Aubrey Drake Graham (born October 24, 1986), known as Drake, is a Canadian rapper, singer, songwriter, and actor
. He began his career as a child actor before becoming one of the most successful and influential artists in modern hip-hop and R&B.
Early life and acting career:
- Family background: Drake was born in Toronto, Ontario, to an African American musician father and a white Canadian Jewish educator mother. His parents divorced when he was five, and he was raised primarily by his mother.
- Religious and ethnic identity: He was raised in his mother’s Jewish faith and attended a Jewish day school. He later spoke about feeling different from his classmates and said, “Being Jewish is kind of a cool twist. It makes me unique”.
- Degrassi: The Next Generation: At age 15, he landed the role of Jimmy Brooks on the Canadian teen drama Degrassi: The Next Generation, playing a basketball star who becomes paralyzed after being shot. He remained on the show for seven years.
Transition to music:
- Early mixtapes: While still acting, Drake pursued his true passion for music. He released his first independent mixtape, Room for Improvement, in 2006, and followed it with Comeback Season in 2007. The single “Replacement Girl” from the latter garnered national attention on BET.
- Signing with Young Money: His mixtape work caught the attention of rapper Lil Wayne, which led to a contract with Lil Wayne’s Young Money Entertainment in 2009.
- So Far Gone: His third mixtape, So Far Gone, was released in 2009 and featured his breakout single “Best I Ever Had”.
Rise to superstardom:
- Studio albums: Drake’s debut studio album, Thank Me Later (2010), debuted at number one on the Billboard 200. This was followed by a string of commercially and critically successful albums, including Take Care (2011), Nothing Was the Same (2013), and Views (2016).
- Unique style: Drake’s signature style blends singing and rapping, often shifting from braggadocio to vulnerable introspection.
- Chart dominance: His career is marked by unprecedented chart dominance, with numerous Billboard Hot 100 number-one singles and multiple number-one albums.
- Awards and recognition: He has won multiple Grammy Awards and was named Billboard’s Artist of the Decade for the 2010s.
Other ventures:
- OVO Sound: In 2012, Drake co-founded the record label OVO Sound.
- Entrepreneurship: His business portfolio includes the OVO fashion brand and a partnership with the Toronto Raptors NBA team as a “global ambassador”.
- Personal life: Drake is a father to a son named Adonis, born in 2017, with artist Sophie Brussaux.
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