As the years passed, the narrative shifted. The puppy love of 2010 matured into a protective, sibling-like dynamic. Nicki settled down with Meek Mill, and Drake had to navigate the boundaries of their friendship.
The story begins in the late 2000s, when Young Money was an unstoppable empire. At this time, a Drake song featuring or addressing Nicki was an event. It was the era of the "will they, won't they" tease.
Every story has a conflict, and for Drake and Nicki, that conflict arrived with the explosive feud between Drake and Meek Mill in 2015. Suddenly, lines were drawn. Nicki was stuck in the middle, dating the man Drake was dismantling on wax.
Before the speculation went viral, there was this Thank Me Later deep cut. The line is now infamous in Drake lore: ��쏛lways promised that I��셝 take ��쁢m to the top / I guess that Nicki Minaj is the only thing I got.��� At the time, fans saw it as a label shoutout. But in hindsight, given their undeniable closeness, it reads like a young artist admitting who his real anchor was.
In this collaborative track, featuring a music video where the two get married, Drake and Nicki celebrate their rise to fame.