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Drake began his career in the music industry in 2006 and has been building a strong fanbase ever since.
During a recent interview with fellow rapper Lil Yachty, Drake hinted at the possibility of retirement when asked about his vision for the future. The rapper spoke about the concept of making a "graceful exit" :
"I think I’m at the point now where I just wanna, like, I feel like maybe we talked about this the other day. But I feel like I’m kind of introducing the concept in my mind of a graceful exit."
The interview soundbite was part of the inaugural episode of Lil Yachty's YouTube series, FutureMood, titled A Moody Conversation, which aired on February 25, 2023.
Drake is not retiring yet
While the small initial soundbite may have sparked some conversation between fans of the Canadian rapper, the full video clarifies the fact that Drake is not looking to retire in the near future, speaking about making interesting projects, and not just being a performer for the spotlight:
"Oftentimes, you’re addicted to the competition itself. And so, sometimes it’ll baffle you. Like, why are these people still making attempts at like, trying to be present in the space? And then, you’ll realize that they probably—their needs and desires and their soul was probably fed for so long off of being ‘a guy’ or ‘the guy,’ they can’t let it go"
The conversation with Lil Yachty is not the only time the rapper has hinted at the possibility of retirement, as he talked about his past and future with the opening statement of his January performance at Apollo Theater in Harlem, New York:
"I wanted to make this about gratitude"
He later said:
"I’ve thought about a bunch of things in life, but at this moment in time, none of those things are stopping making music for you. So I’ll be here for you for a little bit at least."
Tracing Drake's music and acting career
Aubrey Drake Graham, better known by his stage name Drake, is a Canadian rapper who was born in October 1986 in Toronto, Ontario, where he lived at Weston Road neighborhood with his mother till he was in grade 6, before they moved to Forest Hills neighborhood.
The rapper and actor began his career at the age of 15 with the CTV teen drama Degrassi: The Next Generation, playing the main character role of Jimmy Brooks till season 7, as well as guest appearances in season 8 of the show.
Speaking about his time in the show in an exclusive interview with Vibe, Drake had the following to say:
"My mother was very sick. We were very poor, like broke. The only money I had coming in was from the show."
While he started experimenting with music during his time on the show, Drake released his first breakthrough mixtape, So Far Gone, in 2009.
The mixtape was successful enough to be rereleased as an EP, which was well received as well.
In 2010, he achieved critical acclaim with his album, Thank Me Later, which debuted as the chart topper on the Billboard 200 charts in the US, selling over 447,000 copies within the first week of its release.
The rapper followed it up with his second album, Take Care, in 2011. The album released to positive reviews, debuting as the chart topper on Billboard 200 charts, despite its digital leak days before the official release.
The album sold more than 631,000 copies within the first week of its release and well over 2 million copies within the year.
