[“Yeah, he is the man; you know who he am.”]

That’s right people; the rapper with the strange name is back (“Wiz” is short for “wisdom” and “Khalifa” is an Arabic word that means “successor.”).

Speaking of which, remember when Wiz Khalifa released his debut album “Show and Prove” on Rostrum Records back in 2006?

Me neither.

Sadly, his first album slipped by most of us that don’t share his “Still City” hometown of “Pixxburgh” Pennsylvania (that was for all of my “Yinzers” out there…can’t wait for the hate emails).

Happily, his first album was hot enough to land him a major label deal with Warner Brothers for the release of his sophomore project. W.B. finally gave Wiz that label backing needed to get the exposure required to sell albums to people beyond his family and co-workers (we call that “going wood”). This was evidenced by the massive radio play acquired by his first major label single released, the Johnny Juliano-produced “Say Yeah.”

(Yes, the one that sampled Alice DeeJay’s “Better Off Alone”).

Shortly after “Say Yeah” started smashing radio and popping up in DJ mixes nationwide (and just as soon as we all learned how to officially pronounce “Kuh-Lee-Fuh”), dude up and vanished.

Well actually, if you stayed checking for him long enough for his second single “Make It Hot” to drop you would have known that:

1) Wiz Khalifa was more than just a one hit cat.

And…

2) that, even though his second single received essentially zero run, “Make It Hot” was stupid groovy.

[SIDEBAR: I played both singles in almost every DJ set I spun in 2008. No Bullsh#t. And now that I mention it, I am feeling like I’ll be dusting them both off for this holiday house party I am booked for December 5^th. Email me – thetodd@audiomuffin.com - if you live in L.A. and want me to put you on the guest list.]

So, there Wiz was: loads of talent, a major label deal, and two fire singles that had just hit iTunes. That seems pretty official, right? All that was left was to wait for the album to drop. So I waited. And waited. And waited. And nothing ever happened.

It turns out that Wiz parted ways with Warner Brothers in July of 2009 after they delayed the release of his album 22,983 times over a span of 18 months.

Wiz Khalifa is a perfect example of everything that can go wrong in the music business. So many people release so much trash that gets played everywhere (I’m talking to you, Miley), and yet Wiz lands a dream deal with a major, puts out two heaters in four months…and then gets promptly thrown out on his ass. It blows my mind because he is so undeniably talented. He was doing that “sing your own hook because you are versatile enough to do it yourself – without having to hire an R&B chick to do it for you” thing before Drake blew up the spizzy with it.

Wiz is so freaking dope (Pittsburgh Pistolvania, STAND UP!). His delivery and tone are so impeccable that it’s rare to NOT like a 16 he spits. He is one of those rappers that, If I had an album deal, I would invite onto my own personal project. He makes nothing but heat – and it’s just that simple.

Wiz Khalifa will release is rumored to be releasing his second album (ironically titled “Deal or No Deal”) via his old friends at Rostrum Records on November 24, 2009. If that actually happens, I will be going to a retail spot to cop the CD in the case with the artwork (and the WAVE files!). Until then, some of the hotness touched on above is posted below for us all to loop on our iPods (sigh…).

To quote my little brother LL Steezy quoting DJ Real Juicy quoting Lil Wayne, “Wear A Helmet When You Bang It.”

Tell your friends,

-The Todd

Wiz Khalifa – Say Yeah

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Wiz Khalifa – Make It Hot

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Wiz Khalifa – This Plane

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