DRAKE DEBUT ALBUM & JULY LIVE DATES IN LONDON

From Florence to Dappy, from Jay-Z to Alicia, they’re all agreed Drake is amazing and about to explode…The marquee signing to Lil Wayne’s Young Money Records, and without question the hottest, most exciting artist to explode onto the US music scene in recent memory, Drake will be playing his first ever UK headlining dates at London’s 02 Shepherd’s Bush Empire on Monday July 12th and Tuesday July 13th. The sense of anticipation for this 23 year old Canadian’s arrival in the UK is such that a second date had to be added after the original show sold out within hours of going on sale. Tickets are £25.50 in advance (plus booking fee) and are available at www.livenation.co.uk. The shows, (featuring special guests) will be the US superstar’s first headlining dates in this country and follow his recent special guest performances on Jay-Z’s June Manchester and Birmingham dates. Drake is also confirmed as special guest of Jay-Z for the Wireless festival on July 4th. The June dates precede the release on June 14th of Drake’s hugely anticipated debut album "Thank Me Later” through Young Money/Cash Money/Universal/Island Records while his future smash single “Find Your Love” will be released on July 12th. Since the release of his debut single “Best I Ever Had” which peaked at no.2 in the US charts, there was no doubting that the 24 year old Canadian native, born Aubrey Drake Graham, would become the hottest property in hip hop and that his debut album would be the most feverishly anticipated long player in years. Drake has already enjoyed Top 10 chart success in the UK as a key member of the Young Money collective whose single “Bedrock” was a huge hit in the UK just recently. You will also have heard Drake’s distinctive flow on big singles from the likes of Jay-Z, Eminem, Alicia Keys, Kanye West, Lil Wayne and Mary J Blige to name but a few. His mini album “So Far Gone” was released last year to keep his enormous fan-base happy while he to readied “Thank Me Later”. Growing up in Toronto and Memphis, Drake first entered the world of entertainment as a teenager when he starred for 8 years on the hit teen show “Degrassi: The Next Generation”. Born into a musical family, his father drummed with Jerry Lee Lewis, and his uncle is the legendary bass player Larry Graham. He released his first mixtape, “Room For Improvement”, in 2006 and his second, “Comeback Season”, followed a year later but it was the release early last year of “So Far Gone”, widely considered one of the best albums of 2009 even though it’s only a mixtape at that stage, that really catapulted Drake to the forefront of the US music scene. In addition to working on “Thank Me Later”, 2009 also saw him recovering from a painful knee injury, for which he had to undergo surgery. He made his mainstream debut performance at this year’s Grammy Awards, performing alongside hip hop heavyweights Lil Wayne and Eminem for their hit single “Forever”. Drake was proudly introduced by Lil Wayne, showing the world a sign of things to come.

WHAT HE PAPERS, FLORENCE & DAPPY SAY
“My favourite songs at the moment are ‘Over’ by Drake, and Alicia keys ‘Unthinkable (I’m ready)’ (which was written by Drake apparently, biig fan) …” Florence Welch, Florence + The Machine
“My favourite album of 2009 is So Far Gone by Drake. It’s a fresh new sound with killer hooks and lyrics. He’s the biggest artist to watch for in 2010 I’m behind him all the way” Dappy N-Dubz
“It doesn’t get much hotter in the world of the hip and the hop than Drake right now” NME
“(Drake) Touted as the next Kanye, a worthy heir to D’Angelo’s neo-soul throne” The Observer
“The hottest MC in the game. Not since 50 Cent’s rise has a hip hop act blown up so thoroughly without a major label deal ” Rolling Stone
“The most talked about name in the business…He’s gonna be huge” FHM
“Drake is so hot…Drake right now is like Snoop in 93 and 50 Cent in 03” Echoes
“Drake continues to prove he’s worthy of the hype” Billboard
“The hottest new voice in music” American GQ
“The best connected man in hip hop. Drake will be the biggest name in hip hop in 2010” GQ
“Canadian, affluent, sensitive. Drake is hip hop’s brightest new star simply because he is unlike any rapper before him” Spin magazine
“Rap Royalty” XXL