"Started from the Middle" - Drake (A Break-down)

Drake dropped his new record this week - "Started From The Bottom", and, being born and raised a Toronna girl, wanted to express some opinions I have about it.

Firstly, take a look at the video if you haven't yet seen it:

Bones to pick: 

One, Drake grew up in Forest Hill. For those who are not familiar with that neighbourhood, it's stated as being "an affluent neighbourhood in central Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Along with Lawrence Park, Rosedale, and The Bridle Path, it is one of Toronto’s wealthiest neighbourhoods", courtesy of Wikipedia. 

He did not slum it like 50 cent or The Game (what happened to that guy?) did or hustle "to make some money to feed my daughters" like Biggy, or come from Georgia and drug deal like T.I. and has not been to jail multiple times like Weezy has. 

So... is "the bottom" relative? No. "The bottom"  is the grind, the hustle, the struggle; not having food on their plates, and scars from bullet wounds. "Starting from the bottom" does not mean, growing up in one of Toronto's wealthiest communities to date. Sorry Drake, you're not as hood as you consider yourself to be.

In fact, I'm sure Nas and Immortal Technique are somewhere out there laughing hysterically while they watch pretty-richboy-Drake's new video. I sure as shit did.

I come from "Vaughan and Oakwood" which borderlines the division between Forest Hill and the government-funded housing. I might say I grew up in the best of both worlds. I've seen "the bottom" and I've driven through the Bridle Path, and man, Drake's conception of "low" is completely skewed.

Forest Hill abode

A, perhaps, more humble living space in F.H.

Shit, there's even bus service

He grew up without a father most of his life. My condolences entirely. I have several friends who grew up the same way and it's tough - "tough" might even be an understatement. But he went to school in a very well-to-do frou-frou part of Toronto. Forest Hill Collegiate Institute was where all the Forest Hillites sent their children. Rich kids. Loads of rich kids. 

Commenting on his "sub-par" living conditions, Drake expressed his mother  "wanted the best for her family. She found us a half of a house we could live in. The other people had the top half, we had the bottom half. I lived in the basement, my mom lived on the first floor. It was not big, it was not luxurious. It was what we could afford." 

Come on. Give me a break. There is absolutely no one should be complaining about having an entire basement to himself, especially when that basement is situated in Forest Hill. It was renovated for Pete's sake. It was spacious. It had a recording studio in it. Fuck off, Drake.

Next,

You will see that Drake worked at Shopper's Drug Mart. Poor kid. My heart goes out to him. He had a part time job - man, that's the pits. 

Spare me.

He grew up the way every middle class individual did. He did not come "from the bottom". He did not come from the top, alright. But he definitely came from two thirds of the way, and that's better than most.

So, Drake. Lose the "I had to hustle to get here, I had to put my education aside to do this, I had to starve for days" attitude. You had clothes on your back, a car to drive, a job to tend to, and friends of status. You are not hood. You did not live the thug life.

That is all.