Drake has recently come under much criticism for his music, with many hip-hop pundits claiming that he is not a rap artist and has deprived credible emcees of awards. However, Bronx legend Grandmaster Flash recently came out in his defence.
Grandmaster Flash is one of many South Bronx DJs who helped pioneer the hip-hop genre, and, during an interview at the 66th Annual Grammy Awards, he addressed the grievances of many that the Candian act (real name Aubrey Graham) is not a real emcee.
During a conversation on the red carpet, the ‘White Lines’ creator co-signed the Young Money artist and unveiled that people can’t understand that his versatility doesn’t discount him from being hip-hop.
Unveiling why he likes Drake, Flash (real name Joseph Saddler) explained, “What I admire about Drake is he’ll rap on all different styles of beats, and back in the day, when I was DJing and cutting, and a rapper was in front of me, he was rapping on all the beats I played!”
He continued, “Sometimes, the beat was jazz, sometimes it was pop, sometimes it was rock, sometimes it was blues, sometimes it was R&B, sometimes it was disco.” Saddler is known for his eclectic collection of epic breaks.
As such, the DJ concluded, “So I think the kaleidoscope of music that he’s doing — his style — is absolutely excellent. This is why he’s so big! Because he’s not just staying on one particular style of beat; he’s rhyming on everything and that’s dope.”
This conversation arose after Yasiin Bey (formerly Mos Def) called Drake’s music “pop” during an appearance on The Cutting Room Floor podcast, where he asserted, “Drake is pop to me. In the sense like, if I was in Target in Houston and I heard a Drake song, it feels like a lot of his music is compatible with shopping. Or shopping with an edge, in certain instances.”
Other figures, including Joe Budden, have questioned the authenticity of Drake’s recent music, and the rhymer has come under a lot of fire since the release of his latest album, For All The Dogs.
