Rapper Drake may just know what’s up

Aubrey Graham is a Canadian actor who was on a teen TV drama. Aubrey Graham also is a rapper named Drake on Lil’ Wayne’s Young Money record label. And dude is blowin’ up. I’m seeing Facebook statuses on top of Facebook statuses with quotes from his most recent “So Far Gone” mixtape. It’s mostly the ladies who are interested (and with lyrics like “Baby you my everything/you all I ever wanted/We can do it real big/Bigger than we ever done it,” how can you resist?), but the fellas aren’t turning their noses up at the 22-year-old’s style. Drake has collaborated with Kanye West, the aforementioned Lil’ Wayne, Trey Songz and some rapper named, like, Jay-Z or something. And as I was listening to Young Jeezy’s new mixtape, he’s on a track called “I’m Goin’ In” with Wayne. So he’s clearly on the up. And he knows it. 

Drake has figured something out about hip-hop and this music biz. If you broaden your base enough, everyone is going to like you. If you can sing and rap well, you’re already on a level that few artists can achieve. (Kanye tries. Kanye is out of tune 75 percent of the time.) Put Bun B on a song, get hip-hop heads that love UGK’s southern swag. Put Omarion or Trey Songz on a track, get the R&B-lovin’ ladies. Hell, rap over Peter Bjorn & John and indie kids won’t be able to not love it. Having Santigold on your mixtape is a luxury, and having Lykke Li on your mixtape is bold, but the hipsters you’ll pull with names like that seals your fate on the blogosphere. Drake has put some of the best artists in any genre on tracks, switched up the style and rapped some truly self- and capitalist-loving verses.

Even though sometimes Drake is sleepy, it’s a sultry sleepy. And not creepy, lick-my-lips-too-much-LL-Cool-J sultry, either. This sleepiness could get old, but Drake’s got this ability to speed it up at the right moments and throw in some cocky line about why everyone loves him. The first three songs on the mixtape are like this. He tends to go back and forth between completely cherishing women and objectifying them, but it works because he’s walking a thin line between sex icon and pompous MC. Well, maybe he’s hopscotching the crap out of that line, but whatever he is doing, it seems effortless.
Is his mixtape too good, though? Can he live up to all his hype? He just wants to be, he just wants to be successful, but has he peaked too soon to be a real force in the industry? I mean, this is the guy that says he’s got “buzz so big (he) could probably sell a blank disc.” I don’t know. I think he’ll be OK. He killed Kanye’s “Say You Will” with his “Say Whats Real,” he makes “Boy Meets World” references and the mentors this kid has been able to snag assures him at least a fairly fruitful career. I’m sure there are Drake haters out there, and I’m still deciding if his persona is even that interesting (born rich, still rich), but it’s hard to hate something so cavalier and catchy.

Drake’s certainly got some room to grow. The New York Times reviewed a show he did, which printed May 27. It was optimistic for the most part, but included were clear doubts about his quick rise to stardom. The piece said that “Drake couldn’t carry the burden placed upon him,” but he’s new to this sort of thing. The world of hip-hop is not “Degrassi: The Next Generation.” At least Drake is posturing as a celebrity enough that he’s gaining the same attention as those more famous. So maybe he’s not as great as he thinks he is just yet, but he does deserve some credit even if he is just a Frankensteinian creation of Yeezy and Weezy. He has plenty of time to fill in the shoes he’s bought himself.

• Sat 21st
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• Sun 22nd
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• Mon 23rd
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• Tue 24th
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