Wax On, Wax Off

Everyone loves a comeback story.

For some artists, losing their big label deal is the end of the line. Not for 33-year-old rapper Wax, who is known for his thought provoking, humorous and self-inspecting lyrical style, and the hit single “Rosana.” That’s what caught the eye of mega-star maker L.A. Reid, who signed him to Def Jam Records in 2011. Yet, the relationship with the house that Russell Simmons built was short lived, and Wax and Def Jam parted ways in 2012. 

Amazingly, he seems to be doing just fine without them. His second album Continue, released in January 2013, muscled its way into slots on five Billboard charts, including #3 on Heatseekers, as well as the Top 10 Rap Albums on iTunes. Now he’s about to take off on the Vans Warped tour.  The ”Rosana” track rapper should probably just change his name to Hot Wax pretty soon. 

Slated to tour the country this summer on this tour, Wax will be tearing stages down just like he did in this glorious photo essay.

OZY photographer Austen Risolvato dug in with Wax and his band at the tour’s kickoff party in Los Angeles on April 1st. No fools here, just fans of great music from an artist that’s reclaiming his spotlight.