Tag: Drake

  • Drake and The Weeknd continue to boycott the Grammys

    By ANI

    WASHINGTON: Drake and The Weeknd have decided to skip the 2023 Grammy Awards, making this the second consecutive year that both Canadian singers have opted out, according to a Vibe report shared by Page Six.

    Page Six quoted a Vibe report that stated that the two musicians, who have worked together for more than a decade, have already expressed their displeasure with the behind-the-scenes working Recording Academy, the body that oversees the Grammy Awards, which are widely regarded as the highest honour in the music business, on different occasions.

    The “Save Your Tears” singer reportedly took aim at the Recording Academy’s opaque voting method in a March 2021 statement to the New York Times, saying, “Because of the secret committees, I will no longer allow my label to submit my music to the Grammys.”

    According to Page Six, The Weeknd, also vented to Billboard in an interview that was published earlier that year, in January 2021.

    “Look, I personally don’t care anymore. I have three Grammys, which mean nothing to me now, obviously,” he told the music magazine. “I suck at giving speeches anyways. Forget awards shows.”

    Page Six further quoted The Weeknd’s interview with Billboard magazine, “Of his initial shock at the snub, the 32-year-old musician added, “I use a sucker punch as an analogy. Because it just kind of hit me out of nowhere. I definitely felt … I felt things. I don’t know if it was sadness or anger. I think it was just confusion. I just wanted answers. Like, ‘What happened?’”

    According to Page Six, Drake has had a falling out with the Grammys since the 2017 event, when he couldn’t help but notice how his catchy pop/R&B hit “Hotline Bling” had only received nods for Best Rap/Sung Performance and Best Rap Song.

    The 35-year-old voiced concern over how the Grammys seemed to have pigeonholed the single despite winning both categories.

    Drake said on the OVO Sound radio show the day after the 2017 event, “Even though ‘Hotline Bling’ is not a rap song, the only category they can manage to fit me in is a rap category. Maybe it’s because I’ve rapped in the past or because I’m black,” reported Page Six.

    “I love the rap world and I love the rap community, but you’re right. I write pop songs for a reason,” he continued. “I wanna be like Michael Jackson. I wanna be like artists that I’ve looked up to. Those are pop songs, but I never get any credit for that…I won two awards last night, but I don’t even want them, because it feels weird for some reason,” he added.

    WASHINGTON: Drake and The Weeknd have decided to skip the 2023 Grammy Awards, making this the second consecutive year that both Canadian singers have opted out, according to a Vibe report shared by Page Six.

    Page Six quoted a Vibe report that stated that the two musicians, who have worked together for more than a decade, have already expressed their displeasure with the behind-the-scenes working Recording Academy, the body that oversees the Grammy Awards, which are widely regarded as the highest honour in the music business, on different occasions.

    The “Save Your Tears” singer reportedly took aim at the Recording Academy’s opaque voting method in a March 2021 statement to the New York Times, saying, “Because of the secret committees, I will no longer allow my label to submit my music to the Grammys.”

    According to Page Six, The Weeknd, also vented to Billboard in an interview that was published earlier that year, in January 2021.

    “Look, I personally don’t care anymore. I have three Grammys, which mean nothing to me now, obviously,” he told the music magazine. “I suck at giving speeches anyways. Forget awards shows.”

    Page Six further quoted The Weeknd’s interview with Billboard magazine, “Of his initial shock at the snub, the 32-year-old musician added, “I use a sucker punch as an analogy. Because it just kind of hit me out of nowhere. I definitely felt … I felt things. I don’t know if it was sadness or anger. I think it was just confusion. I just wanted answers. Like, ‘What happened?’”

    According to Page Six, Drake has had a falling out with the Grammys since the 2017 event, when he couldn’t help but notice how his catchy pop/R&B hit “Hotline Bling” had only received nods for Best Rap/Sung Performance and Best Rap Song.

    The 35-year-old voiced concern over how the Grammys seemed to have pigeonholed the single despite winning both categories.

    Drake said on the OVO Sound radio show the day after the 2017 event, “Even though ‘Hotline Bling’ is not a rap song, the only category they can manage to fit me in is a rap category. Maybe it’s because I’ve rapped in the past or because I’m black,” reported Page Six.

    “I love the rap world and I love the rap community, but you’re right. I write pop songs for a reason,” he continued. “I wanna be like Michael Jackson. I wanna be like artists that I’ve looked up to. Those are pop songs, but I never get any credit for that…I won two awards last night, but I don’t even want them, because it feels weird for some reason,” he added.

  • Drake pays homage to Sidhu Moosewala at Toronto concert, wears t-shirt with singer’s picture

    By PTI

    NEW DELHI: Rapper-singer Drake paid another heartfelt tribute to Punjabi singer Sidhu Moosewala as he wore a t-shirt with the late musician’s picture printed on it at a recent concert.

    Drake, who has previously condoled Moosewala’s demise on various platforms including social media and his radio show, chose the white t-shirt for his performance in his hometown Toronto, Canada, the videos from which are going viral on the internet.

    A scene from Drake’s OVO Toronto show! #Drake #SidhuMoosewala pic.twitter.com/pBrkER0BZL
    — Bobby Singh (@SinghBobby0) July 29, 2022
    The gig was held on Thursday at History, a new venue in Toronto.

    Moosewala, whose real name was Shubhdeep Singh, was shot dead on May 29 in Punjab’s Mansa district, a day after the state government curtailed his security cover.

    The singer-rapper enjoyed a cult following in India and abroad with songs like “So High”, “Same Beef”, “The Last Ride”, “Just Listen” and “295”.

    Following his demise, Drake shared a picture of the “So High” hitmaker with his mother on Instagram and captioned it, “RIP MOOSE @sidhu_moosewala.”

    He also paid a tribute to Moosewala on his radio show Table for One on Sound42 station on SiriusXM, where he played the Punjabi singer’s tracks “295” and “G-Sh**”.

    Drake started following Moosewala on Instagram in 2020.

    Moosewala, who counted Drake as one of his musical influences and followed him on social media, was a regular performer at live shows in Canada.

    NEW DELHI: Rapper-singer Drake paid another heartfelt tribute to Punjabi singer Sidhu Moosewala as he wore a t-shirt with the late musician’s picture printed on it at a recent concert.

    Drake, who has previously condoled Moosewala’s demise on various platforms including social media and his radio show, chose the white t-shirt for his performance in his hometown Toronto, Canada, the videos from which are going viral on the internet.

    A scene from Drake’s OVO Toronto show! #Drake #SidhuMoosewala pic.twitter.com/pBrkER0BZL
    — Bobby Singh (@SinghBobby0) July 29, 2022
    The gig was held on Thursday at History, a new venue in Toronto.

    Moosewala, whose real name was Shubhdeep Singh, was shot dead on May 29 in Punjab’s Mansa district, a day after the state government curtailed his security cover.

    The singer-rapper enjoyed a cult following in India and abroad with songs like “So High”, “Same Beef”, “The Last Ride”, “Just Listen” and “295”.

    Following his demise, Drake shared a picture of the “So High” hitmaker with his mother on Instagram and captioned it, “RIP MOOSE @sidhu_moosewala.”

    He also paid a tribute to Moosewala on his radio show Table for One on Sound42 station on SiriusXM, where he played the Punjabi singer’s tracks “295” and “G-Sh**”.

    Drake started following Moosewala on Instagram in 2020.

    Moosewala, who counted Drake as one of his musical influences and followed him on social media, was a regular performer at live shows in Canada.

  • Drake releases seventh studio album ‘Honestly, Nevermind’

    By IANS

    LOS ANGELES: As a follow-up to last year’s ‘Certified Lover Boy’, Drake has released his seventh studio album titled ‘Honestly, Nevermind’. Earlier, the rapper made the announcement for the album through his Instagram.Kanye West was quick to like the post which has hip-hop fans reeling at who the album might possibly feature, reports ‘Variety’.He had also invited Drake to appear alongside him at his ‘Free Larry Hoover’ Benefit Concert in December of last year.The new LP includes 14 songs. Earlier, Drake had released the album’s track list, revealing it was executive produced by Noah ’40’ Shebib, Oliver El-Khatib, Noel Cadastre and Black Coffee.Drake’s ‘Certified Lover Boy’, released in September of 2021, featured some heavy-hitting collaborations from Lil Wayne, Kid Cudi, Future, Young Thug, Rick Ross and 21 Savage, amongst others.According to ‘Variety’, the LP shot to No. 1 on the Billboard charts and was a standout with the viral tracks ‘I’m Too Sexy’ featuring Young Thug and Future and the 21 Savage and Project Pat-featuring ‘Knife Talk’.News of ‘Honestly, Nevermind’ comes on the heels of another highly anticipated album announcement as Beyonce will be releasing ‘Act I’ of her next album ‘Renaissance’ on July 29.

  • Drake condoles Punjabi singer Sidhu Moosewala’s death 

    By PTI

    LOS ANGELES: Canadian rapper-singer Drake has paid a tribute to popular Punjabi singer Sidhu Moosewala, who was shot dead on Sunday by unidentified assailants in Punjab’s Mansa district.

    The 27-year-old singer, also a Congress leader, was killed a day after the state government curtailed his security cover. Drake took to his Instagram Stories on Sunday night to remember Moosewala.

    “RIP MOOSE @sidhu_moosewala,” he captioned a picture of the “So High” hitmaker with his mother. In 2020, Drake made headlines when he started following Moosewala on Instagram.”

    Moosewala, who counted Drake as one of his musical influences and followed him on social media, was a regular performer at live shows in Canada.

    On Sunday, Deputy Superintendent of Police (Mansa) Gobinder Singh told PTI that Moosewala was attacked when he was in his jeep at village Jawahar Ke and several bullets hit him.

    Shubhdeep Singh Sidhu, known as Sidhu Moosewala, was among 424 people whose security was withdrawn by the Punjab Police on Saturday.

    Moosewala had fought the recent Assembly election on a Congress ticket from Mansa and was defeated by the AAP’s Vijay Singla. According to police sources, Canada-based Goldy Brar has claimed responsibility for the murder of Moosewala.

  • Drake halts release of ‘Splash Brothers’ in wake of Astroworld tragedy

    By ANI

    WASHINGTON: Grammy-winning artist Drake has halted the release of the upcoming song ‘Splash Brothers’ with rapper French Montana out of respect for the victims of the Astroworld tragedy.

    As per Variety, ‘Splash Brothers’ was set to appear on Montana’s fourth studio album ‘They Got Amnesia’, set to be released on November 19. The song will now likely be released on an upcoming deluxe edition of ‘Amnesia’.

    Montana and Drake have collaborated several times over the years, including on hits such as ‘Pop That’, ‘Stay Schemin’, ‘No Stylist’ and ‘No Shopping’.

    Drake, who was a special guest at the end of rapper Travis Scott’s Astroworld set, has since been named in several of the lawsuits that have followed the festival, which left 10 dead and several other attendees injured.

    Drake took to social media following the tragedy, writing, “I’ve spent the past few days trying to wrap my head around this devastating tragedy… My heart is broken for the families and friends of those who lost their lives and for anyone suffering.”

    Scott also responded immediately after the festival, writing, “I’m absolutely devastated by what took place last night. My prayers go out to the families and all those impacted by what happened at Astroworld Festival. Houston PD has my total support as they continue to look into the tragic loss of life. I am committed to working together with the Houston community to heal and support the families in need. Thank you to Houston PD, Fire Department and NRG Park for their immediate response and support. Love You All.”

    Montana’s ‘They Got Amnesia’ includes scores of other features, including contributions from John Legend, Rick Ross, Kodak Black, Pop Smoke, Lil Durk, Fivio Foreign, Doja Cat, Saweetie, Fabolous, Coi Leray, Ty Dolla $ign, Lil Tjay and more. 

  • Grammy-winning artists Drake, Kanye West end feud by partying together in Toronto

    By ANI

    WASHINGTON: Grammy-winning artists Kanye West and Drake appear to have made amends. The rappers were recently seen partying together at Drake’s Toronto mansion.

    The ‘Donda’ rapper shared a photo of himself alongside Drake and J Prince on Instagram on Tuesday, captioning the post with a single dove emoji.

    J Prince also shared the image, writing that the group had a “beautiful night” in Canada on Monday.

    In his caption, J Prince also alluded that Drake agreed to perform with West on stage next month. In a video last week, West proposed the idea as a concert to benefit Larry Hoover, the co-founder of the Gangster Disciples gang, who is currently in prison in Colorado.

    “Let’s make history December 9 Free Larry Hoover Concert,” J Prince wrote in the caption.

    In a post of his own, Drake shared two videos from the occasion. The first video features comedian Dave Chappelle addressing a crowd in what seems to be Drake’s Toronto home.

    The second video shows the ‘Certified Lover Boy’ rapper with his arm around West as they look down at the camera and dance to music playing in the background. “You have reached your destination,” Drake captioned the post.

    The meetup comes about a week after West addressed his years-long feud with Drake in a video shared by J Prince on Twitter, saying that he was ready to put it “to rest.” “I’m making this video to address the ongoing back-and-forth between myself and Drake,” West said in the video. “Both me and Drake have taken shots at each other and it’s time to put it to rest.”

    Inviting Drake to perform with him, West concluded, “I believe this even will not only bring awareness to our cause but prove to people everywhere how much more we can accomplish when we lay our pride to the side and come together.”

    The feud between the two rappers has spanned years. West just recently mentioned his back-and-forth with Drake when he appeared on the Drink Champs podcast on November 4, reported People magazine.

    Earlier this year, their feud intensified with the release of West’s ‘Donda’ and of Drake’s ‘Certified Lover Boy’, which quickly became Spotify’s most-streamed album in a single day. The release also made Drake the most-streamed artist of 2021, with the most-streamed album of 2021, on Apple Music.

    Though the Canadian rapper never calls out West by name, fans were quick to dissect several lines on multiple songs from ‘Certified Lover Boy’ that appear to take digs at him, most notably on ‘7AM on Bridle Path’.

    Although West and Drake started off as friends and collaborators — West directed the 2009 video for Drake’s breakout single ‘Best I Ever Had’ — their relationship has gone south over the years.

    They’ve argued about West’s alleged involvement in the 2018 leak that Drake has a son — Adonis, now 4 — and rumours that he had hooked up with West’s now-estranged wife Kim Kardashian West, who has denied any romance with Drake.

  • Rapper Drake teases release date for new album ‘Certified Lover Boy’ in cryptic video

    By ANI

    WASHINGTON: Canadian rapper and songwriter Drake’s upcoming extremely anticipated album ‘Certified Lover Boy’ might finally be releasing in September, as per a cryptic clip that aired recently.

    According to Variety, the clip which was a promo for the ESPN show ‘SportsCenter’, initially glitched in and out for a few seconds, and then a man holding a cardboard sign reading “CLB September 3” briefly appeared with garbled audio.

    The normal ‘SportsCenter’ video came back in, and it was business as usual, despite the odd message.

    The video quickly made the rounds on social media, and Drake fans immediately understood it as an announcement for his upcoming sixth studio album, following his most recent album ‘Scorpion’ from 2018.

    Drake’s release date tease came less than 12 hours after Kanye West performed at the third concert hyping up the release of his own highly anticipated and delayed album ‘Donda’.

    West blew up social media on Thursday night by bringing out controversial artists DaBaby and Marilyn Manson during his Chicago concert, where he built a model of his childhood home in Chicago.

    No stranger to controversy and no better way to get fans buzzing about his next album, West also set himself on fire and brought out his ex-wife Kim Kardashian in a wedding dress.

    The two rap icons are no stranger to beef. On Trippie Redd’s recent album ‘Trip at Knight’, the song ‘Betrayal’, featuring Drake, included a line that fans interpreted as a shot at West and a looming release date battle between their albums.

    “All these fools I’m beefin’ that I barely know. Forty-five, 44 (Burned out), let it go. Ye ain’t changin’ shit for me, it’s set in stone,” Drake rapped on the song.

    Music industry experts and fans had recently theorized an album showdown between Drake and West this fall between ‘Certified Lover Boy’ and ‘Donda’.

    However, as per Variety, West still has not set a release date for ‘Donda’, and Drake has taken the first move by nailing down September 3 for ‘Certified Lover Boy’. 

  • Drake to receive Artist of the Decade honour at Billboard Music Awards

    By PTI
    LOS ANGELES: Canadian rapper and singer Drake will be honoured with Artist of the Decade Award at the 2021 Billboard Music Awards.

    The announcement was made by NBC and Dick Clark Productions in a statement posted on the official website of Billboard Music Awards (BBMA) on Tuesday.

    Drake holds the record for the most Billboard Music Awards with 27, reaching this record after taking home 12 awards in 2019.

    Over the past decade he’s also broke several Billboard chart records, including having nine Number One albums and 33 top 10 songs on the Hot 100.

    Drake is also up for seven awards at the 2021 ceremony, including the top artist trophy.

    The organisers had recently announced that singer Pink will receive the Icon Award, honouring record-breaking artists and their impact on music.

    Singer-actor Nick Jonas will host the 2021 edition of the Billboard Music Awards, which are scheduled to take place on May 23.

    The Weeknd, who is leading the nominations with 16 nods, is among the performers announced for the ceremony.

  • Drake delays new album ‘Certified Lover Boy’ as focus shifts on his health recovery

    By PTI
    LOS ANGELES: Rapper Drake has announced that his new album ‘Certified Lover Boy’ has been pushed back as he is focused on his health recovery.

    The new album was earlier slated to release on Janaury 20 but in a statement posted on his Instagram story, Drake said that he will announce a new date.

    “I was planning to release my album this month but between surgery and rehab my energy has been dedicated to recovery. I’m blessed to be back on my feet and feeling great and focused on the album, but CLB won’t be dropping in January,” the 34-year-old rapper wrote.

    “I’m looking forward to sharing it with you all in 2021,” he added.

    Though Drake has not shared any details on his surgery, but back in October, he had uploaded a photo of his leg in a brace, which led to speculations that he suffered a knee injury.

    ‘Certified Lover Boy’ will mark his sixth full-length studio album and will be the follow-up to 2018’s ‘Scorpion’.

    His other albums were — ‘Thank Me Later’ (2010), ‘Take Care’ (2011), ‘Nothing Was the Same’ (2013) and ‘Views’ (2016).