ["i"]. … Make it a moment. Do it for the game. ... That’s what I’m doing with The Album About Nothing. I’m not chasing no charts, I’m just trying to have a moment in hip hop. Me, Drake, Kendrick, Cole… dropping records and saying, 'It’s on y'all.' F--k the charts. We gon' restructure the whole thing around how loyal their fans are and not how catchy their jingle and single is...” (Photos from left: John Ricard / BET, Rob Kim/Getty Images, Mike Coppola/Getty Images, Paul Morigi/WireImage)
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He Got Game - The D.C. representer revealed that he is a brand ambassador with the Washington Wizards. Making sure he didn’t catch any flack like his fellow emcee Drake, who is ambassador for the Toronto Raptors, Wale made it clear he has nothing to do with recruiting, though. “No sir, we touch the community and we stay away from all the personnel.” (Photo: Jason Kempin/Getty Images for BET)
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Who Stole the Soul? - Wale puts his heart into his music, so it hurts a little to see style constantly rewarded over substance. "I’m not no media darling. These white girls with the Top 40 Record, they’re not going to call Wale to do a song," he said. "They’re just not. And now that you got people like Iggy Azalea, they’re definitely not gon' call us [real hip hop artists]. And that’s not a knock on her, they just want what they know, what’s of them. We have to be in the trenches and go to Magnolia Projects and shoot a video. Some people just have a song written for them, record it, forget about it, do one call at a radio station and the record goes No. 1, so it is frustrating.” (Photo: Gary Miller/FilmMagic)
