Last Thursday at Rams Head Live! was a “live” night indeed with Wale representing the DMV in Baltimore. After getting through security and entering to the main floors, I was completely surrounded by people. Every square inch was covered, from people at the bars trying to get right, to others getting some grub to go along with sipping suds. A majority of the people made it a crucial point to stand their ground and wait it out for Wale to hit stage. A few local artists opened up with various tracks, featuring Black Cobain, Fatz Da Big Fella, King Mez, and Miss C.R.E.A.M. herself doing her thing getting the crowd hype for Mr. Folarin. DJ Booth made the stage spinning some of today’s popular songs and hits from both hip hop and R&B classics of the 90’s, testing the audiences music knowledge as both men and women sang along word for word!

The crowd was growing eager, in a mood to dance and groove the night away. Wale is a role model for both the neighboring inner cities and suburbs alike. In just the last eight years, he has released three studio albums, two collaborating albums (Self Made) Vol.1-2 with Maybach Music, and eight mixtapes. Wale has come a long way from his first ever recorded song to be played on local radio “Rhyme of the Century” to a the tribute of Ronald “Dig Dug” Dixon, a percussion player for the Go-Go band Northeast Groovers, and on to “Uptown Roamers” which later gave birth to Nike Boots. People were dressed in urban attire, and the women definitely were extremely fashionable; it was quite a bonus for me to capture some of them in the moment and appreciate the ensembles.

Just when you couldn’t wait any longer the DJ announced Wale as he jumped into the bright lights with his gold chains and diamond encrusted Washington Redskins medallion gleaming. As a shoe collector and trendsetter, it was to no surprise he was wearing Nike Lebon X Area 72 “Extraterrestrials” with a matching Bathing Ape “Shark” Hoodie. Wale’s stage presence is refreshing and believable with him just being himself and not having to act hard or overly cocky. You could tell he was enjoying himself, dancing and laughing in between his songs and interacting with the crowd directly.

Wale has taken local Go-Go music and has made it more than a D.C. native thing by incorporating it into his songs and reintroducing it to the DMV with bands like Northeast Groovers, TCB, Backyard and  Mambo Sauce to name a few. Wale performed his older hits from his days of working with 9^th Wonder and Mark Ronson. He also performed hits like “Chilln” and “The Work” and continued to please us all with songs like “That Way,” “The Break Up Song,” and his latest hit “Bad” with Tiara Thomas. He closed the show with the ladies’ favorites, letting us know that he’s definitely a ladies man.

Wale showed himself to be a true class act and gave the fans a great experience both during and after the show. I’m so proud to be from the Nation’s Capital and to have the opportunity to witness such an amazing artist from the same area

About The Author

Dean Rogers

Editor-in-Chief/Entertainment Reporter

I knew early on that I wanted to take my place among the stars. One day, my mother saw me reading The Washington Post at a very young age. Who would have known that it would be the building blocks of my journey? Since that day, I dedicated my life to learn all that is learnable. I read everything from encyclopedias, to books, to dictionaries, to magazines. I’m also an avid consumer of television, with my favorite genre being game shows. If you’ve seen me on Who Wants to be a Millionaire or Wheel of Fortune, then you know that this interest has served me well!

My unique style of reporting began back in junior high school, when I started to chronicle the events that shaped my life. Whether it was the annual family vacation or the local science fiction convention, I shot numerous pictures and recorded my thoughts so I could truly appreciate the history. During my senior year at Friendly High, I wrote what was to be my first masterpiece, “Advanced Space Academy – A One Week Journey.” I sent the eleven-page article back to the U.S. Space Camp staff. The article was highly praised for being “one of the best written articles in the history of U.S. Space Camp.” From then on, I knew what I wanted to do for rest of my life — to be a reporter.

Since then, I have trained in Broadcast Journalism at Bowie State University (2008) in Bowie, MD earning a B.S. in Communications. I gained experience in news production and editing through field experiences with Bowie Community Media Corporation, Prince George’s Community Television, and Bowie State University Television. I also wrote scripts for a variety of quiz shows for over five years.

As a lifelong movie buff, I now see close to 100 films every year. I took this love of movies to the next step when I became a co-host for Eclipse Magazine TV in the fall of 2005. While at EMTV, I interviewed celebrities, worked red carpets, and attended a wide variety of movie screenings. In January 2009, I took a leap of faith and started my own entertainment news magazine, The Rogers Revue. Shortly afterward, my life-long journey of studying the silver screen and writing about what I learned finally earned me a place in the Washington Area Film Critics Association.

All of this has led me here, giving you the latest entertainment news for the DMV and the entire nation, and I am truly excited for whatever will come next.

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