“I think it’s a great night for hip-hop,” Drake said at the 52nd annual Grammy Awards on Sunday (January 31). “Just that medium being acknowledged at all.”
The 23-year-old Canadian, himself acknowledged with two nominations, also had a great night — he got to close the show with the first-ever live performance of “Forever,” joining Lil Wayne and Eminem on the Grammy stage. And while Drake is certainly used to rocking stages with his Young Money boss Weezy, he got some surprising encouragement from Slim Shady during rehearsals.
“Em gave me probably one of the best speeches … not really a speech, but … he gave me that reassurance,” Drake said on the red carpet. “He was like, ‘Man, anytime you need to look over at me, don’t get nervous. Just look over at me, man, and I’ll give it back to you. Everything will be all right. Don’t be nervous.’ For him to say that to me — I feel like that was an important moment. It was nice.”
One glaring omission from “Forever,” though, was the appearance of Kanye West. The Louis Vuitton Don is apparently back in the lab.
“I think ‘Ye’s in a good creative space right now,” Drizzy said of his absence. “I think he’s trying to create that next album the world needs. I know he’s working very hard somewhere.”
During the medley, Lil Wayne and Eminem also performed “Drop the World” from Wayne’s Rebirth album, in stores Tuesday.