As of May 3, seven out of the top ten songs on Billboard’s Hot 100 belonged to biracial or white rappers, including Drake holding down the No. 1 and 2 spots with “Nice for What” and “God's Plan.” Number five belongs to Post Malone for “Psycho,” and J. Cole claims numbers six, eight and 10 with “ATM,” “Kevin’s Heart,” and “KOD.” Although a widely recognized rapper, Wale has not held the No. 1 spot since 2015, and he thinks his skin color has something to do with it. 

When one of his fans commented on the stagnation in his music career, asking, “Do you think your expressive passion for music hurt/prevent you from being mentioned with the rest in your class?” Wale tweeted that race could actually be a factor in his popularity. 

“It hurt me greatly,” Wale wrote. “Also me being a dark skinned (not half white) rapper direct decent [sic] from Africa did too.. but let’s not go there.”

Though Wale was born in Washington, D.C., he is the son of Nigerian immigrants.

Some fans rushed to Wale’s side in defense of his claim. 

While others think he may be pushing it. 

Does the rapper have a point?