Aubrey Drake Graham (born October 24, 1986) is a Canadian actor and recording artist. He is best known for playing Jimmy Brooks, the basketball star that became physically disabled after he was shot by a classmate on Degrassi: The Next Generation. As a rapper, he performs under the mononym Drake, and is often billed as the new version of The Fresh Prince. His first studio album, Thank Me Later is expected to be released later this year on a yet to be determined record label.
In February 2006, Drake released his first mixtape Room for Improvement. It was made available via his website and official MySpace page. From the success of his first mixtape, he later began releasing more, capitalizing from the buzz.
In 2007, he released Comeback Season to much critical acclaim and praise. It was from here on where Graham started gaining popularity when he did his first song with Lil Wayne, a remix of the already popular song "Man of the Year" which Wayne didn't rap in but had ad-libs in the end of the song. In 2008, he released Heartbreak Drake, yet again a popular release and gaining more acclaim and buzz for the artist.
So Far Gone, which included Drake's mentor Lil Wayne, and members of Young Money, was released in 2009. Also in 2007, Graham became the first unsigned Canadian rapper to have his music video featured on BET when his first single, "Replacement Girl" was featured as the "Joint of the Day" in April 2007.