2016 Rap-Up: Drake's 5 Most-Read Stories
2016 was the year of the 6 God.
Adding to his superstar status, Drake turned this year into his most successful yet, breaking records, setting new milestones, and dropping new tunes. Here’s a look at Drizzy’s 5 biggest, most-read stories of the year, according to Rap-Up readers.
1. Drake Unleashes His ‘Views’ Album
Perhaps unsurprisingly, the most-read Drake story of the year comes by way of his most recent, ultra-successful album, Views. Released in April, the 20-track project boasted appearances by Rihanna, Future, PARTYNEXTDOOR, Pimp C, and dvsn, among others. Eventually, it earned more than a billion streams on Spotify alone, not to mention the stellar numbers it notched on Apple Music. Its smash single “One Dance” featuring Wizkid and Kyla also became the 6 God’s first No. 1 as a lead artist and was among the tracks that helped Drizzy tie Lil Wayne for most Hot 100 appearances ever as a soloist.
2. Drake Is Ready to Battle Eminem
A year after battling Meek Mill, it was another near-feud that became the second most-read Drake story of the year. It happened back in August when Hot 97’s Ebro Darden claimed that Drake privately told him he was ready for a rap battle with Eminem. After the story blew up and after Drizzy called Hot 97 out for “lies,” Darden backtracked, saying he was only joking when he made this claim. Em and Drizzy then calmed all beef talks when they performed together during “Summer Sixteen’s” stop in Slim Shady’s hometown of Detroit.
3. Drake Releases Four New Songs, Announces ‘More Life’
Still, it was music that moved the needle for Drake. In October, he announced a new project More Life and released four new songs as part of the third most-read Drizzy story of the year. The fresh unloading included a remix to Dave’s “Wanna Know” as well as three new 6 God cuts: “Fake Love,” “Two Birds, One Stone,” and the 21 Savage-assisted “Sneakin’.” “Two Birds” was highlighted by Kid Cudi and Pusha T disses, which the 6 God would be criticized for, mostly due to Cudder’s hospitalization at the time. But it was another one of those songs, “Fake Love,” which would go on to great heights on the Hot 100, peaking recently at No. 10.
4. Drake & Rihanna Sizzle in Their Steamy ‘Work’ Video
It’s hard to talk about 2016 without mentioning Drake and Rihanna. While he may or may not have moved on to Jennifer Lopez in recent weeks, it was his RiRi relationship that ruled the headlines for much of the year, highlighted of course by their infectious “Work” collaboration. The song’s sultry and flirty music video became the fourth most-read Drake story of the year. A combo visual, directed by both X and Tim Erem, was huge for both of them as it was Rihanna’s piecesecond most-read story of the year.
5. Drake Drops New Single ‘Summer Sixteen’
Finally, rounding out Drake’s top 5 stories of the year was his “Summer Sixteen” anthem. Released in January, the song showed Drizzy was picking up where he left off in 2016 and that he had a fresh batch of heat for the new year. The cut featured scathing bars aimed at Meek Mill and Tory Lanez, as well as a slight about Kanye West’s pool size. Eventually, the loose single would become one of the year’s biggest and most popular tours co-headlined by Future.
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