Fame|Needle Reading: 45
From The Beaver County Times
By Scott Tady/Times Entertainment Editor
Wiz Khalifa Eyes Stardom
CHESWICK — The 412 isn’t on the speed dial of many music moguls.
That soon might change, thanks to Wiz Khalifa.
Khalifa, 20, is the rapper many feel is fated to finally put Pittsburgh rap on the map.
Signed to Warner Bros., Khalifa’s single “Say Yeah” is getting radio spins, and earning rave reviews from influential Web sites and magazines.
Pitchfork Media noted, “We posted a track (‘Say Yeah’) by the Pittsburgh-based rapper last week, and his swaggering flow is still commanding here.”
Fresh from a West Coast trip filled with radio interviews, club promotions and record label meet-and-greets, Khalifa will entertain hometown fans Saturday with an under-21 show at Gravity Nightclub in Cheswick.
“It’s gonna be crazy doing that show,” Khalifa said. “Gravity’s going to be packed. I did the first show there with Bone Thugs-N-Harmony, and the love was crazy.”
Warming up the crowd Saturday will be Ambridge rapper Nova and another of Khalifa’s favorite local artists, S Money.
For now, Khalifa’s focus is on “Say Yeah,” an uncluttered, upbeat club song with a synth line sampled from Dutch dance-pop band Alice DeeJay’s 1999 hit “Better Off Alone.”
Khalifa recently finished the video.
“It’s fun. You see us in the clubs and all over the world throwing money around,” Khalifa said.
BET and MTV’s “TRL” have expressed interest, but haven’t pledged air dates yet, Khalifa said.
Warner Bros. plans to be patient, waiting if necessary until the latter half of 2008 to release Khalifa’s full-length album. Perhaps Warner learned a lesson from rival Island Def Jam, which this past December rush-released the rookie album from Khalifa’s peer, Pittsburgh Slim, before that artist’s single “Girls Kiss Girls” had fully percolated.
Rolling Stone magazine thrust Khalifa on the rap radar with a November 2006 profile proclaiming him an artist to watch.
Since then, the Taylor Allderdice High School graduate has worked all the key avenues — recordings, videos and performances — hoping appearances at clubs like Gravity will create a buzz the music industry can’t ignore.
“I’m taking it one day at a time. It’s hard work, and I’ve got to stay on the job,” Khalifa said.
To expand his turf, he touts his music as the “Pistolvania” sound, hoping that will also endear him to rap fans in Philadelphia and the rest of the Keystone State.
But make no mistake; the 412 Area Code will always be home.
“I don’t claim any one neighborhood as my home, because I’ve lived all over the city,” Khalifa said. “I claim all of Pittsburgh as my home.
“For sure, I’d like to put Pittsburgh on the map, but not just for me,” Khalifa said. “There are a lot of people here doing something special.”
Wiz Khalifa -"Say Yeah" Music Video. -Youtube.com
"Pittsburgh Sound" by Wiz Khalifa -Youtube.com
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