Rapper WALE Comes to Jorgensen at UConn Tonight

Award-Winning Rapper Wale, whose "Lotus Flower Bomb" drew a 2013 Grammy nomination for Best Rap Song, will take Jorgensen's stage for one night only tonight, April 11, 2013, at 8 p.m.

Wale, whose full name is Wale Victor Folarin, won the 2012 BET Award for best collaboration for "Lotus Flower Bomb," the lead single on his second studio album Ambition, featuring R&B singer Miguel. Wale also was named Best New Artist in the 2010 Soul Train Awards.

Wale Victor Folarin, born Olubowale Victor Akintimehin to Nigerian parents 28 years ago in Maryland, started as an American rapper when his 2006 song "Dig Dug (Shake It)" took hold of fans in his hometown, Washington, D.C. His style from the beginning heavily sampled the 1990s go-go sound native to the nation's capital region.

In 2007 he was signed to Allido Records, for whom he released mixtapes and began to appear in MTV and national urban media. In 2009 he released his debut album Attention Deficit on the Interscope label, with singles "Chillin," "Pretty Girls" and "World Tour." In a review, David Jeffries ofallmusic wrote that Wale had a "post-Kanye, post-Lil Wayne, alternative-meets-hardcore style" and said that Wale's single "Chillin," which featured Lady Gaga, "crafts an instant floor-filler out of a sample from the '70s hit 'Na Na Hey Hey Kiss Him Goodbye.'"

Jorgensen Center for the Performing Arts is located at 2132 Hillside Road on the UConn campus in Storrs. Ticket prices are $30 for floor and $25 for mezzanine and balcony, with no discounts. For tickets and information, call the Box Office at 860.486.4226, Monday through Friday, 10 a.m.-5 p.m., or order online at jorgensen.uconn.edu. Convenient, free parking is available across the street in the North Garage.