Drake Accused of Stealing 'Scary Hours' Artwork
Drake is being accused of lifting another person’s artwork once again. The Toronto rapper, who’s faced similar allegations in the past, is now being charged with poaching a Houston artist’s logo for his Scary Hours cover art.
“today I wake up to see OVO has redone one of my 2015 tour posters designed by @collindfletcher for Drake’s new single,” said the artist, who goes by Rabit. “Poor Collin is always having his style stolen😬lol BUT I love being part of a team that’s so creative and iconic.”
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Collin Fletcher, the designer, also addressed the issue in a statement to Pitchfork. “This is a story that too many artists, musicians, and designers identify with,” he said. “Hopefully this results in a larger conversation about popular culture’s relationship to underground artists.”
An OVO insider said that the label did not commission the artwork. Instead, the source told Pitchfork that it was “presented to them, along with other pieces to choose from.”
Several artists have accused Drake of stealing their work in the past. In 2014, the OVO boss had to pay a reported $100,000 to Rappin’ 4-Tay for lifting a large part of “Playaz Club” for YG’s “Who Do You Love?” He’s also been criticized for allegedly copying works by XXXTentacion and DRAM. “I feel like I got jacked for my record,” the latter said, after “Hotline Bling” was compared to “Cha Cha.”
In a 2015 interview with The FADER, Drizzy responded to the criticism. “You know, like in Jamaica, you’ll have a riddim and it’s like, everyone has to do a song on that,” he said. “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. 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.”