Whatever survived of the brain behind Mixtape About Nothing has been permanently atrophied by luxury and laziness If he wants to be taken as a serious artist like the ones he spends most of the record emulating, he’s going to have to start taking some real chances and get real far out of the box Wale continues to struggle to define himself, which proves even more difficult on a label dominated by broad caricatures While The Gifted is a solid and even enjoyable effort, Wale doesn’t end up sounding like he’s at the top, just at the top of DC Wale has lost many of the qualities that made people like him in the first place, but he's refined the elements that he's managed to retain Names like Just Blaze, Lee Majors, Cardiak, and No Credit supply the beats for this more mature/still flashy release, all of it adding up to Wale's win number three With no big time faux pas to be found,The Gifted is an extraordinary ‘gift’ to any hip-hop collection
As long as Stokley’s on board, I will be too.Sort by ADM rating Sort by most recent review Too bad Wale didn’t get more love from Stokley, whose gentle finger snaps fuel “LoveHate Thing” and alluring vocals invigorate “Sunshine” and “Black Heroes.”Įven with its flaws, The Gifted remains one of Wale’s strongest releases.Īt the end of the album, Wale talks to Jerry Seinfeld (?!) about his next project. It’s filled with lazy strip club anthems (“Clappers”), horrible punchlines (“And I like a good story, I bet she got a mean tail,” on “Tired of Dreaming”) and played-out “you remind me of my jeep” metaphors (“Rotation”). Sadly, things quickly nosedive on the second half of the album. It expertly balances the spiritual and superficial: “Sunday services pastor is the wealthy ones working it/Preaching Armageddon while collection plates been circling the room/Fear’s but a tool.” Even if you don’t agree, it makes you think. Cole, Kanye, etc.), but “Golden Salvation (Jesus Piece)” is one of the best. Wale kills his haters with kindness on “Heaven’s Afternoon”: “Dream killers out, I see them in the rear/Before I put them in a song, put them in a prayer.”Īnd speaking of prayer, there have been a ton of recent hip hop releases sprinkled with religious allegories ( Game, J. “Bricks” shows the other side of the trife life, pointing out that desperate times call for desperate measures – those illegal activities can be the foundation for hope.
“Gullible” drips with conspiracy theories that don’t sound all that far far-fetched, in light of the NSA monitoring. It’s the only time Wale is truly upstaged. The remix with Rihanna is also featured here, but the original version with Tiara Thomas sounds much more authentic, squeaky bed and all. It’s not just trap cliches and tales of opulence, it’s topical music all of Wale’s listeners can relate to.įirst single “Bad” oozes with honestly from the eyes of a bad girl. Sean C and LV’s soulful production set the tone for the first half of the album, which speaks on various aspects of American life. Wale says it best on the album intro, “Curse of the Gifted,” y’all don’t even gotta love him, but you will respect his hustle. Even among more than a dozen guest stars, Wale usually shines brightest. They make a formidable combination.īut don’t misunderstand me, this isn’t one of those “Best of Both Worlds” collabo albums. Still, Williams’ soulful background vocals and lush production are the foundation of Wale’s third studio album. Well, that might be a slight overstatement. Wale needs to mail all royalty checks from this album to Mint Condition’s Stokley Williams. The Gifted (to be released June 25, 2013)
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