After getting dropped from Interscope Records following the less-than-anticipated sales of his debut Attention Deficit, Wale turned to Jay-Z for guidance on his follow-up effort Ambition. In a cover story for Billboard magazine, the Maybach Music Group signee recalled how Hov told him what he was missing with his debut and how he could turn his sophomore album into a success.
“Jay-Z, essentially, is my business adviser,” Wale says. “Him, [my manager] Rich [Kleinman] and [Roc Nation’s] John Meneilly. I know Jay has a personal place in his heart for Ambition. I remember one time I was on the phone with Jay, asking him, ‘What did I do [wrong]? What can I do differently?’ He was like, ‘Maybe you just didn’t come with that single. You made a solid first album. But you didn’t come up with that single.’ That just added fuel to my fire.”
He also spoke on his relentless grind and how Ambition, which bowed at number two on the charts, has inspired him to work even harder.
“[Rappers] used to take pride in being the best or becoming the best. Now they just talk about who has the most swag. But who wants to be the best?” he said. “Come to the table with your albums. I nailed it this time. I’ll keep busting my ass until . . . you’re going to have to respect me. I love hip-hop so much, and I’m really a humble dude. We’re all cocky inside our records-because that’s how rap is.”
Read the full story at Billboard.com.
RELATED: Wale Begins Recording Third Album
I can appreciate Wale’s grind but I just find him insanely boring..I don’t know what it is..His presence on the mic puts me to sleep although I heard his shows are crazy..I’ll continue to root for him though cause he seem genuine..
hes very boring , its his voice thats all , no emotion, same flow every song.
Agreed – boring ass nigga!!!
I was suprised he sold that well.
No hate. I wish him well.
Totally agree!
hmmm this was interesting
sounds like the generic response to me…..
wale is a bringing it but i want that the mixtape about nothing feeling.i think he lost that hunger to touch people
What the fuck is he talking about ? Attention Defecit was a Classic esp when you look at a Track like Beautiful Bliss Featuring My Nigga Cole !
album was sick
well god damn, how many “clients” must Jay have, lmao
almost every upcoming nigga on a decent label must be reaching to this dude
preach. and we wonder why he so cold to helping people out. he gotta take the blame when it go bad.
Wale seems to have a solid history with Jay so what he says is official. If I was working with Jay I wouldnt talk about nothing he said to me in private though. If he gotta worry about shit gettin leaked he gon bite his tongue.
Boring??? What He Supposed To Do? Yell “Hannh” Like The Ying Yang Twins? Do You Find Rakim and Big Daddy Kane Boring Too? I’m Not Comparing Wale To These 2 Legends But They Pretty Much Rapped In A The Same Tone Their Whole Career and Didn’t Show Any Emotion. Wale Does Show Emotion On A Few Records But He’s More Focused On The Lyrics…Other Than To Be Entertained Isn’t That What Most Listeners Want?
Same way I feel about Wale. I don’t dislike Ol boy but he’s just boring and corny to me. I could never look at him as a deep rapper. Much luck to him but it just seems llike he’s trying too hard to be cool
thats cuz most of his metaphors prolly fly over your head…he’s lyrically one of the best
Well, that’s an excellent fucking business advisor.
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