Hello! This week I will be exploring the genre of rap music, and the featured artist will be Drake! Drake is not only one of my favorite rappers, but also my favorite artist; I listen to him almost every day!

The technical definition of rap is: “a vocal style in which the artist speaks lyrically, in rhyme and verse, generally to an instrumental or synthesized beat.” The beginnings of rap and hip-hop music can be traced back to West African griots, who were groups of traveling singers and poets with oral styles similar to present day rappers. Rap music made its debut in the United States around the 1970’s in the South Bronx and New York City areas. African American and Puerto Rican cultures mixed in these areas, and DJs started to isolate the percussion breaks in songs so people could use the beat to start their raps. Rap and hip-hop became more popular as the disco era was coming to age. Since many of the residents of the poor neighborhoods in New York City could not afford to go to fancy disco clubs, they created their own block parties and supplied the music. They used the beats of well-known songs as a basis for their rapping, and their creativity and imagination allowed the raps to start flowing! Eventually rap and hip-hop music began to spread to Los Angeles, and a new West Coast style of hip-hop was invented. Rap music then migrated to Europe, Africa, Asia and other continents and countries. Today, rap music is very popular all around the world, and can be heard on most mainstream radio stations!

Drake, born Aubrey Drake Graham, was originally known for his role in the Canadian television show Degrassi: The Next Generation. In 2006, he released his first mixtape Room For Improvement, which sold around 6,000 copies. He followed this by releasing the Comeback Season mixtape in 2007 and So Far Gone in 2009. This mixtape was the starting point in Drake’s career and he signed a record deal with Lil Wayne’s Young Money Entertainment in mid-2009.
In 2010, Drake released his first studio album titled Thank Me Later, which debuted at number 1 in both Canada and the United States, and has since gone platinum. Drake’s second album, and my personal favorite, is titled Take Care and was released in November of 2011. This album won many awards, including the 2013 Grammy Award for best rap album. The songs on this album are filled with emotion and will definitely be stuck in your head for days. Drake shows us his soft side by singing about emotional break-ups in a few songs, but also brings his energetic rapping to one of the most famous songs on that album, “Headlines.” My personal favorites from this album are “Practice” and “Crew Love.” Drake recently released his third album Nothing Was the Same in September of 2013.

In my opinion, Drake is one of the best rappers in the music business today. He raps about relatable situations that many young people may also be going through. His songs never sound the same; he switches between his “rap voice” and his “singing voice” to keep his songs upbeat and memorable. Check out Drake’s YouTube channel to listen to some of his music! http://www.youtube.com/user/DrakeVEVO

Sources:
http://www.rapworld.com/history/
http://www.hiphop-network.com/articles/general/kurtisblowversionofhiphop.asp
http://www.biography.com/people/drake-596834#chart-topping-success