Drake‘s hit song One Dance, which features Nigerian artist WizKid and British singer Kyla, has been certified Diamond, according to the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA).
It was the second Dancehall song of 2016 to have reached the top of the Billboard Hot 100 chart, following Rihanna’s Work which also featured Drake.
Released on April 5, 2016, One Dance has sold over 10,000,000 units to date, and holds the record for being Drake’s first song to reach number one in over 15 countries, inclusive of the United States, Australia, Germany, Ireland, France, Canada, the Netherlands, New Zealand and Switzerland.
Despite One Dance’s wild success, the song’s release was a cautious experiment by the Canadian rapper, who considered the Dancehall track – his first as a lead artist – a daring deviation from his known works. According to reports, that concern led to the decision to release One Dance jointly with Pop Style – the Grammy-nominated track featuring Jay Z and Kanye, collectively known as The Throne. Ultimately, however, Drake’s gamble paid off massively.
The chart-topping single is from Drake’s six-times platinum album, Views – which sold over seven million units worldwide, making it one of his most commercially successful projects.
Also featured on Views was Controlla, another Dancehall song that originally featured Popcaan, which has now gone 5x Platinum in the United States, for sales exceeding 5,000,000 units, according to the RIAA.
It sampled Beenie Man’s Tear Off Mi Garment, and has the self-proclaimed Dancehall King listed as a writer. It was also produced by Jamaicans Boi-1da, Di Genius, and Supa Dups.
Another version of the song, which was leaked online, featured Popcaan and Beenie Man.
Drake’s uncanny ability to reach unexpected and enviable heights of success with Dancehall music remains an elusive dream for many established and budding Dancehall acts, who continue to experiment with other genres due to pure Dancehall’s perceived limited commercial viability.
The OVO Boss’ willingness to explore and experiment with Dance music continues to pay off, so much so that he has released a dance album, Honestly, Nevermind.
Though it has received mixed reviews, Drake remains optimistic, telling his critics, “It’s all good if you don’t get it yet. It’s all good. That’s what we do. We wait for you to catch up.” Considering the resurgence of the genre, and the trends indicating this resurgence is due for further uptick, Drake may be playing with house money.
Beyonce’s ‘Break My Soul’ – recently released to critical acclaim, only further validates Drake’s educated guess that Dance music is the next frontier of pop culture.
