Attention Deficit (album)

Attention Deficit
Studio album by Wale
Released	November 10, 2009
Recorded	2007–09
Genre	Alternative hip hop
Length	53:42
Label	Allido Interscope
Producer	Mark Ronson (also exec.) Best Kept Secret Cool & Dre David Sitek Dejion J.U.S.T.I.C.E. League The Neptunes The Sleepwalkers
Wale chronology
The Mixtape About Nothing (2008) Attention Deficit (2009) Ambition (2011)
Singles from Attention: Deficit
"Chillin" Released: April 14, 2009 "World Tour" Released: September 8, 2009 "Pretty Girls" Released: October 6, 2009

Attention Deficit is the debut studio album by American rapper Wale. It was released on November 10, 2009, by Allido Records and Interscope Records.^[1] The production on the album was handled by multiple producers including Mark Ronson, Cool & Dre, the Neptunes, J.U.S.T.I.C.E. League and David Sitek among others. The album also features guest appearances by Lady Gaga, Gucci Mane, J. Cole, Pharrell Williams and Jazmine Sullivan among others.

Attention Deficit was supported by three singles: "Chillin", "World Tour" and "Pretty Girls". The album received generally positive reviews from music critics and received moderate commercial success. It debuted at number 21 on the US Billboard 200 chart, selling 28,000 copies in its first week.^[2]

Singles

The album's lead single "Chillin" featuring Lady Gaga, was released on April 14, 2009. The song was a charter hit. It peaked at number 12 on the UK Singles Chart on the chart ending September 12, 2009. It also spent a total of 6 weeks on the chart. This is Wale's highest-charting single in the United Kingdom.

The album's second single "World Tour" featuring Jazmine Sullivan, was released on September 8, 2009.

The album's third single "Pretty Girls" featuring Gucci Mane and Weensey (of Backyard Band), was released on October 6, 2009.

Critical reception

Professional ratings

Aggregate scores
Source	Rating
Metacritic	(77/100)[3]
Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[4]
The A.V. Club	B+[5]
Entertainment Weekly	B[6]
The New York Times	favorable[7]
Pitchfork Media	(6.6/10.0)[8]
PopMatters	(7/10)[9]
Rolling Stone	[10]
Slant Magazine	[11]
The Washington Post	favorable[12]
XXL	(XL)[13]

Attention Deficit received generally favorable reviews from music critics.^[3] 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".^[3] David Jeffries of AllMusic gave the album a favorable review.^[4] The A.V. Club's Nathan Rabin gave the album a B+ rating.^[5]

Commercial performance

Attention Deficit debuted at number 21 on the US Billboard 200 chart, selling 28,000 copies in its first week.^[2] As of November 2011, the album has sold over 200,000 copies in the United States, according to Nielsen Soundscan.^[2]

Track listing

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Producer(s)	Length
1.	"Triumph"	Olubowale Akintimehin David Andrew Sitek	Dave Sitek	2:25
2.	"Mama Told Me"	Akintimehin Julian Nixon Craig Balmoris	Best Kept Secret	3:37
3.	"Mirrors" (featuring Bun B)	Akintimehin Mark Ronson Bernard Freeman	Ronson	4:17
4.	"Pretty Girls" (featuring Gucci Mane & Weensey from Backyard Band)	Akintimehin Nixon Balmoris Radric Davis Weensey	Best Kept Secret	4:11
5.	"World Tour" (featuring Jazmine Sullivan)	Akintimehin Jazmine Sullivan Marcello Valenzano Andre Lyons	Cool & Dre	3:47
6.	"Let It Loose" (featuring Pharrell Williams)	Akintimehin Pharrell Williams Chad Hugo	The Neptunes	4:49
7.	"90210"	Akintimehin Ronson	Ronson Dejion	3:27
8.	"Shades" (featuring Chrisette Michele)	Akintimehin Nixon Balmoris Chrisette Payne	Best Kept Secret	3:56
9.	"Chillin" (featuring Lady Gaga)	Akintimehin Stefani Germanotta Valenzano Lyons Gary DeCarlo Dale Frashuer Roy C Hammond Paul Leka Makeba Riddick Kirk Robinson	Cool & Dre	3:24
10.	"TV in the Radio" (featuring K'naan)	Akintimehin Sitek Keinan Warsame	Dave Sitek	3:20
11.	"Contemplate"	Akintimehin Reginald Perry Shaffer Smith Shea Taylor Shawn Carter	Syience	3:33
12.	"Diary" (featuring Marsha Ambrosius)	Akintimehin Marsha Ambrosius	The Sleepwalkers	4:31
13.	"Beautiful Bliss" (featuring Melanie Fiona & J. Cole)	Akintimehin James D'Agostino Ronson Melanie Fiona Jermaine Cole	DJ Green Lantern Ronson	5:04
14.	"Prescription"	Akintimehin Nixon Balmoris	Best Kept Secret	3:27

iTunes bonus tracks

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Producer(s)	Length
15.	"My Sweetie"	Akintimehin Stephen Levitin	Apple Juice Kid	3:37
16.	"Center of Attention"	Akintimehin Kevin Crowe Erik Ortiz	J.U.S.T.I.C.E. League	3:56

Zune bonus tracks

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Producer(s)	Length
17.	"Be Right"	Akintimehin Deleno Matthews Levar Coppin	Sean C & LV	4:01

Samples credits

• "Pretty Girls" contains a sample of Backyard Band's go-go rendition of "Girls" by The Moments & Whatnauts
• "Chillin" contains a sample of "Na Na Hey Hey Kiss Him Goodbye" by Steam
• "Mama Told Me" contains a sample of "Summer Madness" by Kool and the Gang
• "Contemplate" contains a sample of "Question Existing" from the album Good Girl Gone Bad by Rihanna
• "Diary" contains a sample of "La Valse d'Amélie" by Yann Tiersen
• "My Sweetie" contains a sample of "Let Me Love You" by Bunny Mack
• "Beautiful Bliss" contains a sample of "(Do It, Do It) No One Does It Better" by The Spinners and "Theme Music to a Drive By" By Lupe Fiasco
• "World Tour" contains a sample of "Award Tour" by A Tribe Called Quest
• "Prescription" contains an interpolated sample of "Modaji" by Dave Grusin

Charts

Weekly charts Chart (2009) Peak position US Billboard 200[14] 21 US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Billboard)[15] 3 US Top Rap Albums (Billboard)[16] 2 Chart (2010) Peak position US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Billboard)[15] 64 US Top Rap Albums (Billboard)[16] 13

Year-end charts Chart (2010) Peak position US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Billboard) 61 US Top Rap Albums (Billboard) 31

References

1. "Wale's 'Attention' Gets Sidetracked". Rap-Up. Retrieved August 7, 2011.
2. Brad Wete (November 28, 2011). "Rick Ross & Wale: The Billboard Cover Story, Part II". Billboard. Retrieved March 1, 2020.
3. "Attention Deficit Reviews, Ratings, Credits, and More". Metacritic. Archived from the original on November 12, 2009. Retrieved November 11, 2009.
4. Jeffries, David. "Attention Deficit – Wale > Review". AllMusic. Retrieved December 31, 2011.
5. Rabin, Nathan (November 17, 2009). "Wale: Attention Deficit". The A.V. Club. The Onion. Retrieved December 31, 2011.
6. Vozick-Levinson, Simon. Review: Attention Deficit Archived October 15, 2012, at the Wayback Machine. Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved on 2009-11-09.
7. Pareles, Jon. Review: Attention Deficit. The New York Times. Retrieved on 2009-11-09.
8. Fennessey, Sean. Review: Attention Deficit. Pitchfork Media. Retrieved on 2009-11-10.
9. Jayasuriya, Mehan. Review: Attention Deficit. PopMatters. Retrieved on 2009-11-11.
10. Dolan, Jon. "Review: Attention Deficit". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on January 6, 2010. Retrieved November 8, 2009.
11. McBee, Wilson. "Review: Attention:Deficit". Slant Magazine. Retrieved November 8, 2009.
12. Richards, Chris (November 10, 2009). "Music review: District rapper Wale's 'Attention Deficit'". The Washington Post. Retrieved December 31, 2011.
13. Samuel, Anslem. "Review: Wale, Attention: Deficit". XXL. Harris Publications. Archived from the original on November 24, 2009. Retrieved November 8, 2009.
14. "Wale Album & Song Chart History". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Archived from the original on June 4, 2011. Retrieved June 4, 2011.
15. "Wale Album & Song Chart History". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Archived from the original on June 4, 2011. Retrieved June 4, 2011.
16. "Wale Album & Song Chart History". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Archived from the original on June 4, 2011. Retrieved June 4, 2011.