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Drake slammed for R Kelly credit on ‘Certified Lover Boy’, fans rush to his defense

The loyal fans of the hip-hop heavyweight came to his rescue saying that he did not literally call up Kelly to ask for the sample

Drake’s sixth studio record ‘Certified Lover Boy’ also stylized as CLB was released on Friday, September 3 and it looks like it is already making headlines for all the wrong reasons. If you have listened to the eighth song on the album called ‘TSU’, the credits on the track lists R Kelly which did not go down with a lot of social media users as Kelly is currently under trial for racketeering and sex crimes charges.

R Kelly is credited as a songwriter on the track as Drake sampled his 1998 single ‘Half on a Baby’. Drake’s ‘TSU’ also lists Justin Timberlake’s former boy band NSYNC on the credits as the song also uses the group’s version of Christopher Cross’s ‘Sailing’. Timbaland is too credited on the track. Producers Harley Arsenault, Noel Cadastre, OG Ron are other artists featured on the credits. Yes, sampling in hip-hop can be very tricky the reason why Drake faced heat from the Internet. However, the loyal fans of the hip-hop heavyweight came to his rescue saying that he did not literally call up Kelly to ask for the sample adding that it was pure business.
 
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Why is R Kelly credited on Drake’s ‘CLB’?

Prior to R Kelly’s recent legal troubles, the rapper’s songs were frequently samples by other artists such as The Notorious B.I.G. (‘Unbelievable’), Nas (‘Poppa Was a Playa’), Jay-Z (‘A Woman's Threat’), and Childish Gambino (‘I. Crawl’) among several others. Now, the reason why R Kelly is credited on Drake’s song ‘TSU’ is because the latter decided to take a few portions from Kelly’s 1998 hit single to use it in the intro of the track. It has caused mayhem on the Internet because the song comes after Kelly’s victims gave shocking testimony a week ago about the alleged sexual and emotional abuse they suffered at the singer's hands. Kelly’s secret marriage to then 15-year-old Aaliyah also came into the limelight causing more trouble for the singer-songwriter. Though not related but Drake has a giant tattoo of the late female emcee on his back.

According to Rolling Stone, a version of ‘TSU’ has reportedly been floating around since 2018. The song apparently popped up months before the docuseries on Kelly called Surviving R.Kelly’ exposed the depth and breadth of Kelly's alleged decades-long pattern of sexual, emotional, and physical abuse of young men and women. The publication also states that “The inclusion of the instrumental bit in the midst of the Kelly trial seems particularly odd given that it does not appear to play a crucial role in the song's melody or structure.”

According to Vulture, R Kelly’s attorney Devereaux Cannick shed light on the latest controversy saying, “It just speaks to his genius and the demand for his work. I mean, he’s a literary genius, it doesn’t surprise me. I don’t think it’s that much about the money, I think the public and other artists want his participation. I’m sure he’s totally unaware of it because he’s consumed right now but I will share with him.”

 

Drake faces heat from the Internet

A few social media users slammed the rapper for his latest move. One user stated, “Men in hip-hop are continuing to show us exactly who they are, and fans are still rocking with it. I thought the goal was to confront rape culture head-on so that we wouldn't have to wait another 25 years for a bombshell documentary to confirm what we already knew? Guess not.”

Whereas, another added, “People are defending this R. Kelly credit, talking about “it’s a sample”... okay?????? So Drake chose to sample his work, knowing he’d have to clear it with R. Kelly, and that Kelly would get a check/royalties. He could’ve done away with the sample/track, he clearly doesn’t care.” Another added, “A lot of people are now going to go back and listen to "Half on a Baby" because of Drake. R. Kelly is back in the conversation again because of an unnecessary sample add that didn't need to happen. Stop stanning for 30 seconds and see how your fave f**ked up.”

‘If Drake wants to sample an R Kelly song he can!'

After noticing the controversy picking heat, Drake’s fans jumped into the fray. One user stated, “If drake wants to sample an R Kelly song he can! y’all cannot mute that man’s creativity. period. separate his music from his f**k s**t.” Another said, “I don’t know why folks mad drake sampled R Kelly , it’s music , music get sampled ! That sample ain’t helping R Kelly get his a** out of jail. Use your anger for something worthy of it.”

Whereas, one added, “I don’t care if Drake samples R Kelly cuz he going to jail anyway!” The next one posted, “Drake didn’t hit R.Kelly up like “hey can I use your sample” R Kelly has no buyers or anything like that he has no choose but to credit R Kelly y’all need to know how music business works.” Meanwhile, one person posted, “So people was mad at drake for using a R Kelly Sample on his album. people are so stupid smh.” And, another one wrapped it up with a tweet, “Wtf are you talking about?? You sound like a troll. Drake producer sample one of R Kelly songs so of course it will automatically list r Kelly as a writer.  Stop misleading people.”

Well, not everyone was supportive of Drake as some lashed at him for sampling R Kelly knowing his past, they compared him with Kanye West who called Mariyn Manson and DaBaby for the 'Donda' listening event, knowing of the allegations against them. Some others also dragged Drake for his 'friendship' with Millie Bobby Brown who is way younger than he is and compared it to R Kelly's affair with Aaliyah. One angry social media fan called them 'Certified child lovers'. Another said: "It's all fun and games until child lovers pop up." A third said: "Kanye West put Marilyn Manson Donda. Drake put R.Kelly on Certified Lover Boy. Neither seems to care about rape and abuse."