Photo courtesy of mixmatters.com.

Last week, D.C. rapper Wale’s debut album “Attention Deficit” came out and it got positive reviews from major critics. Frankly, I don’t see why people like him. I honestly think of Wale as essentially Kanye West repackaged with a distinctively D.C. “go-go” sound (I hate “go-go” music, by the way). Even if I got over my basic hate of Wale, I couldn’t ignore the fact that Wale’s debut is a major disappointment when compared to his earlier mixtapes.

Wale released five mixtapes before his debut album, earning him considerable national exposure. Of the three mixtapes I’ve downloaded, the best is “The Mixtape About Nothing,” which revolves around “Seinfeld” clips and references—the whole “Seinfeld” gimmick makes Wale’s forced rhymes and dull word-play almost bearable. Outside of the “Seinfeld” tape, Wale has released several well-know songs like “Nike Boots” and “WALEDANCE.” I do like “WALEDANCE,” but “Nike Boots,” an anthem to D.C., is only popular because it “reps the district.”

Really, I think people would recognize how mediocre Wale is if they could move on from the fact that it’s “so sick” that he throws shout-outs to Montgomery County in his songs. Most people must think “Hey, he just mentioned ‘MoCo.’ That’s where I live. That’s awesome!”—why is it awesome? I don’t get excited when he mentions Clinton Portis or Sean Taylor. Simply put, he’s not that good and his raps are labored and don’t really say anything. I would put Wale more in the area of Kanye, Lupe and Kid Cudi (commercial rappers) than with more accomplished artists like Nas, Big L and Del tha Funkee Homosapien.

Speaking of commercial, lets talk about “Attention Deficit,” which really proves Wale has gone mainstream. The album moves away from “go-go” and more towards generic beats, which coupled with Wale’s less than creative rhymes, make the album generally bland. On first listen, “Attention Deficit” sounds like a homogenized Kanye imitation to me. Regardless of my instinctive bias against Wale, he should have continued pursuing his more interesting style from mixtapes like “100 Miles and Runnin’” and “Paint a Picture.”

Wale, instead of becoming D.C.’s first real prominent and noteworthy rapper, has opted to become a commercial rapper. He sacrificed the potential to become an acclaimed artist for mainstream success. I’ve never really been a Wale fan, and I think the new album proves with out a doubt that Wale has not lived up to the hype.