Attention Deficit (Advisory)

The next generation of hip-hop is here and they are coming at music listeners full-force! There is Drake and Kid Cudi, and then there is someone I can directly relate to: an artist by the name of Wale Folarin. I relate to him so much because we are the same age and from the same place. A place that has for so long struggled to get our talent recognized and respected, namely by the hip hop community. Ginuwine, Mya, Raheem DeVaughn and Toni Braxton all hail from our area, but what do they have in common? They are singers. But Wale is finally giving Washington DC, Maryland and Virginia the chance to show that we are immensely talented just as rappers from New York, California and Florida are. We always knew it, but did the nation? Well, if you don't know, now you know. Ladies and gentlemen, Wale!

"Attention Deficit" is the debut album. "Chillin'" is the first single, which features the super-talent Lady Gaga. "Chillin'" is one of those tracks that is very easy to like because of its infectious hook and great beat. Wale raps over the song with great one-liners effortlessly. This song was given a good amount of airplay, but it's just a small sample of his capabilities. For Wale at his best, listen to this entire album, and also pick up his mixtape, "A Mixtape About Nothing." The beats on this album are innovative, but they are undeniably hip-hop. Features include Bun B, Chrisette Michele and Melonie Fiona. The song which features Chrisette, "Shades", is profound. So profound that it will have to sitting in a corner picking apart each line. The song is about the insecurities of a dark-skinned person and how lighter people seemingly have it easier. "World Tour" is another highlight and this is where Jazmine Sullivan lends her talent. The two talents do a fine job with this collaboration.

It's funny, yet ironic, how the legendary Jay-Z noticed Wale's talent and asked him to open for him on tour and they both released albums this year. If you loved Jay-Z's album, "Blueprint 3", give Wale a chance because he's a budding talent who wants your attention, just as his album title suggests.

Mikeisha's Top 5

1. "Chillin'"
2. "World Tour"
3. "Shades"
4. "Beautiful Bliss"
5. "Pretty Girls"

There is NO doubt in my mind that in "Attention: Deficit," Wale has crafted one of the standout hip hop albums (not mixtapes) of 2009. Though there are a few songs that I can't fully get behind, I think that from start to finish, this is an album worthy of your listening time that will age well as you take the time to get to the bottom of Wale's rhymes.

In the grand scale of hip hop, I'd place Wale as slightly left of center -- he's no Lupe Fiasco rapper-turned-indiebloghero, but at the same time, he's eons more thoughtful than anything you'll hear on the radio (no Soulja Boy). His rhymes and topics are more self-aware and socially conscious than most of the hip hop mainstream. His two biggest mixtapes were a Seinfeld-themed and -sampling lament of the state of hip hop and a mixtape heralding the art of the feature, with producing throughout to one of hip hop's god producers, 9th Wonder (also left of mainstream).

However, Wale eschewed his progressive approach for "Attention: Deficit," which he claimed at the time would be a parable of the state of today's unfocused rap and disjointed rap albums. (I see this as an excuse to put out an album just like those, but whatever.) In any event, in paralleling the rap album (club song, love song, thug song, etc.) he creates songs that I spin infinitely more than any of these typical songs. Contrary to Pitchfork's decrying of "Attention: Deficit" as an album that gives us no sense of Wale the artist or Wale's true style, I enjoy A:D for being superior at whatever it tries to do.

The one low point, for me: the cut-and-paste Neptunes joint "Let It Loose" featuring Pharrell is NOT good at all. It's not 2003 anymore, but rappers still think that having the Neptunes on is some kind of obligation that needs to be filled for success. It's a total waste.

The two absolute standout tracks (that you MUST listen to if you have any kind of love at all for hip hop) are "Beautiful Bliss" and "TV in the Radio," Wale's pairings with Melanie Fiona & J.Cole and K'naan, respectively. The former is a triumphant song about feeling good about life, featuring a Fiona chorus and a positively standout verse from "next big thing" J.Cole; the latter features esoteric, wild production from the guitarist of hipster band TV on the Radio and awesome verses from Wale. When I'm in my 40s in 2029, and I think back two decades to 2009, these are the songs that I will remember (and probably still be bumping), and "A:D" is an album that I will think about.

When Wale dropped on the 10th, I expected a modest (but not stellar) first week SoundScan - after all, Wale's something of a Twitter icon, and he does have the internet buzz - but when I heard that he shipped 28,000 (albeit due to a label f***up) it was depressing and (like everything else) made me doubt the future of rap. This album is good. It deserves a listen. And, if you're like me, it deserves a purchase.

Till the casket drops.

This is a GREAT hip hop album. Lyrics are just amazing. Only problem I had to buy the album off Amazon b/c no store in Baton Rouge, La had the cd. Best Buy, Target or FYE. Great great album If your a hip hop fan this is a must have

› Go to Amazon.com to see all 36 reviews  4.4 out of 5 stars