About Wiz Khalifa
Cameron Jibril Thomaz , better known by his stage name Wiz Khalifa, is an American rapper from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. He signed with the local independent label Rostrum Records to release his debut studio album, Show and Prove . His contract entered a short-lived joint venture with Warner Bros. Records the following year. His Eurodance-influenced 2008 single, "Say Yeah" received urban radio airplay and entered both the Rhythmic Top 40 and Hot Rap Songs charts, becoming his first minor hit.
Thomaz then parted ways with Warner Bros. and independently released his second album, Deal or No Deal . He released two further mixtapes until signing with Atlantic Records in July 2010. He adopted an urban hip hop-influenced approach for his debut single for label, "Black and Yellow." A tribute to his hometown of Pittsburgh, the song peaked atop the Billboard Hot 100 and received two Grammy Award nominations. Two of his follow-up singles, "Roll Up" and "No Sleep", peaked within the top 40 of the chart; all three preceded the release of his third album and major label debut, Rolling Papers . Despite mixed critical reception, the album peaked at number two on the Billboard 200.
His fourth album, O.N.I.F.C. was met with similar critical and commercial response, and supported by the singles "Work Hard, Play Hard" and "Remember You" . His fifth album, Blacc Hollywood became his first to debut atop the Billboard 200, and was supported by the lead single "We Dem Boyz." His 2015 single, "See You Again" was released for the soundtrack to the film Furious 7, in tribute to late actor Paul Walker. The song peaked the Billboard Hot 100 for 12 non-consecutive weeks, received diamond certification by the Recording Industry Association of America , earned three Grammy Award nominations, and yielded Thomaz's furthest commercial success. His sixth album, Rolling Papers 2 matched its titular predecessor in chart position, and was supported by the sleeper hit single "Something New" .
Outside of music, Thomaz has delved into acting with television roles in Dickinson and The Eric Andre Show, the lead role alongside Snoop Dogg in the 2012 stoner comedy film Mac & Devin Go to High School, and voice roles in the animated series American Dad!, Duncanville, and Big City Greens. Thomaz founded the record label Taylor Gang Entertainment in 2008, through which he has signed artists including Juicy J, Ty Dolla Sign, and Berner. Known for his abundant usage of cannabis, Thomaz launched his own cannabis brand, Khalifa Kush, in 2016, which expanded for release in nationwide dispensaries in 2022.
Cameron Jibril Thomaz was born on September 8, 1987, in Minot, North Dakota, to parents serving in the military. His parents divorced when Khalifa was about three years old. He was a military brat, frequently moving around with his parents' military service. Khalifa lived in Germany, the United Kingdom, and Japan before settling in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, with his mother around 1996, where he attended Taylor Allderdice High School. Soon after moving to Pittsburgh, Khalifa began to write and perform his own lyrics before he was a teenager.
His stage name is derived from Khalifa, an Arabic word meaning "successor", and wisdom, which was shortened to Wiz when Khalifa was a young boy. Khalifa stated to Spinner.com that the name also came from being called "young Wiz 'cause I was good at everything I did, and my granddad is Muslim, so he gave me that name; he felt like that's what I was doing with my music." He got a tattoo of his stage name on his 17th birthday.
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