When it comes to hip-hop addressing the sad spectacle of rioters overtaking the Capitol building a few weeks ago, perhaps no one is better suited than DC local Wale. His new song “Good Vibes (Za)” finds him ruminating about the double standard in the governmental response between the Capitol rioters and the peaceful protests held for victims of police shootings. He also pays homage to Nipsey Hussle and Pop Smoke and takes conservative pundits to tasks for spreading their divisive takes, reviving his long-standing feud with Tomi Lahren with yet another name-manging call out.
Wale, who often addresses controversial topics in his music, tackled the pandemic on 2020’s The Imperfect Storm just after releasing the cinematic video to his Wow… That’s Crazy single “Sue Me.” Toward the end of the year, he returned to his emotional subject matter with Gunna on “I’m Flawed,” and remained in a romantic mood this year on his Earthgang collaboration “Options.” Still, with Wale, it’s only a matter of time until he speaks up on current events and social issues, with explains how he’s maintained his relevance for so long, even if he feels he can’t collaborate with superstar pop singers like Lady Gaga anymore.
Listen to “Good Vibes (Za)” above.