Cameron Jibril Thomaz (born September 8, 1987), known professionally as Wiz Khalifa, is an American rapper, singer-songwriter, entrepreneur, and actor. Raised in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, he signed with the local independent label Rostrum Records to release his debut studio album, Show and Prove (2006). 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 (2009). 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 the 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 (2011). Despite mixed critical reception, the album peaked at number two on the Billboard 200.
His fourth album, O.N.I.F.C. (2012), was met with similar critical and commercial response, spawning the singles "Work Hard, Play Hard" and "Remember You" (featuring the Weeknd). His fifth album, Blacc Hollywood (2014) 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" (featuring Charlie Puth) was released for the soundtrack to the film Furious 7, in tribute to late actor Paul Walker.
