Drake has undeniably cemented his legacy as hip-hop royalty after twelve years of countless hits and platinum-selling albums. Some hip-hop fans already consider the Canadian rap star a G.O.A.T. contender for his consistency over the years. But it was always in the Toronto emcee’s plans to be mentioned alongside the greats since early on in his career. 

In a recent segment released from his VladTV interview, hip-hop legend Ed Lover recalled a conversation he had with Drake on a trip to New York City from Washington D.C. early in his career. Even back then, Drake aspired to be mentioned alongside legends like Biggie, JAY-Z, and Nas. 

“I remember one time I was going to D.C. and I was leaving out of JFK, and I saw Drake!” Lover said. “It was early in his career before he was this big superstar. He had the mixtapes out and he was bubbling crazy. And it just so happens he was going to D.C. for something, and we ended up sitting right next to each other on the plane.

“We had a nice conversation for the 40-minute flight and I asked him, ‘What is your ultimate goal? When you’re done in your career and you’re an OG, how do you want to be remembered?’ And he said, ‘I just want to be remembered in the same breath as JAY-Z, Biggie, Nas, Rakim, [Big Daddy] Kane and all of them.

Drake has broken countless Billboard records over the years and is a force to be reckoned with on all streaming services. Spotify placed the rapper on their 2010s Hip-Hop Mount Rushmore alongside J. Cole, Kendrick Lamar, and Nicki Minaj. 

Earlier this month, Drake reached another Spotify accolade after being crowned the most streamed rapper of 2021. He landed at No. 4 on their “Top Artists of 2021 Global” list behind Bad Bunny, Taylor Swift, and BTS, with the late Juice WLRD being the only other rapper on the list.

Is Drake making your top 10 of all time? Tell us what you think, and stay tuned for more hip-hop news.