It’s been a long time since it was cool to like Wiz Khalifa. The Pittsburgh rapper’s two most streamed tracks on Spotify are a good indication of his current clout level: the Charlie Puth-featuring “See You Again” from the Furious 7 soundtrack and the Hot Topic-approved posse cut “Sucker for Pain” from Suicide Squad. Being a Wiz fan in 2019, in other words, gets you about as much respect as wearing a Harley Quinn shirt in public or slapping a Paul Walker memorial bumper stacker on your Nissan Skyline.
There’s an alternate universe in which Wiz Khalifa fell off the face of the Earth entirely, like his fellow 2010 XXL Freshman Pill, or became a full-time marijuana farmer like the fizzled-out Internet sensation Jackie Chain, who debuted a year after “Say Yeah” with his own trance-sampling single. But instead, Cameron Jibril Thomaz signed with Warner, dropped a single that sampled Alice DJ’s “Better Off Alone,” ended his relationship with Warner, released an independent mixtape that flipped everything from Camp Rock to the Chrono Trigger score, signed with Atlantic, and became a star off a Super Bowl anthem. Somehow, throughout rap’s tumultuous and transformative last decade, Wiz has persisted.
His appeal was always in his effortlessness—every syllable crisply annunciated, each bar delivered with a little melody. Khalifa claims Pittsburgh, but he’s also an army brat; his voice is accentless, and there’s little in the way of regional flair to his music. His greatest assets are malleability and flexibility, which have allowed him to try out a variety of styles and subgenres, from the relaxed stoner rap of Kush and Orange Juice to the Top 40 trap of “We Dem Boyz.”
This adventurousness has made Wiz Khalifa one of the most quietly influential rappers of the last ten years. His Taylor Gang record label revived the career of Juicy J, introduced us to Ty Dolla $ign, and he was one of the first mainstream acts to work with the likes of SpaceGhostPurrp, Chief Keef, and Thundercat. Many a millennial—this one included—learned to roll a perfect joint by watching the now-canonical “How to Roll a Perfect Joint with Wiz Khalifa.”
But at his laziest, Wiz Khalifa’s inability to commit to a single style can leave his albums unfocused, as on last year’s woeful Rolling Papers 2. Khalifa’s latest tape, Fly Times, Vol. 1: The Good Fly Young, exceeds the expectations set by his less-than-topshelf recent output and his history of incessant trend-hopping. There’s a consistency here that seems to suggest a growing maturity on the part of Khalifa who, at thirty-one, is a bit of an elder in the game.
With the exception of the TM88-assisted “Big Pride (Bag Talk),” almost nothing here feels like a bid for a spot on Rap Caviar. Instead, Fly Times goes for something closer to the chilled-out G-funk of Kush and Orange Juice, but with more of a throwback R&B flavor: whiny keys, MIDI strings, and copious amounts of 808 cowbell. The lyrics aren’t especially profound, but that’s never really been the point of Wiz Khalifa’s music—Fly Times is about the vibe above all else.
There are collaborations with regular members of Khalifa’s stable—Problem, Curren$y, Ty Dolla $ign—but more space is given to emerging artists. Six of the tape’s fourteen tracks showcase vocalist and Taylor Gang signee Young Deji. Two feature THEMXXNLIGHT, a soulful duo of twin brothers who seem like Taylor Gang’s answer to indistinguishable, OVO-approved R&B acts like Majid Jordan and dvsn. Both artists help flesh out the atmosphere, but neither offers anything substantial. The best of the guest hooks is by Houston rapper and Sauce Twinz affiliate Sosamann on “Taylor Life.” Sosamann’s voice is everything Khalifa’s isn’t—textured, drawling, and marked by the unmistakable flavor of his hometown—and he plays foil to Wiz like Curren$y has done for a decade.
If Wiz Khalifa’s career has proved anything, it’s that stoners are like puppies: easy to please and loyal as hell. Luckily for Wiz Khalifa, the critical reception of his music has never mattered that much—so long as it burns easy and makes you feel good, even mid is acceptable.
