Moonwalking, body-rolling, sliding down rails, bouncing around stage and managing to get through all his hits is how Wale turned in an excellent performance at The Catalyst Club in Santa Cruz, Friday April 24.

On tour for is latest album, “The Album About Nothing,” Washington D.C. rapper Wale mixed new material and his greatest hits. Wale alternated slow songs with uptempo tracks, pulling the strings on the audience during an hour and a half set at the small and intimate Catalyst Club.

The dance floor was packed with sweaty dancers, the bar never witnessed a lull and clouds of smoke from a certain flowering plant substituted oxygen inside the venue.

No one was sweatier than the star of the show as Wale hit wild spins, shook his dreads and zipped up and down the stage. He lost the bandana he wore in the beginning of the night and later handed off a large gold chain to his colossal bodyguard.

Two guest performers, his massive body guard, who showed off blazing speed whenever Wale jumped off stage, and a DJ who should never be in charge of music accompanied Wale on stage.

The DJ’s main job was to pump up the crowd and to promote Wale’s recently released album. Otherwise, this man seemed to do his best to ruin the vibe.

The DJ used hard cuts during songs paired and continuously used an infuriating broken glass sound were the only marks against the act.

Wale more than made up for the DJ’s missteps with both his energy and the tracks chosen for the night.

Whenever Wale pointed the microphone at the crowd, the crowd sang in key, even to his newer songs.

The amount of recognizable hits Wale had was surprising. The casual fan of the rapper would be able to sing along with a majority of the tracks he performed. Songs like “Rotation,” “Ambition,” “Chillin,” “Lotus Flower Bomb,” “Slight Work,” “LoveHateThing,” “Bad,” and “No Hands” were all echoed by the audience.

Wale seems to fly under the hip-hop radar despite a resume of hit singles and number one albums, but his performance at The Catalyst Club impressed and reminded that he is a big-time artist.

Wale brought the heat on a cold, rainy night in Santa Cruz, and his show was a great way to spend a Friday night.