Whereas Wale is admittedly on edge, Jerry is calm. Jerry’s life lessons spawned entire tracks on the album, and his sage (and hilarious) wisdom on art and fame have allowed the rapper to view the world a little differently. He’s not the hip-hop zen master Rick Rubin is, but Seinfeld seems to have a calming influence on Wale. It’s clear the pair’s relationship runs deeper than a few recorded skits. The comedian is all over Wale’s forthcoming The Album About Nothing, serving as a sort of narrator and muse, contributing spoken-word segments that form the basis for many of the songs. This year, Seinfeld truly goes from being Wale’s inspiration to his collaborator. They later discussed working together on The Album About Nothing, which led to the comedian appearing on The Gifted’s “Outro About Nothing,” where Seinfeld sounds perplexed that he’s shown up to record vocals and Wale isn’t ready to start the project. After hearing the mixtape, an appreciative Seinfeld arranged to meet Wale backstage at a 2008 gig in Baltimore. Wale’s been rapping about Seinfeld since 2008, when he dropped The Mixtape About Nothing, which took inspiration from episode titles and samples of the show and featured a shout-out from actress Julia Louis-Dreyfus, who played Elaine Benes. The Seinfeld-Wale friendship isn’t quite as odd as it seems (although let’s face it, it’s still a little odd). (It’s water under the bridge now.) When they see each other, the Maybach Music Group MC and the comedy god embrace like old friends. Wale, too, is known for emotional outbursts, like the time he threatened a Complex employee because his album The Gifted didn’t make a list of the 50 Best Albums of 2013. rapper who sports a full head of dreadlocks and a pair of crisp, $2,000 “What the Dunk” Nike SBs (he’s brought along a pair of Jordans for Jerry). Jerry’s breakfast buddy today is Wale, a renowned D.C. Back in the ’90s, Jerry’s regular diner companion was an anxious, balding, unemployed “architect” named George, a guy who favored Nike Cortez and was prone to occasional fits of temper. Seinfeld’s come to the Remedy to meet a friend. Not many guys in dad jeans are known to baristas around town just by their initials.

Or maybe it’s the “J.S.” scrawled on the Starbucks cup he’s clutching as he steps through the door. Maybe it’s the fully-3M’d Nike Olympic Jacket, or the pristine blue, green, and white Nike Huarache sneakers. But there are a few tells that indicate this isn’t your average 60-year-old normcore banker.

White, middle-aged, hood pulled over his head, he could be mistaken at first glance for just another of the LES’s recent yuppie transplants. When an unassuming man walks into the Remedy Diner on

Wale the gifted intro full song