“I swear sports and music are so synonymous/ ‘Cause we wanna be them, and they wanna be us.” - Drake
Who knew how true these words would reign to the Drake and Lebron James comparisons today. The connection between athletes and rappers may seem far fetched to some, but you’d be surprised at how the similarities in their careers overlap. Between the ballers and the shot-callers, their skills, accolades, and reputations intertwine so much so that it’s quite possible for them to have equal counterparts. One of the most apparent and agreed upon comparisons among NBA players and rappers we’ve seen is Drake and Lebron James.
Aside from being one of his biggest inspirations, Drake’s career is very much synonymous to James’. Working his way up the ladder of success in almost the same fashion as James, Drake has earned himself the label of being the Lebron James of Hip-Hop. Both leaders in their own respective fields, the two of them have way more in common than you may think.
Since he crept onto the scene in ‘06 Drake has been absolutely on top of his game. Over a decade later he’s superseded any expectations we’ve had for his career and easily become the one of the all-time greatest Hip-Hop artists of our generation. His impressive musical catalog is one his enormous fanbase cherishes dearly, delivering versatile and unforgettable music each and every time. He’s the head honcho of Hip-Hop now, but his journey to the top wasn’t easy.
The Come Up
Like James, Drake had the odds stacked against him, forcing him to find success in a setting that was dependent on something. Being a biracial rapper from Canada with TV fame from a teenage soap opera, Drake was the complete opposite of what we expected from a rapper. He didn’t represent the struggle, so what made him think he could fit in? He knew he was going to be the biggest thing in music and he wasn’t going to accomplish that by trying to fit in so he created his own lane. Incorporating his unique style of rapping and singing, Drake claimed his well-deserved spot and with some effort we eventually welcomed him with open arms - he was our “Chosen One.” A name that originally described Lebron James during the hypest point of his early career was passed down to his Hip-Hop counterpart.
The Marriage
With the co-sign from Lil Wayne and a spot on Hip-Hop’s dream team Young Money, Drake said his vows to music and proved he was going to be around for quite a while. Similar to Lebron’s entrance into the NBA, Drake a had a lot of people depending on him to be the breath of fresh air that music needed at that time. Investing his whole career into the NBA, Lebron James entered his vows early as well. Being the No. 1 pick for the Cleveland Cavaliers, James had the entire city counting on him to be their saving grace. The pressure only fueled his triumphs, but switching teams to join the Miami Heat lost him loyalty points with Cleveland. In a way this is similar to when the world found out that Drake uses ghostwriters for his tracks - he lost cool points for betraying our trust. This new information turned some fans off of Drake’s music, no longer being able to hold him on the same pedestal he once held. We bragged about the boy having such a cold pen game only to have the wool pulled from over our eyes. Much like Lebron leaving the Cavaliers for the Heat, we didn’t see it coming. It seemed the marriage was over for the both of them - or so we thought.
The Highs and Lows
It didn’t take long for either to get back on top though. Lebron joining Miami to create the Big Three, composed of Dwayne Wade and Chris Bosh, and Drake dishing out hits on top of hits - we couldn’t deny the talents these guys had. Once again Lebron James was the player you loved to hate and Drake’s fame had undoubtedly cemented his place on top so regardless of what L’s he ever took his name would always be in tact. After some minor adjustments, things were finally looking up for them. James helped bring Miami two consecutive championship wins and Drake dropped his collaborative project What a Time to Be Alive with Future and solo album Views.
With the highs came the lows and although they both differed, both Drake and Lebron would be experiencing their own losses. A year after the Miami Heat’s second championship win, Lebron announced that he’d be returning to his hometown team, but his return proved to be bittersweet. With more pressure on him now more than ever, it seemed like James was plagued with carrying the entire team on his back. From 2014-2015 the team saw game-winning success, but still fell short in the NBA Finals matched up against the Golden State Warriors, a match-up that would soon become very familiar. However, in 2016 the Cavaliers saw victory in their triumphant comeback against the Warriors coming away with a championship win. But that victory was short lived as the Warriors would score their second and third championship titles in three years. The reality had set in - if James wanted to see more success he would have to leave his team once again.
Drake on the other hand had be sitting pretty on top of the rap game for awhile now - that is until G.O.O.D. Music CEO and fellow rapper Pusha T came along to ruffle his feathers. In what was a long built-up rap beef, the two came to both blows this past May when Pusha threw subliminals at the 6 God on his album Daytona.
“The lyric pennin’ equal the Trumps winnin’/ The bigger question is how the Russians did it/ It was written like Nas, but it came from Quentin.” - Infrared
They would soon engage in the most intense rap beef we’ve seen in a long time, but Pusha T pulled Drake’s card when he revealed a shocking truth to the world - he was hiding a child. Unresponsive and absent from sight, Drake had to surrender and take that L. That very diss track just might’ve inspired his need to over-compensate that he does indeed have a child and takes care of him as it’s a recurring theme throughout his album Scorpion. However, determined to see this through and stay on top, Drake released his most ambitious body of work to date by delivering a two-sided album revisiting his best qualities and exploring new stages in his life.
The Glory Days
Both now in a position to make the biggest move of their careers, the world waited for them to call their shots. Drake kicked it off last Friday after he released his fifth studio album, Scorpion. Although he fell short with his album Views, the least popular of all his studio releases, he made it clear he was on a mission to prove his worth this go around. Scorpion has been the most anticipated album of the year and Drake made sure that his most daring attempt at releasing the best album of the year didn’t fail. No matter what else was lined up to drop this year, everybody and their mother waited patiently for him to bless us with another No. 1 album. Scorpion went platinum almost instantly, ruling the charts with each song sitting in the top 25. His 25-track double album showcased the two sides of Drake we’ve been exposed to over the course of his career - rapping Drake and R&B Drake. Showing his growth from a boy to a man, Drake’s new album was his sentiment as the greatest of his time to do it.
King James followed up this past weekend with surprising, yet exciting news. Faced with his third free agency decision, the world waited anxiously for his next move - stay with the Cavs or search for better elsewhere. Well he shocked us all with his final decision, Sunday evening the news broke that he’d be joining the Los Angeles Lakers to carry on his legacy.
Both James and Drake had career-defining moments in the past week and they’ve been basking in the height of their success rightfully so. The course of their lives and strikingly similar careers connect in a strange yet fitting way. Lebron James is the blueprint and Drake is his proper counterpart. They’ve flourished in their fields in more ways than one and their grind to make it at (and stay at) the top is unmatched, truly earning their respective titles as King James and the 6 God.
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