Going from a little known emcee from Toronto to a global star is no easy task. Doing it in the time that Drake did is nearly impossible. But the man who was discovered on MySpace and debuted with one of the years best selling Rap albums made the impossible look easy. Drake spoke to Global Grind and reflected on his rise to the top.
“Initially, I think I just didn’t know what would happen. I was this rapper with a little bit of buzz, the internet was taking over, and I didn’t know the power of the internet at that point. The true power of social networking and the things we are so emmersed in now. There wasn’t an artist that had been 100% birthed from that outlet and I think to be discovered on MySpace, how I was found, and for it to somehow reach Wayne’s ears and for him to feel so confident about it and call me and to release a mixtape on the internet again and have a record somehow go #1 off a mixtape using the internet as a tool. It was all amazing because it was all a first, I can’t remember that happening in my day. Even if you think of 50, Yay, and Jeezy, I remember having hard copies of all of those tapes. I remember it being more about the radio.”
Drake also spoke about his mixtape hit turning into a Grammy nod. “So I had my #1 hit off of a mixtape which was unheard of and now, I look at Deuces, a Grammy nominated record off of a Mixtape, that was on the internet, that’s happening now, consistently. Its crazy for all of that to translate to an amazing career and accolades, but it’s crazy for that to reach as far as the Grammy’s. I don’t know how to put it any other way. It’s really from 40s apartment to the internet to the Grammy awards. That’s the chain of events as far as my music making. I still record at 40s apartment, I’m in Torono right now recording in his apartment. From 40s apartment to some mastering studio to the radio to the world on the internet to the Grammy Awards. It’s mind-blowing. That’s the journey I can explain.”
