Long before Wale Folarin was a rapper, he was a lead chanter in a go-go band in Washington, DC. The lead chanter’s role is to be a half-singer/half-rapper and constant entertainer, the man responsible for providing a vocal guide into the percussion-driven band’s soulful groove. On latest album The Album About Nothing, in providing the guide to understanding the worlds of superstar comedian Jerry Seinfeld and that of his own superstar rap career, he’s using those well-honed go-go learned skills, but falls short of providing content that allows him to uniquely (and best) use them connect with a now much larger audience.
Similar to the 2010-released mixtape More About Nothing upon which this album is based, this is a thematically powerful release. However, unlike the aforementioned mixtape, this album is oftentimes underwhelming in its songwriting and production, lessening the potentially truly next level impact of the cross-racial and cross-cultural conversation-as-concept.
On last release The Gifted, Folarin coined the term “new black soul” for his sound on Marvin Gaye-style ballad “LoveHateThing.” This album is best when Wale remembers that classic R & B-style musical comfort zone that he created for himself. When he abandons it for trap or gets too close to a similar space in palatably soul-filled rap occupied by Drake, his message loses some of it’s unique effectiveness, much to the detriment of the album.
Given that Drake has released If You’re Reading This It’s Too Late, Pro Reese’s production sampling New Edition’s 1987 hit single “If It Isn’t Love” on trap break-driven and “chopped, not slopped,” “The One Time In Houston” sounds eerily similar in theory to both PartyNextDoor and Noah “40” Shebib’s work with Ginuwine’s 1999 hit “So Anxious” on Drake’s “Legend” and “Madonna,” respectively.
Wale’s laid back vibe over tracks like “EDM”-flavored trap anthem “The Girls on Drugs” doesn’t necessarily impress either. An energetic pop track that samples Janet Jackson’s 1998 dance-flavored single “Go Deep,” the laid back verses don’t impart a similar energy, neither do they work in balance with the production to create a unique vibe. Instead of a Juicy J-style turnup, we’re left with the aural equivalent of a boy and girl separated by air and opportunity doing a two-step slow groove at a middle school dance.
As a rapper, Wale’s approaching the point of being a dependably great lyricist who enjoys using his adeptness at wordplay to uniquely make a point. Combining that stellar skill of Wale’s with the ability of Jerry Seinfeld to relate a joke allows for truly inspired moments like the well-sequenced trio of tracks “The Helium Balloon,” “The White Shoes” and J. Cole-featuring track, “The Pessimist.”
Taking Seinfeld’s comparison of Folarin-as-emcee to a helium balloon and his fans as followers being uplifted via Wale’s talents by holding onto a metaphorical string, “The Helium Balloon” extrapolates into a well-delivered performance. As well, “The White Shoes” is a great conversation about the notion of pride in one’s self in urban communities, while “The Pessimist” is Wale’s response-as-collaboration to many of the issues regarding race and culture discussed on J.Cole’s stellar 2014 Forest Hills Drive.
The best showcase of Wale’s best talents as a soulful chanter who occasionally raps occurs not on milquetoast radio singles “The Body” (featuring Jeremih) and “The Matrimony” (featuring Usher), which feel tacked on haphazardly to the end of the release. Rather, in a style mirroring “Bad,” The Gifted’s underrated radio hit duet with Tiara Thomas (or Rihanna, depending on the version you enjoy), it’s the Musiq Soulchild’s “Just Friends” hook-aping ballad “The Need To Know” that shines. Wale’s “new black soul” is a lovelorn intellectual, much the same as the “old black soul” that his talents best mirror, that of fellow DC-area native Marvin Gaye. SZA appears here and performs admirably as a Tammi Terrell-type collaborator much to this song’s benefit.
On The Album About Nothing, Wale audaciously attempted to once again create poignant social commentary via combining his takes on his existence with those of Jerry Seinfeld doing the same. When Wale showcases his growth in being able to link his classic skillset with modern content, the album unequivocally succeeds. However, in attempting to placate current mainstream tastes, he falls short of the album being the unique and iconic success of the mixtape that truly launched his career to another level five years ago.
3? Are you kidding me??? I’m not saying this is a classic or anything but 3??? I’m losing respect for these reviews
I listened to the album all the way through to “The Matrimony” just because I’ve heard the last two tracks on radio multiple times, but I give this album a solid 4 stars. It was way better than “The Gifted” even though that album was also good.
3.5
Better than the new Kendrick…FOH 3 stars
You wish it was better than Kendrick, even Wale made a BS comment about wanting respect, as much as Kendrick gets. GTFOH
3 stars …. That’s not right. Yo HiphopDx I think Marcus Dowling was not the right choice to review this album.
Listen, More about nothing atleast the first 9 tracks were the best mixtape tracks i’ve ever heard put together as a project. its hard to top that, and i dont think he was trying to do that. He was coming off of a failed debut attention deficit and feeling lots of emotion and anger and more importantly HUNGER. “This is a product of my skills, and i fear that my fans say i failed”. Wale did not fail with The album about nothing. I enjoyed it thoroughly and the first 5-6 tracks are SUPERB. Need to know is fantastic and the middle finger is the track i frequently go back to. Let em talk.
3 stars tho!?
This is definitely higher than 3 stars. The review is just complete BS, looks like a facebook status review.
You know, HHDX, your reviews don’t need to be the first to be posted. This review sounds like someone said: “Hey Marcus, review this, it dropped yesterday. Here’s the template we use for album reviews, make sure this gets posted ASAP.” I find it difficult to believe the review gave this album more than one full listen.
This album isn’t a classic, but after a few listens I can easily call it a 4-star project.
All I want is these sites to really start putting some thought into their reviews and really give it a fair shake. No need to be pre-occupied with being the first to post your review.
haha damn right this album is on some fluffy butterfly suss shit.. Wacker than Big sean’s album. how the hell can you achieve that bruh? LOL
Best Album of 2015 so far
1. Tetsuo & Youth
2. To pimp a butterfly
3. the hell with it..same ol same format no standing albums fuck that
honorable mentions mr wonderful by action bronson actually refreshing to hear dope but not groundbreaking..
Botched this review a little bit. This is probably Wale’s least commercial release yet, and that didn’t turn out to be bad. Doesn’t at all sound like that’s what he was going for either. More cohesive, the album’s concept worked throughout, same introspection we’ve come to know, wordplay still on point…I hope he gets more love than this.
look this album deserves at least a “4” and thats not dick riding HHDX thats being around for the last few years and seeing this guys improvement over time
I’m going to have to fully disagree with you guys on this one. I feel like yall have been giving away 4 stars lately and was sure that this one was going to atleast fit the same bill. Starting to feel like hiphopdx is giving albums the complex feel by rating albums base off of a tie in or a rappers reputation. Bases off of theme and wordplay alone this album should have gotten the 4 star treatment. Love the Earl, Bronson, and Big Sean but if your saying that this album isn’t on the same level you need to stop doing album reviews.
he’s bugging
Not even a 4??? Everybody hates on wale for no reason smh
Bullshit review. Get off that Kendrick Dick and open your ears HHDX
a 3? This album was great. Easily a 4. This review seemed rushed. Just because its a sequel to more about nothing doesn’t mean the content has to be the same, the dude is older and has experienced other things, let him be who he wants to be. damn
Check this album out on youtube, he posted all tracks, if you dig it buy it.
i enjoy reading DX reviews, but I don’t take them seriously..
Were we listening to the same album, HHDX?
Wale is dope, and HHDX fucks up another review -> 5 Stars
Best album after tetsuo and youth
yup
DX got this one wrong
That the april’s fool rating?
This is Wale’s best album in my opinion, better than Attention Deficit, there is not one bad song in the whole album, ultimately a 4.5/5
DX, you guys got this one wrong, check Marcus and let him know he fucked up on this one
Got the game f*cked up, obliviously somebody deaf…
Album is better than some so called classics.
Agree with the consensus. This album is better than a 3
I agree with the DX rating. Was looking forward to this shit too because the OG mixtape was fire and Festivus wasn’t bad. I thought Wale was finally going to earn some space on my playlist with this one but I don’t have enough gigs on my phone for mediocrity. FOH with this average ass shit…
***Goes back to listening to the abundance of dope shit that dropped this year like To Pimp A Butterfly, Mr Wonderful, I Don’t Like Shit I Don’t Go Outside, Dark Sky Paradise, Pronto, If Youre Reading This Its Too Late, BHP II: NAACP, Tetsuo & Youth, Sorry 4 Tha Wait 2, Sour Soul, etc****
Fuck DX man. They post all these editorials about Wale, as well as other articles about him, then turn around to give a shit rating. This album is by far his best piece of work. So sick of the staff here not taking the time with albums.
I didn’t listen to the album yet, but I already see one flaw you messed up in actually understanding. The Girls On Drugs is supposed to represent Wale being on drugs with silly girls hence the downward drag style and proclamation of “man these niggas ain’t serious”….SMH you’re supposed to analyze and then judge, not misinterpret and complain.
As someone who used to be a fan of this dude, you niggas need to stop acting like hes come through with some next level shit, this was definitely a 3. This nigga fell off after his first album lmao the mixtape “The Mixtape About Nothing” is way better than this and so is “More About Nothing”. He’s real hard to like as a person too, nigga raps like hes a baller then publicly embarrases himself in the all star game…and he acts like everyone owes him some sort of respect like hes the best in the rap game but he really an emotional ass hoe. Called up complex threatening to fuck them up cuz they aint put The Gifted in the top 50 albums list… Idk the past 4 years this niggas been takin nothin but Ls
The Mixtape about Nothing was released in 2008, not 2010! Fix that! How are we supposed to take your reviews seriously when you clearly don’t know squat about the artists you are reviewing? This reviewer should be fired. How do you not know when one of the most celebrated hip-hop mixtapes over last 10 years was released? Pathetic.
3 stars is ridiculous, not saying it’s better, but I enjoyed it more than TPAB
So, DX,…Mike Jones’ last mixtape got a 3.5 and this gets a 3. Let that sink in you fools.
FOH DX.
These guys don’t research shit. This tape is not based on More About Nothing, this tape and More About Nothing are based on his 08 project, The Mixtape About Nothing.
This review is terrible.
DX YALL SOME HATIN ASS BTICHES FUCK THIS SITE
Way better than a 3, with this and Luda (and I’m not even a Luda fan) these reviews are skewed lately.
great album. ya some sheep
sheep
4.3?? how
5
too good
this is out of 5 not 10. cus it is a ten
dw
Not even a Wale fan like that but this album is dope. DX writers are lame
It should be 5.0
Y’all sum fuck boys, fuck whoever wrote this review, y’all hire anyone I see smh
Just heard the album and I think this is a great album, i might actually like this album better than J. Cole’s album but I can’t believe the review this album receieved. I honestly feel like ppl just don’t like Wale. I mean just the album for what it is….it’s truly a great album.
They give Kendrick a 5 rating and I thought that album was nowhere close to a 5 rating but you give Wale on the new album which is great a 3 rating, I’m shocked. Wale got a weird rapping style to me but the sound, all the songs flowed together, this was a great album man, this guy should be fired for real for writing this review…I mean everyone has an opinion but you’d think the writer’s of HipHopDX had an ear for good music. This is really sad, I was shocked when K. dot got 5 star, I’m even more shocked by this review.
Ass
great album
I’m not sure if I am completely off base but it seems Wale is paying the price for his infamous call to Complex’s offices a few years back. This is easily the best album he’s put together but the critics are panning it as being as being generic and unimaginative. I don’t get it. One night in Houston aside every track sidetracks current trends but more importantly is extremely well executed.
Lyrically he is right on point (as usual). His content is not contrived but is reflective of his current mind state. In other words he spits the truth. The beats are expertly chosen. They harken to the late 90s early 00s and are perfectly complimented by choruses that interpolate 90s R&B hits. Finally there is the interplay with Seinfeld who gives DJ Drama a run for his money without even trying.
The cliché is how personal the album is but I think it is the ambition that stands out to me. Sonically, lyrically makes this his most serious album to date. The tracks can stand on their own from Middle Finger to Matrimony and back to Glass Egg everything is single ready (the two radio joints are criminally underrated) but together they make the album about nothing an album about something
The Mixtape About Nothing was released in 2008, not 2010. Fix that. This website has no credibility. Clearly the reviewer doesn’t know shit about Wale or hip-hop.
ALBUM ABOUT NOTHING ’08, MORE ABOUT NOTHING ’10
Just read Wale crying about wanting some respect, HA! Wack as hell
Complete
Comeplete
Wale is super underrated. I like “TAAN”. It’s personal and relatable to the listener. The whole project is different from Wale’s past work which is a reason why most won’t like it. The sound and feel are different, people should appreciate that.
A three?
SHOULDA GAVE THIS GARBAGE A TWO FOH
This album is dope…flows really well, the seinfeld stuff actually works well it doesn’t feel forced. Beats on point, subject matter solid and we see some progression (From “she don’t love you” strippers, to “we can hook up and hang out” to “The Matrimony”). I give it a 4 or 4.5 out of 5.
Action Bronson debut got a 4.0.
It was a decent album, but this Wale album should be given the same rating if not better.
Seems like someone needs to second rate these reviews – not a reliable rating.
Co-Sign.
ELABORATE APRIL FOOLS JOKE! GIVE THE MAN A 4.5 !!! JOKES OVER !!!
If you put everything aside about how you don’t like Wale for whatever reason and just take the album for what it is, its straight fire!!!! lyrically he’s one of the best and the production was great. If Kendrick or j.Cole put this out, everyone would be on their nuts.
about.me/marcuskdowling
I’m a Wale fan, and on one listen alone I could say this was his worst album. So bad that this might be the first album of his that I don’t buy.
The reviewer is right: there’s nothing on this album that really stands out besides the Seinfeld commentary transitions. It’s…pretty boring.
We can all agree now that MMG killed Wale’s career.
Are u crazy????? This album is exactly who wale is and I personally, will be buying multiple copies. Its pretty amazing, guess we can’t all agree after all.
I am in love with this album. Another classic, kudos Wale. Loving Seinfield.
It’s aight. It didn’t give me the feeling of old Wale and it’s not showing the him as a whole. Wale is hiding something about him, but overall, it’s an OK album.
Wale’s best album. Really enjoyed this
DIfferent, but by far his best work yet
i like the idea, i really like it good album
The best thus far can’t wait for more
This album is good I like it, it’s different and refreshing
i’m not a wale fan, but this album is pretty surprising – in good terms
LOL…..OTF
The album stands on its own. You can tell and feel that this is Wale greatest work he has put out by far. Divulging deep into his personal life and trouble of the world. Easily competes with the likes of Kendrick, Cole, and Sean. Overall the album is refreshing.
wasnt feeling this album at first but I think its actually good. 4/5
This album is a perfect reflection of wale, in the sense that sometimes its hard to listen to and understand,but when you finally do,you find a daimond of a rapper.
The production is not actually bad and how I like how Wale is truly able to shine on his own without many trappy features from MMG. The story telling is average, and Wale seems way to relaxed to deliver a solid album. With that being said I dont its a letdown like many pple say it is.It is just average.
Some of the other albums you have rated as a 3 you’re telling me this falls into the same band …-_-…
It looks like the media actually want a reaction from Wale after the complex event so they will mark him down on anything he does.
HipHopDx do your job properly !!!
This is easily the best album he’s put together but the critics are panning it as being as being generic and unimaginative. I don’t get it. One night in Houston aside every track sidetracks current trends but more importantly is extremely well executed. Lyrically he is right on point (as usual). His content is not contrived but is reflective of his current mind state. In other words he spits the truth. The beats are expertly chosen. They harken to the late 90s early 00s and are perfectly complimented by choruses that interpolate 90s R&B hits. Finally there is the interplay with Seinfeld who gives DJ Drama a run for his money without even trying. The cliché is how personal the album is but I think it is the ambition that stands out to me. Sonically, lyrically makes this his most serious album to date. The tracks can stand on their own from Middle Finger to Matrimony and back to Glass Egg everything is single ready (the two radio joints are criminally underrated) but together they make the album about nothing an album about something
This album is below average
The album is touchy
the beats on this were dope he has beautiful smooth feeling with something ican groove with and lyrically is wale being wale. Then with Jerry and the Seinfeld feel back
im convinced….
either you all have something personal against wale or you just dont understand his music specifically.
this album should not have received such a low rating.
like be real this album is indeed a strong 4
Take it as a compliment. This is the same website that gave Young Thug’s Barter VI, 4 stars.
Its definitely worth a listen. Production was good and the subject matter was relatable.
i really liked this album. really put me on to wale. the pessimist was fire along with girls on drugs
I’ve never been a big fan of Wale, but I could ride to his albums…production was on point, but as a rapper he’s neither bad or good, he just doesnt stand out. With that said, some of the songs on here were fire (girls on drugs, the bloom )
f this MMG bullshit
Probably Wale’s best album so far. That 3 rating is disresoectful
This reviewer is bugging and I’m not even a Wale fan like that. This is probably my favorite album after Lupe’s.
wow i am really starting the believe that these sites and blogs have it out for Wale…they actually have Barter 6 rated better than this you cant be serious
biggest cornball in rap signed to the biggest fraud
Swag
Wale album is fire start to finish
This album is fvcking fire!! Best Hip hop album this year handsdown.
hhdx you be doing some bogus reviews. in this review, you want to cal j.cole’s album stellar, but when it came out, it didn’t get a stellar review. also justin and whoever that other chick is was hating hard. i think you’d have to know what he was trying to accomplish with this album before you can give it a real review.
Yawn
3/5….very average album sorry Wale
This album is #fuego. Tied for the best album of the year. I’m not even a Wale fan.
Bater 6 is better? GTFOH
I read all the comments and i bet everthing that its probably 2 or 3 people leaving the same positive comments about this album review. Its probably wale pr team trying to save face lol. I think wale album gets a 2/5 rating to be honest. Its maybe 3 songs that stand out to be good on the album. The replay value of the album is nonexistant. Wale is doing too much crooning/trying to sing like his boy jcole on this album which i think makes the album noncreative. I think wale is a pretty good rapper but a weak crooner/singer. The subject matter/ and content is not that good as well. thats just my 2 cent
This album is nice, there is always a room for improvement.
Now, one of the services you provide is giving them something to talk about. let ’em talk. it makes ’em happy, it makes ’em feel good. they don’t believe half the shit they say. people wanna talk. yeah, it’s fun to talk #wale is the head of the meat that’ll not lost in the soup!! Fuck’ll wale haters
#Moonz
A year later and this album still bangs. 0 replay value my ass.