Drake has had a long and exciting career. The Canadian rapper and singer has become one of the most decorated artists in hip-hop, with four Grammy awards, 13 BET awards and a whopping 34 Billboard awards. However, his perceived creativity has consistently been under scrutiny from people worldwide.
Graham has long claimed he is a fan of all types of music. However, his attempts to make, incorporate, and profit from culture and genres of music he has no knowledge of have caused many to see him as someone who dilutes rich and culturally significant sonics for his own profit.
Most consider Drake a hip-hop artist. However, during his 15-year career, he has had suspicious stints making other genres before returning to his staple trap-soul style. Although rap music is one of the most dominant styles of music, its current homogeneity has caused many to look at newer and more exciting genres such as Afrobeat, Amapiano and UK Drill.
The uproar concerning Graham’s exploration of other genres is due to his suspicious timing. Whether its Grime, Afrobeat, Amapiano or Drill, the Toronto native only seems to incorporate elements from different genres when they are at the peak of their popularity.
In 2014 the ‘Best I Ever Had’ act was inserting himself into the fold of Grime. However, when the buzz was no longer there, in 2018, he hopped onto Afrobeat. In 2020 he began attempting to make UK Drill, and his 2022 project Honestly, Nevermind featured production Amapiano producers such as Black Coffee, Tresor and Sona.
This experimentation has polarised fans for years. Graham has even been accused of stealing cadences from other rappers, such as XXXTentacion. Some claim the artist is merely embracing and supporting these various artists and their culture, while others suspect it is slightly more insidious.
Regardless of if it is appreciation or appropriation, the genre-hopping and latching onto different movements have made many unsure of Graham, and as such, over the years, he has earned himself the title of “Culture Vulture.”
