'Sometimes I'll pick a beat that's... sunnier... than usual, and I just try my hand at it. And that's kind of what 'Hotline Bling' was,' Drizzy explains the two song's similarities.
- Oct 21, 2015
AceShowbiz - Following the release of Drake's long-awaited "Hotline Bling" music video, D.R.A.M. spoke out about the similarities between the hit to his own "Cha Cha". He said in a Twitter post that he felt like the Canadian rapper "jacked" his record from him.
On the next day, Drake addressed the accusation in an interview with The Fader. He appeared to acknowledge that "Hotline Bling" was based on "Cha Cha", but he didn't seem to agree with the stealing part.
"You know, like in Jamaica, you'll have a riddim and it's like, everyone has to do a song on that," said Drizzy. "Imagine that in rap, or imagine that in R&B. Imagine if we got one beat and every single person - me, this guy, this guy, all these guys - had to do a song on that one beat."
He continued, "So sometimes I'll pick a beat that's a bit, like, sunnier, I guess is the word you used, than usual, and I just try my hand at it. And that's kind of what 'Hotline Bling' was. And I loved it. It's cool. I've been excited by that sort of creative process."
Although he felt robbed, D.R.A.M. apparently wouldn't make a big deal out of the "Hotline Bling"/"Cha Cha" similarities. "I feel I got jacked for my record...But I'm GOOD," he tweeted on Monday, October 19.
Erykah Badu, one of a bunch of artists who have covered "Hotline Bling", later weighed in on the drama. Commenting on D.R.A.M.'s statement, she tweeted later in the day, "We loved Cha Cha first. Very unique and raw. That's That underground magic force that sparks a seed to grow a tree."
