Check out some experts from his Complex Magazine piece where he gets to repeat everything you may have heard and keep his fans at bay until the album drops:
Around the time that Kanye directed “Best I Ever Had,” it seemed like there was strife between your camp and Cudi’s camp because Kanye was so enamored of you while Cudi’s project was being worked on.
Drake: I wasn’t aware of that. Even so, I could understand. If Wayne were to be enamored—which is a great word—of another young artist, I would be like, “Damn, I’m here too!” But at the same time, it happens in more than one situation. It happens with ‘Ye, and I have a great relationship with Jay, and Jay’s got Wale and J. Cole, who’s one of my favorite dudes rapping right now. I’ve happened to have had more success. I made the most money, I have number-one records, those guys don’t have that shit. And it’s just facts, it’s not even my feelings or that I feel I’m more talented. That’s what the game is about, making great music that earns profit. When it comes to my relationship with the new dudes, I’m just excited for them. I get to sit back in a cool position and be like, “Yo, I’m excited to see you do it now because I know what it’s like, it’s gonna be so much fun for you…”
I think it’s just that you were so far from what people expected when they thought “Young Money.”
Drake: Everyone seems to have a comment for me about Young Money, “Fuck Young Money” or “Why are you with them?” But what people have to understand is maybe there was a way for me to be successful without Young Money. But we’ll never know. My loyalty is to Wayne, and that goes for anybody who genuinely believes in me. We don’t have the most personal relationship where we hang out every day or we talk that much, but Wayne’s admiration and respect goes without being verbally said. He put his neck out there for me at a very early stage, and those actions tell me everything I need to know about how he feels about me as an artist.
Are we the only ones that think all this hype might actually hurt the new rapper?
{ 11 comments… read them below or add one }
Yeah ur the only one. ALL BY UR SELF!!!
Drake = OVERRATED!!!! drastically
agreed! totally overrated. And Kid Cudi is sooooo much better!
btw. Complex kills it when it comes to covers. Its like so much better than any other magazine ik out there.
so far gone and MOST of the music (not previously unreleased mixtape scraps) that has resulted from his increased hiphop/media awareness has spoken for itself, i.e., Fear, Forever, verses on Every Girl & Bedrock, Say Something, even the damn hook on Off That…however, Thank Me Later seriously has to be on the level of Kanye’s College Drop Out or better for the hype/buzz to be materialized…will Drake be the hiphop LeBron or Harold Miner?! i’m excited to see – hoping that it’s LeBron b/c then it’s a win-win for hiphop…we cannot afford for this kid to flop…especially when people are still sleeping on/NOT buying SlaughterHouse, Cudi, Lupe, Clipse, Kiss, etc.
btw folks…this is NOT the 1st time we’ve seen the “machine” (hiphop corporates * media outlets) completely back a young artist w/ POTENTIAl…remember Game’s 1st album???…what other DEBUT in recent years had Kanye, Dr. Dre, Pharell & Just Blaze produce on it???…this time just hope Drake “makes it all worth it.”
…afford for this kid to flop?????
nigga who da fuck r u, his mutha????
hip hop is dead and he ain’t our salvation.
gotta say that was a pretty weak attempt at being funny – or as you may of THOUGHT you were doing – “keeping it real”…you sound semi-educated in some of your other posts SO I KNOW that YOU KNOW what i meant by WE can’t afford for him to flop – there is also a tone of HATE in your posts though that bother me a bit…so let me say this – hip hop will NEVER DIE you idiot…like ALL THINGS it evolves – which means it changes for better and worse…Drake’s indeed a change for the better in most circles…meaning that if we as HIPHOP FANS are gonna be force-fed watered-down versions of Kane, KRS, Rakim, etc. i’d rather it be in the form of this multi-racial, witty, seemingly-honest, lyrically-crafty young man than the New Kids on the Block Boyz, DeAndre the Citizen Boy, Not-a-Hurricane by any means Kris, Waka Flaka I Got Shot Guy, umm, let’s see who else…Maxi Pad B’ Sure, Yung Chuckie Cheese…but i digress…in any event i’ll see you at the Thank Me Later album signing in w/e town you’re failing to keep up on your rent/car payments in…peace & love…believe that/
Something for everyone to understand, rappers that are somewhat unknown when they drop their first cut, are more than normally hungry and produce absolute masterful albums ( Ludacris, TI , DMX , 50 ,Game, just to name a few) and all of their albums thereafter dropped off significantly. Wayne has gotten better, and thats about it, even Em and Hov and even Ye you could argue are putting out music now that isnt as good or at least even with what they put out in their rookie performances. Why this always happens is for another argument on another day , but the point here is that Drake has hype for his first album like he has already put one or two out. Is he going to drop off like most of his predecessors ? Or is he going to come hard? Lets just say that I wont be suprised if “So far gone” was his Get Rich or Die Trying and that his first actual debut album lacks tremendously in comparison. I hope i am wrong, I think the dude is further along as a rook than any we have seen before, super talented. We shall see.
nah. i think dude will do his numbers. i do think he needs media training tho – cuz in these interviews he comes off as cocky (no hate tho) and not rap cocky (like where both jay and 50 will eviscerate you in a record and then be real humble in interviews) but like real life cocky like he believes his own hype. that can be a problem cuz it will turn off potential fans (especially males). the thing about the music industry in rap is this: the mixtape game determines and builds buzz but generates little revenue. albume sales generate revenue but you can’t get that deal without buzz. ironically enough, males dominate mixtape consumption but women dominate legitimate album sales. so in the modern rap game you need both – you need to keep the male fans via hard mixtape shit to maintain the illusion of buzz to maintain your deal so you can do soft mainstream shit for the ladies.
on his plus side, the ladies dig the dude (pause) and he makes good radio friendly singles with sing-songy hooks. that is a formula for sales, my good friends.
i humbly suggest to his management give him a nice dose of stfu – the way he talks he shouldn’t have a twitter either. otherwise, he’s gonna do fine.
I like drakes music and all but he sounded mad cocky on those excerpts. He talking like he’s been in the game 10 years with all that “I made the most money, I have number-one records, those guys don’t have that shit.” “When it comes to my relationship with the new dudes, I’m just excited for them”….Yeah he’s got hype but dont act like you’re not a NEW artist because your mixtape was more popular…because no matter how great a mixtape is ITS JUST A MIXTAPE
whatever the debate may be Drake gon do BIG NUMBERS whether u like it or not
I hope Drake does his numbers. I do feel that he waited a little too long to put his album out. I feel he should of released his album around the beginning of 4th quarter 2009. But we’ll see what happens next month.