Wale Says It’s Hard To Stay Relevant In The Rap Game

Wale recently revealed how challenging it is to remain relevant in the rap game.

During an interview with Cam Newton on his “Funky Friday” podcast, he spoke about how he’s maintained his relevancy.. 

“It’s hard, man,” Wale said.

“I mean, there are so many things that throw you off. I lost a lot of friends in the streets or just otherwise, but jumping in the industry, being here for about 16 years… The amount of friends that I lost… It’s not a normal life to live,” he continued.

He went on to describe the modern music  industry as “not the brightest place to be.”

“You could be the greatest rapper of all time, but everybody could be like, ‘Oh I don’t like you, you’re not good,” he explained. “So that can just throw you off … The longevity is no joke, man. And the game done change, it keep changing.”

He argued that another aspect beyond the changing nature of the industry, and the arrival of new artists, is how tough it can be to have your art noticed with everything going on.

“There’s so much stuff going on right now,” he said. “So much distractions and so much… Everybody is bloodthirsty right now in hip-hop,” he said. “So it’s like, how many people’s attention can you get, you know what I’m saying? How do you enter the zeitgeist? How do you enter the mainstream, the algorithm? It’s busy. It’s tough, it’s a tough game.”

Wale also shared that he’s not interested in chasing the latest trends, and supports “evergreen music,” and used JAY-Z’s Reasonable Doubt as an example of great art.

“I had to grow up a little bit before I understood how great Reasonable Doubt was,” he said. “I didn’t understand how good it was in middle school. When I got older, I was like, ‘Oh snap.’ Everything he’s saying, I didn’t get. That’s why I got to try to make the music evergreen, because it’ll catch up eventually.”