A lot of people have directed criticism at me. I would like to thank Kevin Durant, we are friends, we receive the same attention,” Rapper Drake shared.
Responding to his friend’s praise, Kevin Durant said: “When your favorite rapper puts your name on his music, it proves you’ve done something, more or less.”
7 years after the story above, both Drake and Kevin Durant are still the number 1 names in their field. The two’s relationship also went up in an extremely positive direction. Now in Drake’s songs, Kevin Durant does not simply appear in the lyrics, instead the former Golden State Warriors star also contributes to the album’s production.
THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN KEVIN DURANT AND DRAKE
The two have been friends for more than a decade. Long before Drake shared anything about Durant, the two interacted via Twitter. In 2012, after winning the MVP All-Star title, Kevin Durant also thanked his rapper friend.
In the years that followed, Drake also repeatedly mentioned his close friend’s name in his songs like “Weston Road Flows” or “Free Smoke”. Sometimes these two friends also have “confrontations” when Durant’s team faces the Raptors – the team from Canada that has chosen Drake as its image ambassador since 2013.
In 2016, the Toronto Raptors held “Drake Night” right when Durant’s Golden State Warriors came to play here. Fans immediately saw images of Drake appearing with his “rival”.
November 16, 2016: “I don’t give a damn about no damn Drake night.”
The two also joked about each other during the 2019 final. Unfortunately, that year Kevin Durant suffered an Achilles tendon injury and missed the entire following season.
After recovering from injury, Kevin Durant also appeared in Drake’s music video “Laugh Now, Cry Later”. In it, the Phoenix Suns player had a confrontation with the male rapper.
In recent years, the relationship has gone beyond friendship to become business partners, both in sports and music.
In July 2023, it was announced that Drake was among a group of investors in the Brooklyn Aces, a Major League Pickleball franchise co-owned by Durant, Rich Kleiman, Michael B. Jordan and Steve Stoute.
Last September, Durant also appeared on Drake’s tour in Texas. This is said to be the first signs that this basketball star will pour money into the music market.
Before the release of his 8th album, Drake also announced that Durant would take on the A&R position, which by definition will do tasks such as talent discovery, creativity, marketing and advertising. Afterwards, Durant continued to be appointed as executive producer for another Drake album.
Most recently, it was announced that Durant would be the model for the latest basketball collection from NOCTA, the collaborative brand between Drake and Nike.
With Durant’s participation in the music and fashion markets as well as the partnership between the two, fans are extremely looking forward to if one day both of them invest in the basketball field.