Key Takeaways
- In a tweet, Wale described the music industry as "a rat race on a hamster wheel" that leaves him in "a perpetual state of uncertainty and skepticism."
- The rapper called the music business “unstable” and said artists are often shrouded in “criticism.”
After nearly 20 years in the music industry, Wale is airing out his grievances with being a rapper.
On Monday (Sept. 28), the 42-year-old artist tweeted that while he was possibly “oversharing,” he wanted to share a “journal entry” with his followers about crooked music industry practices.
"Im sorry . I really apologize to ppl who pray and truly care about me ... I genuinely believe u can't be in this industry for more than a few years and have a proper lense [sic] on life,” he wrote. “Your friends be dying left an right . You desperately wanna stay creative . U wanna take care of ur ppl . The new ‘friends’ u make not ur friends at all.”
“Cuz this is a rat race on a hamster wheel. U wake up to praise and criticism ... but it's always more criticism. Unstable,” he continued. “So many ppl care and I can't even embrace it sometimes cuz I'm in a perpetual state of uncertainty and skepticism."
Wale, who released his eighth studio album Everything Is a Lot last November, occasionally discusses being jaded by the music business. During a 2025 visit on Million Dollaz Worth of Game, the Washington, D.C., native shared his frustration with the noise of social media and music platform algorithms.
