Attention Deficit (album)

Attention Deficit
Studio album by Wale
Released November 10, 2009 (2009-11-10)
See release history
Recorded 2007–2009
Genre Alternative hip hop
Length 53:42
Label Allido, Interscope, Roc Nation
Producer Mark Ronson (exec.), Cool & Dre, David Andrew Sitek, The Neptunes, Sleepwalkers, Best Kept Secret, Dejion, K. Doi
Wale chronology
Attention Deficit
(2009)		 Ambition
(2011)
Singles from Attention: Deficit
  1. "Chillin"
    Released: April 14, 2009
  2. "World Tour"
    Released: September 8, 2009
  3. "Pretty Girls"
    Released: October 6, 2009

Attention Deficit is the debut album of American rapper Wale, released November 10, 2009 on Allido Records and Interscope Records in the United States. Due to Wale's decision to tour with Jay-Z, N.E.R.D., and J. Cole,[1] the album's original scheduled release for September 22, 2009 was pushed back to October 20, 2009, and finally to November 10, 2009. Upon its release, Attention Deficit received generally positive reviews from music critics, based on an aggregate score of 77/100 from Metacritic. The album's first week sales were 28,000 copies[2] As of November 2011, the album has sold 200,000 copies.[3]

Contents

Singles

Background

Production is set to come from Mark Ronson, Cool & Dre, The Neptunes, David Sitek, The Sleepwalkers, and Sean C & LV of The Hitmen among others, with collaborators including Bun B, Chrisette Michelle, K'naan, and J.Cole.[4][5] Wale used his Twitter page to announce that there will be 14 tracks on his album, later after this his album was leaked on the internet. For a time, he considered using his 2007 track, "The Meeting" as the intro track, but decided against it.[6] Speaking in August 2009 to noted UK urban writer Pete Lewis - Deputy Editor of the award-winning Blues & Soul - Wale explained his reasons behind the album's title: "I decided to title the album 'Attention Deficit' because I just think people are generally stingy in what they pay attention to over a long time-period. And, with my album running into a lot of emotions, lyrically it's all over the place. It's happy, sad, mad, glad, insecure, indecisive... You know, emotionally it's not censored, it's not hidden... So, when you put it all together, it's not a smooth ride. And, because in that way it's kinda everywhere, it reminds me of attention deficit disorder!"[7]

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
Source Rating
Metacritic (77/100)[8]
Review scores
Source Rating
Allmusic [9]
The A.V. Club (B+)[10]
Entertainment Weekly (B)[11]
The New York Times (favorable)[12]
Pitchfork Media (6.6/10)[13]
PopMatters (7/10)[14]
Rolling Stone [15]
Slant Magazine [16]
The Washington Post (favorable)[17]
XXL (XL)[18]

Attention Deficit received generally favorable reviews from music critics.[8] At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average score of 77, based on 21 reviews, which indicates "generally favorable".[8] David Jeffries of Allmusic gave the album a favorable review.[9] The A.V. Club's Nathan Rabin gave the album a B+ rating.[10]

Track listing

No. Title Producer(s) Length
1. "Triumph"   Dave Sitek 2:25
2. "Mama Told Me"   Best Kept Secret 3:37
3. "Mirrors" (featuring Bun B) Mark Ronson 4:17
4. "Pretty Girls" (featuring Gucci Mane & Weensey) Best Kept Secret 4:11
5. "World Tour" (featuring Jazmine Sullivan) Cool & Dre 3:47
6. "Let It Loose" (featuring Pharrell) The Neptunes 4:49
7. "90210"   Mark Ronson, Deijon 3:21
8. "Shades" (featuring Chrisette Michele) Best Kept Secret, JuJu 3:56
9. "Chillin" (featuring Lady Gaga) Cool & Dre 3:24
10. "TV in the Radio" (featuring K'naan) Dave Sitek 3:20
11. "Contemplate" (featuring Rihanna) Syience 3:33
12. "Diary" (featuring Marsha Ambrosius) The Sleepwalkers 4:31
13. "Beautiful Bliss" (featuring Melanie Fiona & J. Cole) DJ Green Lantern, Mark Ronson 5:04
14. "Prescription"   Best Kept Secret 3:27
Samples credits

Charts

Chart (2009) Peak
position
US Billboard 200[19] 21
US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Billboard)[20] 3
US Top Rap Albums (Billboard)[21] 2
Chart (2010) Peak
position
US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Billboard)[20] 64
US Top Rap Albums (Billboard)[21] 13

Release history

References

  1. ^ "Wale's 'Attention' Gets Sidetracked". Rap-Up. http://www.rap-up.com/2009/08/08/wales-attention-gets-sidetracked/. Retrieved August 7, 2011. 
  2. ^ http://www.prefixmag.com/news/wales-ambition-expected-to-sell-close-to-200k-copi/58195/Wzp.uV
  3. ^ http://www.billboard.com/news/rick-ross-wale-the-billboard-cover-story-1005569392.story#/news/rick-ross-wale-the-billboard-cover-story-1005569392.story
  4. ^ "Wale Cures ADD With New Album". Rap-Up. 2009-07-07. http://www.rap-up.com/2009/07/07/wale-cures-add-with-debut-album/#more-21804. Retrieved 2009-07-07. 
  5. ^ Paine, Jake (2009-07-07). "Wale Album Gets September 22 Release Date". allhiphop.com. http://www.hiphopdx.com/index/news/id.9433/title.wale-album-gets-september-22-release-date-. Retrieved 2009-07-07. 
  6. ^ "Wale – "The Meeting" X "Thank You Freestyle"". thatsthat.com. http://www.thatsthatish.com/2009/12/wale-meeting-x-thank-you-freestyle.html. Retrieved 2011-08-07. 
  7. ^ "Wale: Don't Call me Wale!". Blue & Soul. http://www.bluesandsoul.com/feature/530/wale_dont_call_me_wale/. Retrieved 2011-08-07. 
  8. ^ a b c "Attention Deficit Reviews, Ratings, Credits, and More". Metacritic. http://www.metacritic.com/music/artists/wale/attentiondeficit. Retrieved November 11, 2009. 
  9. ^ a b Jeffries, David. "Attention Deficit – Wale > Review". Allmusic. Rovi Corporation. http://www.allmusic.com/album/attention-deficit-r1663759/review. Retrieved December 31, 2011. 
  10. ^ a b Rabin, Nathan (November 17, 2009). "Wale: Attention Deficit". The A.V. Club. The Onion. http://www.avclub.com/articles/wale-attention-deficit,35428/. Retrieved December 31, 2011. 
  11. ^ Vozick-Levinson, Simon. Review: Attention Deficit. Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved on 2009-11-09.
  12. ^ Pareles, Jon. Review: Attention Deficit. The New York Times. Retrieved on 2009-11-09.
  13. ^ Fennessey, Sean. Review: Attention Deficit. Pitchfork Media. Retrieved on 2009-11-10.
  14. ^ Jayasuriya, Mehan. Review: Attention Deficit. PopMatters. Retrieved on 2009-11-11.
  15. ^ Dolan, Jon. "Review: Attention Deficit". Rolling Stone. http://www.rollingstone.com/reviews/album/30245663/review/30264349/attention_deficit. Retrieved 8 November 2009. 
  16. ^ McBee, Wilson. "Review: Attention:Deficit". Slant Magazine. http://www.slantmagazine.com/music/music_review.asp?ID=1912. Retrieved 8 November 2009. 
  17. ^ Richards, Chris (November 10, 2009). "Music review: District rapper Wale's 'Attention Deficit'". Washington Post. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/11/09/AR2009110903355.html. Retrieved December 31, 2011. 
  18. ^ Samuel, Anslem. "Review: Wale, Attention: Deficit". XXL. Harris Publications. http://www.xxlmag.com/online/?p=57181. Retrieved November 8 2009. 
  19. ^ "Wale Album & Song Chart History". Billboard 200 for Wale. Prometheus Global Media. http://www.billboard.com/#/artist/wale/chart-history/962199. Retrieved June 4, 2011. 
  20. ^ a b "Wale Album & Song Chart History". Billboard Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums. Prometheus Global Media. http://www.billboard.com/#/artist/wale/chart-history/962199?f=333&g=Albums. Retrieved June 4, 2011. 
  21. ^ a b "Wale Album & Song Chart History". Billboard Top Rap Albums for Wale. Prometheus Global Media. http://www.billboard.com/#/artist/wale/chart-history/962199?f=335&g=Albums. Retrieved June 4, 2011. 
Wale
Studio albums
Attention Deficit · Ambition
Collabration albums
Mixtapes
Paint a Picture · Hate is the New Love · 100 Miles & Running · The Mixtape About Nothing · Back to the Feature · More About Nothing · The Eleven One Eleven Theory
Singles
"Nike Boots" · "Chillin" · "World Tour" · "Pretty Girls" · "That Way" · "Bad Girls Club" · "Lotus Flower Bomb" · "Focused"
As featured artist
"Rising Up" · "Change" · "Fragile" · "No Hands" · "Never See You Again"
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