Artist
Wiz Khalifa
Why we feature this artist Pittsburgh hooks and a mixtape sense of time Wiz Khalifa made an unhurried delivery work on a very large scale. The Pittsburgh rapper built a following through independent albums and mixtapes before Black and Yellow carried his homet…
- From
- United States
- Sound
- Hip-hop, pop rap
- Active
- 2005–present
Start with the music
Tracks to explore
The artist, in context
The story of Wiz Khalifa
Why we feature this artist
Pittsburgh hooks and a mixtape sense of time
Wiz Khalifa made an unhurried delivery work on a very large scale. The Pittsburgh rapper built a following through independent albums and mixtapes before Black and Yellow carried his hometown colours into international pop. His best-known records often turn on a simple melodic phrase, but the wider catalogue also depends on the loose, conversational pace that made listeners feel they were spending time with him.
Building the audience before Rolling Papers
Show and Prove in 2006 and Deal or No Deal in 2009 established the early album catalogue. Kush & Orange Juice followed in 2010, giving his relaxed flow a particularly cohesive setting. Its mixtape format allowed the atmosphere to accumulate across tracks, with pleasure in the sound and pace of the performance as important as any single punchline.
Black and Yellow changed the size of the audience. Released in 2010, it became a US number one in 2011 and led into Rolling Papers on Atlantic. Roll Up and No Sleep showed other routes through the same crossover moment: melodic, cleanly outlined songs that let a chorus land quickly without asking Khalifa to abandon his recognisable voice.
A catalogue with more than one speed
O.N.I.F.C. arrived in 2012, followed by Blacc Hollywood in 2014. Collaborations and mixtapes continued alongside the studio albums, preserving a route back to the more casual scale of his earlier work. His partnership with Snoop Dogg on Mac & Devin Go to High School also placed that easy delivery beside an obvious stylistic relative.
See You Again, recorded with Charlie Puth for Furious 7 in 2015, introduced a different emotional register to a huge audience. Puth’s sung refrain and Khalifa’s verses gave the tribute its alternating perspectives. Set beside Black and Yellow, it shows how adaptable his directness can be: a collective celebration in one song, a statement about absence and remembrance in another. The mixtapes supply the less formal conversation between those widely recognised moments.
Essential releases
Kush & Orange Juice
The mixtape gathers his relaxed phrasing and melodic instincts into a sustained atmosphere.
Rolling Papers
Black and Yellow, Roll Up and No Sleep mark the transition from a dedicated following to a broad pop audience.
See You Again
The Charlie Puth collaboration from Furious 7 sets his direct delivery inside a reflective soundtrack song.