Boi-1da Says Drake Opened Doors for Canadian Hip-Hop Artists

Drake has pretty much introduced Canadian hip-hop to the mainstream, and according to fellow Toronoto native and producer Boi-1da, the country has a lot of talent that will finally get some shine.

Although crediting American producers like Dr. Dre and Timbaland for influencing his own skills, Boi-1da showed his pride for Canadian music, but admitted that the hip-hop scene in the country is still in its infancy. "The hip-hop in Canada is still, the music industry out here is still in a developing stage," he told The BoomBox. "The scene is still growing. That's the difference. The Americans, they always had the machine running."

"Although we have had hip-hop artists," Boi-1da continued. "Drake is the first person to ever break out on the hip-hop scene from Canada [on a large scale]. The scene is very nice and a lot of people are going to start taking notice to it because there's a lot of talent in Canada."

Noting that Canadian artists like Kim Davis, August, Luu Breeze, and 808 Gang, have yet to gain footing in the states, Boi-1da theorized that Drake's success will make American audiences more apt to giving Canada a shot. "We're just thankful that Drake and the whole team was able to open doors for people in Canada and create opportunities because it's a gold mine of talent and I think it's finally going to get recognized."