The People v. Drake

Let me pose a question: what’s the most synonymous thing with Drake? Maybe “star,” (or I’m inclined to say Ashley Kerwin) but what if it’s just “beef”? I mean, sure, when you’re an artist of that fame, at that level, it’s hard to not have people coming after you; but sometimes it seems like Drake always does everything just a little more, even if he’s not even the one starting it. And while many people seem to have problems with him for one reason or another (even I share some unrequited beef with the rapper), it seems like a lot of it is centered on one thing: biting flows.

Hip-hop and rap’s long and lush history has allowed itself to become an incredible art form, one that transcends just the lyrics & music. And while an artist’s flow isn’t explicitly stated in the five elements of hip-hop (which also doesn’t include the movie The Fifth Element), it is definitely a part of the artistry, and is definitely included in the element of emceeing. A rapper’s flow can become their trademark, and there have been so many in the past that have created their own iconic flows that have influenced and impacted other artists.

But biting flows doesn’t always have to lead to sudden death – Cardi B literally got a number one single and beat a bunch of records by biting off Kodak Black’s flow. So what’s the difference here? Maybe it’s that Bardi literally named her song “Bodak Yellow;” maybe it’s that Drake has done this too many times.

The accusations about Drake biting flows are not new. I’m not the first person to bring this up, and I definitely won’t be the last. When Drizzy dropped “Hotline Bling” back in 2015, D.R.A.M. accused him of ripping of his song “Cha Cha” released just a year earlier (something that Drake hasn’t technically addressed, but Erykah Badu has). Last year, XXXTentacion made the claims that Drake bit his flow off of “Look at Me” on “KMT” off of More Life (2017). And don’t the ad libs on his new single “God’s Plan” sound scarily similar to Carti’s?

It’s pretty simple though: Drake is a tastemaker, not necessarily a creator. He’s like an art gallery, curating the sounds and rhythms that he can bring to the top. He’s always finding out who’s just slightly ahead of the curve, and how he can use that to affect the music world. It’s why his music is so versatile and evolves so much, since he can’t seem to stand still; Jamaica Drake on IYRTITL (2015), Atlanta Drake on his Future/Metro Boomin collabed What a Time to Be Alive (2015), and Grime Drake on More Life. It’s what has kept him in the game for so long, what’s keeping him going even further. Take, for instance, the deal with XXXTentacion, who, after his beef with Drake, blew up from a small Florida rapper to getting placed as an XXL Freshman, signing a $6 million deal with Capitol Records, and having a platinum record. Beef with Drake is better than no beef at all.

The empire that Drake has built, though, isn’t an easy one to knock down, and even with so many fans who swore they were done with Drake after things like this, that doesn’t seem to be the case. So then how do we approach the claims that have been made and will continue to made against him? As fans, is it our jobs to monitor and check artists, or is it our job to just enjoy the music and chalk it up to “influence”? Who’s the real winner in these situations, is it the artist or the fans (I guess the answer is the music bloggers who finally have content to write about)? We can’t (and shouldn’t) have to police artists for every single part of their style, but that doesn’t mean allowing bigger names to take the work of budding musicians just for the sake of “art.”

Written by Leka Gopal