Drake has been an integral part of Hip Hop in 2013. With the release of Nothing Was The Same, “Wu-Tang Forever,” “The Language” and more, Drake made headlines throughout the year. HipHopDX has looked back at the year for Beyonce and Kendrick Lamar this week. Here’s a look at Drake’s 2013 in news. 

Drake “Nothing Was The Same” Release Date, Cover Art & Tracklist

This year, Drake released Nothing Was The Same, his most recent full-length studio album. The work features “Tuscan Leather,”“Worst Behavior,”“The Language” and “Wu-Tang Forever,” selections that helped Drake reach platinum certification with this release. After the project arrived, Drake spoke about making it. “My right-hand partner in music creation, challenged me on this album to trim that fat,” Drake said. “To make a very concise project and asked me to—actually gave me a song cap. Asked me to keep it at 13 or 14 songs on the original. And so that was an interesting challenge for me. And now that it’s out and the world appreciates it, it’s a great feeling.” 

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Kendrick Lamar Releases “Control” & Drake Responds

With “Control,” Kendrick Lamar made waves. Drake was subsequently asked about the track and made headlines with a series of interviews where the Toronto rapper addressed Lamar. In one particular interview, Drake said Kendrick Lamar is not his biggest competition in Rap and that he felt “Control” wasn’t as memorable as others. “He’s the new guy to love and rightfully so,” Drake said in a CRWN interview regarding Kendrick Lamar. “He’s super talented…That verse was a moment to talk about. Are you listening to it now, at this point in time? But it was real cool for a couple weeks. But if I ask you, for example, how does that verse start? Mind you, it’ll go on and Complex or Rap Radar will give it ‘Verse of the Millennium’ and all that shit or whatever…I remember somebody asked if Kendrick Lamar is my biggest competition in this generation. I think Kendrick has the utmost potential. I see Kendrick tomorrow, I’ma dap him. I didn’t feel a way about the verse. I get it. I get the moment. And I know that verse had no malice behind it because I saw him five days later at the VMAs and it was all love…When it comes to competition, I’m more about consistency. I’m more worried about bodies of work. I’m talking about hit records. I’m basically talking about, there’s one guy who’s up every night thinking about how to get better and how to do things bigger. That’s Kanye West. He’s always gonna be the guy that’s trying to outthink and outdo. So, for me, that’s my guy that I aspire to surpass. As far as Kendrick goes, I can’t wait to see what he does. Now it’s time to show and prove. It’s been one album. Consistency, you need more than one album. It’s time to show and prove. I look forward to seeing what he does. He’s fuckin’ super talented. Cheers to Kendrick Lamar.” Eventually, Lamar appeared to aim a “BET Hip Hop Awards” cypher verse at Drake and Drake responded with “The Language,” a selection he later acknowledged was likely inspired by Kendrick Lamar

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Nicki Minaj Addresses Drake’s Status With YMCMB

In July, Nicki Minaj responded to questions regarding Drake’s status with Young Money Cash Money Billionaires. During an interview with New York radio station Hot 97, Minaj was asked whether Drake is in Young Money or not and Minaj offered what she said sounded like a riddle as her answer. “Is he not in Young Money?” Hot 97’s Funkmaster Flex said to Minaj. “I’m not saying it wrong, but something is definitely not the same as the first album [with Drake]. That’s how I feel. How do you feel?” Minaj responded. “Peoples’ perception of their reality is their perception of their reality,” Minaj said. “Sometimes people make moves based on their perception of what reality is. I know that sounds like a riddle, but maybe one day you’ll be able to unravel that one. All I can say is this, Lil Wayne is everything to me. I can’t speak for anyone else. What Young Money and Cash Money did for Nicki Minaj, I can never repay them for. So, I am forever indebted to them. Whatever happens with any other artist, I don’t know. [Drake’s] so talented. Sometimes, we’ve seen this. Sometimes when you’re really intelligent and you’re really talented, you also think a lot. Sometimes your mind is racing with thoughts. It is what it is. People go through their own motions and you’ve gotta respect it and keep it moving. We all love the team. We all love Wayne. That’s what’s gonna always hold us together. Drake is my baby because that’s how it was when we came in. So whenever I think of him, ‘That’s my baby.’ Whatever is going on now, obviously we’re all very busy and you know, shit happens. It gets a little hard to have a real connection when people are on different sides of the world, working on different things. You just never know who people got in their ear or what they’re feeling or maybe they felt wronged in some way. I don’t know. I just know that Drake is my baby and Wayne is my everything.” Drake would later address his relationship with Minaj on “Tuscan Leather,” saying that it had been strained. Drake also later acknowledged that the two were friendly again

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Other Notable Drake Stories In 2013

Drake Says He Lost Respect For Kendrick Lamar’s Sentiments On “Control”

Drake Says He Fixed Relationship With Nicki Minaj

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Papoose Says Kendrick Lamar Is A “Joke,” Disses Kanye West, Drake & Big Sean

Drake Dresses As Kanye West For Halloween 2013

Drake Confirms Jhene Aiko Feature On “Nothing Was The Same”

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TDE Executives React To Drake’s Verse On Future’s “Shit” Remix

Drake Disses Chris Brown, Says He’s Not Thinking About Rihanna

Inspectah Deck Denounces Drake’s “Wu-Tang Forever,” Denies Remix Involvement