'Artists... broke as f*ck, I swear, [they] probably live in S'pore': Rapper Drake namedrops S'pore in new song

Hmmmm.

Julia Yee | October 08, 2023, 05:14 PM

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Drake, the Canadian rapper and singer, has just dropped his latest album "For All The Dogs".

While listening to its thirteenth track "Drew a Picasso", some Singaporean fans had mixed reactions upon hearing what they believe to be a smug diss of their country having been snuck into the lyrics.

The song is said to be an ode to a toxic courtship, from which Drake is unable to break away from despite being driven insane.

But if you're bobbing along to the rap up till the 3:33 minute mark, you'd probably jump a little upon hearing the word "Singapore" slip from his lips.

The line

Drake, like many rappers, has made a name for himself with his sharp play on words and controversial societal commentary.

As was the case in one of the final verses of this song where he threw shade on his girl and her suitors.

One of the lines referred to her artist paramours being so broke that they "probably live in Singapore".

"Way I'm feelin' on this album, really took it easy on you, coulda written more.

If the shoe was on the other foot and it was me, it woulda been guerilla war.

Since you know I got a soft spot for you, this has turned into a civil war.

Artists hittin' on you, broke as f*ck, I swear them n***** probably live in Singapore.

The athlete that you rollin' with, I saw his game last night, he didn't score."

Singapore is maybe not that broke

The lyrics were smart and perfectly tinged with that Taylor Swift brand of vengeance.

They would've made the perfect burn, except that some people felt it hard to reconcile the word "Singapore" and "broke" in the same sentence.

Photo via Twitter

Photo via Twitter

For context, Singapore was crowned the fifth richest country in the world in 2023.

While some people were indignant, others agreed that they lived in Singapore and were indeed "broke".

Photo via Reddit

In his defence

In Drake's defence, his lyrics stated that it was the "artists" who were broke. Which might not be a far-flung narrative in STEM-focused Singapore.

Or it could also be a pun on how the "-pore" in "Singapore" sounds like a homonym for "poor" when mouthed in his rapper slang.

If you didn't follow any of that deep meaning, though, it's okay.

At least now you know that "Singapore" rhymes with "war" and "score".

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Top images via Drake/YouTube and @imrntv/Twitter