Four years ago, he simultaneously gave blue collar Americans, as well as his native town of Pittsburgh, a Hip-Hop champion with his #1 mega-hit “Black & Yellow,” a nod to his city’s colors.
When rap marketing was primarily focused on street and nightclub promotions, an unsigned yet clairvoyant Wiz decided to share his sinsemilla-scented indie music with an overlooked demo of suburban and collegiate youth.
Rap touring mined newer soil and conceived was the soundtrack for a new generation of free-spirited young hippies––fans as well as up-and-coming MCs. “No matter what changes, you’re always gonna want that original feeling,” says Wiz. “Nothing really comes in the way of that. You can’t really fight it.”
Cameron Jibril Thomaz who was born on September 8, 1987 grew up in a military family. When he was three, his parents got divorced and he moved from one place to another due to their military service. From Germany, England and Japan, he finally settled in Pittsburgh and finished high school in that state. When first trying his hands on music, his stage name was Wisdom Khalifa. The latter word was derived from Arabic which means success. He later shortened 'Wisdom' to Wiz.
Fresh out of high school, it was time to either sink or swim. In 2005, Wiz Khalifa released his first mixtape, "Prince of the City: Welcome to Pistolvania". The mixtape was quickly accepted by the local scene and began to gain buzz outside of Pittsburgh. With that excitement growing by the day, it was the perfect time for a proper commercial album. Wiz soon dropped "Show and Prove", which Okayplayer.com claimed was "arguably the best album of the year." The accolades began piling up and Khalifa was receiving significant co-signs from XXL, Rolling Stone and VIBE alike. A deal with Warner Bros. Records soon followed.
A year later, he dropped a studio album "Show and Prove". Its ...
Fresh out of high school, it was time to either sink or swim. In 2005, Wiz Khalifa released his first mixtape, "Prince of the City: Welcome to Pistolvania". The mixtape was quickly accepted by the local scene and began to gain buzz outside of Pittsburgh. With that excitement growing by the day, it was the perfect time for a proper commercial album. Wiz soon dropped "Show and Prove", which Okayplayer.com claimed was "arguably the best album of the year." The accolades began piling up and Khalifa was receiving significant co-signs from XXL, Rolling Stone and VIBE alike. A deal with Warner Bros. Records soon followed.
A year later, he dropped a studio album "Show and Prove". Its ...
eurodance-influenced single "Say Yeah" charted on the Rhythmic Top 40 and Billboard Hot Rap Songs charts. Due to the well-performed single and his increasing popularity, he was declared "Artist to Watch" by Rolling Stone magazine that year. He, however, parted ways with Warner Bros. but was quickly signed by another giant recording company, Atlantic Records.
"Deal or No Deal" followed in November 2009, peaking at No. 25 on Billboard Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart and breaking the Top 10 of iTunes chart in its first week of release. He continued to shine in 2010 when he was named MTV's No. 1 Hottest Breakthrough MC of the Year and became trending topic on Twitter and hot search trend on Google after giving away a street album "Kush and Orange Juice".
In 2010, Wiz released a new single "Black and Yellow" which eventually reached No. 1 on Billboard Hot 100. The track serves as the lead single of his third studio album "Rolling Papers in the US which came out in March 2011. It debuted at number two on Billboard 200 chart, with first-week sales of 197,000 copies. A year later, he followed up the LP with "Only N***a in First Class" (abbreviated ...
"Deal or No Deal" followed in November 2009, peaking at No. 25 on Billboard Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart and breaking the Top 10 of iTunes chart in its first week of release. He continued to shine in 2010 when he was named MTV's No. 1 Hottest Breakthrough MC of the Year and became trending topic on Twitter and hot search trend on Google after giving away a street album "Kush and Orange Juice".
In 2010, Wiz released a new single "Black and Yellow" which eventually reached No. 1 on Billboard Hot 100. The track serves as the lead single of his third studio album "Rolling Papers in the US which came out in March 2011. It debuted at number two on Billboard 200 chart, with first-week sales of 197,000 copies. A year later, he followed up the LP with "Only N***a in First Class" (abbreviated ...
as O.N.I.F.C.). Debuting at No. 2 with 131,000, it spawned two singles "Work Hard, Play Hard" and "Remember You". Both tracks received good commercial acclaim and with the former going platinum.
Just a few months after "O.N.I.F.C." hit the stores, Wiz announced his plan to work on a follow-up titled "Blacc Hollywood". The new LP, featuring guest appearances from the likes of Juicy J, Snoop Dogg, Rick Ross, Nicki Minaj and Jeezy, is scheduled to be released on August 19. It has so far spawned "We Dem Boyz", "KK", "You and Your Friends", "Stayin Out All Night", "Promises" and "So High".
