IS DRAKE HIP-HOP? GRANDMASTER FLASH THINKS SO!

By now, you’ve seen the interview where Yaasin Bey (fka Mos Def) says that he doesn’t believe that Drake is “Hip Hop.” Instead, he called Drake “commercial” and something that you would hear played in a Target.

This has caused a lot of debate in the community as to whether or not the Toronto rapper is a “Hip Hop Artist.”

While we still don’t have clarification on what Drake is because, you know, it’s an opinion, one person who did choose to weigh in on the subject is about as Hip Hop as Hip Hop can be. That is none other than Grandmaster Flash.

Flash spoke to HipHopDX on the red carpet of the Grammys and has this to say about why he believes Drake is absolutely Hip Hop.

“Let me tell you why Drake is Hip Hop,” he said. “What I admire about Drake is that he rapped over all different styles of beats. Back in the days when I was DJing and cuttin’, and the rapper was rapping in front of me, he was rapping on the beats that I played,” he explained. “Sometimes the beat was jazz, sometimes it was pop, rock, blues funk, R&B, disco. The kaleidoscope of music that he’s doing and his style is absolutely excellent.”

Flash gave credit to Drake’s diversity and ability to be versatile while still being a student of the game.

Do you agree?