This past Saturday night Wale performed a set at the University of Mary Washington in Fredericksburg, Virginia. The DC rapper was chosen by students of the university through an election process. The concert was held to celebrate the school’s homecoming but one high ranking official is feeling anything but pride. According to Fredericksburg.com, University President Rick Hurley received several complaints from students and neighbors about the outdoor Rap show. Though there were some objections to the noise the main grievance seemed to be with the content of Wale’s lyrics.
In a letter to the editor of The Free Lance-Star, the parent paper of Fredericksburg.com, Hurley had this to say, “Unfortunately, the Saturday evening performance proved to be disruptive to some of our adjacent neighborhoods. Not only was the music extremely loud, but the language contained in the lyrics was upsetting to those who would not choose to attend a concert of this nature. I am sorry that a high-spirited weekend on campus ended on such a negative note for some of our closest neighbors who were offended by both the volume and the content of the music. As a member of this community, I understand these concerns…While some university events are appropriate for an outdoor venue, this past Saturday evening’s concert would have better served our entire community being held indoors if such space had been available.”
Despite his clear distaste to what he is quoted as saying was “extreme profanity” the president has not ruled out further outdoor concerts “if,” he said, “there’s a crowd-friendly band like Train, maybe an outdoor concert would be appropriate.”
Wale’s most recent release was the “More About Nothing” mixtape which dropped in August.
