Here's a little-known hip-hop rule of thumb: The more, the merrier. Rap jams tend to sound better when an MC brings along a friend ... or two ... or five. (They're called Wu-Tang Clan not Wu-Tang Man, right?)
Washington D.C. rapper Wale knows all about this unsaid rule. His ability to collaborate and make great music with a wide variety of artists is one of the reasons he's so successful.
In honor of Wale's upcoming livestream on Wednesday, March 31 at 9:30 p.m. ET -- when you'll be able to watch the first night of Wale's tour live at MTV.com -- we thought we'd dig through the vaults and dazzle you with Wale's Top 5 best collaborations. We think you'll be pretty surprised to see the breadth of people he's worked with.
Now here are the best collaborations:
5. Wale, featuring Lady Gaga, "Chillin'"
Lady Gaga was still an up-and-coming pop newbie when she sang the hook on this track from "Attention Deficit." Nice bangs, Gaga!
4. Wale, featuring Gucci Mane, "Pretty Girls"
Go-Go bands and soul singers are great, but you really hear Wale in his element when he's going toe to toe with another MC. Here's a great example of that. On "Pretty Girls," Wale trades verses with the hottest thing in the Dirty South, Gucci Mane.
Click below to see the top three collaborations.
3. U.C.B., featuring Wale, "Pat Your Weave"
As a D.C. denizen, Wale has Go-Go music in his bloodstream. The furious funk subgenre is the soundtrack to parties all over Chocolate City. Here's a great collaboration between Wale and the legendary Go-Go outfit U.C.B., who backed Wale when he was the in-house entertainment at last year's MTV VMAs.
2. Wale, featuring Duffy, "Warwick Avenue"
Wale's unofficial follow-up to "Attention Deficit" was "Back To The Feature." With beats provided entirely by Little Brother's 9th Wonder, Wale matched wits with a variety of artists. The most-compelling collaboration on the album is this soulful track featuring Welsh soul diva Duffy.
+ Listen to "Warwick Avenue," here
1. Wale, featuring K'Naan, "TV In The Radio," (produced by TV On The Radio's Dave Sitek)
This hard, funky track taken from Wale's debut album, "Attention Deficit," was produced by Dave Sitek, guitarist for indie-rock titans TV On The Radio, and features the engaging style of Somali MC K'Naan, which makes this song a celebration of both Wale's African roots (he's of Nigerian descent) and his eclectic taste.+ Listen to "TV In The Radio," here