Rest assured, dedicated Web 2.0'ers: D.C. rapper Wale has not forsaken Twitter. One of the most committed tweeters this side of Japanese schoolchildren, Wale earlier this year swore off the message-posting website after a particular tweet got him in trouble with the influential UK journalist and blogger DJ Semtex. While interviewing Wale, Semtex read this post on the rapper's Twitter page: "am i the only artist who hates doin interviews??" It stirred something of a controversy, although eventually Wale returned and still tweets many times a day.
But most important, the man makes music — really good music. Layered raps with brain-tickling punch lines and lengthy metaphors over production as close to home as D.C.'s go-go drums and as far away as Europe's dance delights. He's been cosigned by everyone from Jay-Z to Mark Ronson, and although his Seinfeld-themed Mixtape About Nothing made many 2008 year-end lists, it was a long while before he released his proper debut, Attention Deficit. It finally dropped on Allido Records/Interscope this past November, and he performs at Mansion this Friday in support of the album.
