Washington native, Wale made headlines this past week when Raptors play-by-play announcer made an off the cuff comment about the rapper, and the MMG artist confronted him courtside at a game. Later, a report was published that Folarin tried to attack a fan in a mall. Now in an interview with Cosmic Kev, Wale sets the record straight and opens up about what he said to announcer Matt Devlin, and what led to him lashing out at a fan in the mall.
Discussing Devlin’s comment that “he’s not Drake, that’s for sure,” the D.C. artist said he wanted to confront him and let him know that while in Washington, he needs to show more respect, “Anything at this point makes me sound volatile...I’m thinking I’m around all these white people, and I’m a black dude, with dreads, going up to confront someone, of a complete opposite creed.” Continuing on he admits, “I went over there to be like ‘yo, my man, you gotta have a little respect in my town’...but timing is everything, I coulda waited.”
During the interview Wale openly says that he needs to work on his anger, and not get so worked up, which is what happened at a mall during NBA All-Star Weekend in Houston, when he stopped to grab clothes quickly. “I’m in Ralph Lauren, looking for some purple label...I’m in there saying ‘we gotta go, it’s too crazy, I went out and it was like an overwhelming amount of people outside the store. I put my hood on, and I know if I take one picture...so I’m waving, and I’m saying ‘love love’...and this dude is like ‘you bitch ass nigga, you fuck ass Wale,’” this is when he lost his cool. “There’s a grown man, probably older than me that’s cursing me out cause I won’t take him a picture...there’s like little children that I’m not taking photos with,’ he then tried to put hands on the guy calling his name, but was stopped by his own security, “I have these moments that I black out, when I’m not thinking no more...and I get pulled back.”
Several times Wale mentions that he realizes he needs to relax, but he considers himself an everyday man, and still reacts as if he is not a celebrity, “I’m learning to just be like, I can’t do nothing and I can’t respond, cause I am of celebrated stature...what people need to realize, I don’t put myself above the common man in any regards.”