Hip-hop artist Wale brings his D.C.-grown music to the Orpheum stage Monday. The show, the second stop on his Ambition tour, will also feature artist Black Cobain. Best known for the singles “Chillin'” and “Pretty Girls” off his first album, Attention Deficit (2009), and more recently for “Bad Girls Club” featuring J. Cole, Wale’s sophomore album Ambition comes out Nov. 1.
Ambition, Wale said, is “kind of a synopsis of just me, as a whole.” The rapper said he worked on it with “my heart, my mind, my soul,” the same elements he’s maintained in his work “since the day I dropped my first album.”
Wale is an artist known for integrating aspects of his personal history into the way he approaches his material and the music industry in general. “I’m just a product of my environment, he said. “I’m just a straight shooter.”
In terms of influences, Wale said he draws from “everything that I learned from D.C., from my international upbringing, from shows that I played at, from labels, from life, being hurt, all of that.”
Wale said he has always loved hip-hop, and it was his passion for the genre that motivated him to become involved as an artist. “If I love the sport, I love the game,” he said.
He cited a variety of artists and labels among his influences, including Jay-Z, No Limit, Cash Money, Elton John, Elvis and Michael Jackson.
A recent move to Rick Ross’ Maybach Music Group may signify a new step in his career. Although the move would seem to bring Wale’s career to a more corporate level, he doesn’t think his music has significantly changed. “It just got a whole lot more open. … I felt kinda like how I felt before … but now it’s a lot more personal, a lot more passionate,” he said.
“I love being in the music industry right now,” Wale continued. “There are a lot of people trying to find their way in … [to get to the] next step in their career.”
Black Cobain, who will open for Wale, is a native of Virginia, not too far from Wale’s Washington, D.C., hometown. He has collaborated with several well-known hip-hop artists, including Wiz Khalifa, J. Holiday and Young Chris.
Wale said he decided to tour with Black Cobain “because he’s a good friend of mine. … I believe in what he has to say.” He also mentioned that Cobain’s career reminds him of his own. Black Cobain’s personal mantra, “How can you dream big and have little ambition?” seems to bode well for a high-energy performance from both artists Monday night.
Wale is one of many artists in the hip-hop industry who creates and cultivates fans by releasing free mixtapes. His newest mixtape, The Eleven One Eleven Theory, includes appearances by Lloyd, J. Holiday and Black Cobain. Wale recognizes mixtapes “as one of the more necessary things going on in music right now … it’s free music, and I know a lot of college students don’t really have that much money, but they have all the Internet access in the world.”
Those college students who can find the cash for a ticket should expect an interactive and inclusive show, since Wale’s D.C. background is visible in his use of call and response in live performances. And in return, Wale said he expects a lot of energy from the crowd in Madison: “I hope everybody comes out: football team, basketball team, cheerleaders … everybody. I want everybody.”
Wale performs Oct.3 at The Orpheum, 216 State Street. Tickets are $16 plus fees online.
