Everybody wants a piece of the streaming pie right now. It’s been said that hopping on Twitch or Kick can be more lucrative than pursuing industry accolades alone. So, why wouldn’t an artist play the content game right now? Even Drake, one of the biggest rappers in the world, decided to try his hand in the streaming game ahead of his upcoming album Iceman. He certainly doesn’t need the money, so why is he doing it? Apparently, he’s getting awfully bored with traditional album rollouts. Streaming allows him to do something new.
Recently, Drake spoke with Complex over email about his experimentation with the Iceman rollout. He’s taken his streams on the road, in warehouses, anything to try and juice interest for his new record. Why? “I was asked by a creative partner what I love and hate about rolling out an album,” Drake explains. “I expressed that I love the opportunity for a clean slate of thoughts and excitement and messaging when it comes to the music. What I hate is the redundancy of this formulaic approach that’s ingrained in our brains from early label days. Single, video, single, video, album cover post, etc.”
Drake is Tired of the Same ol’ Album Rollouts
Consequently, the OVO head opted to try out streaming on YouTube to craft a storyline around his album. In between crafting the narrative, he’d debut singles to gauge fan interest. All of this serves a central need to shake things up in his own career and creative expression. Rinsing and repeating the same, tried-and-true formula will make the music-making process extremely stale after a while. Moreover, the fans would start to feel it too. As a result, Drake would’ve rather flopped on his face with the Iceman streams than lean on ol’ reliable.
“I have been dying to act and have been dying for a challenge,” he tells Complex. “The game is extremely calm seas right now. Nobody is rocking any boat on the water, and so once we discussed a live stream rollout, it just sounded like the perfect mix of risk and reward for me.”
If nothing else, Drake sees how quickly the landscape of music promotion has changed. Instead of being stubborn and sticking with the old ways, he’s following suit and switching things up. “I think I am always capable of recognizing when things are shifting and not being weirdly affected by it,” he says. “Not being jealous, not being thirsty, just finding how I can shine light or co-exist or make it a part of our ecosystem.”
The post ‘Nobody Is Rocking Any Boat on the Water’: Drake Explains Why He’s Dipping His Toes Into Streaming for New Album appeared first on VICE.
