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Get to know Drake and Justin Bieber, Canada's new pop superstars.
Get to know Drake and Justin Bieber, Canada's new pop superstars
Canada has exported its fair share of high-profile musical talent -- the Guess Who, Shania Twain, Avril Lavigne, Michael Buble and Nickelback among them. The latest Canucks to hit it big are a couple of young turks who are barely old enough to shave: Drake and Justin Bieber.
Not familiar with these top-40 upstarts? Here's a crib sheet.
Drake | Justin Bieber | |
Birthplace | Toronto | Stratford, Ont. |
Age | 23 | 15 |
Also known as | Aubrey Graham (his birth name), Drizzy, Mr. Graham | JB, Just (short for Just Waiting for My Voice to Break) |
Biggest single | Best I Ever Had (number two, U.S. Hot 100; number 24, Canadian Hot 100) | One Less Lonely Girl (number 16, U.S. Hot 100; number 10, Canadian Hot 100) |
Name of debut album | Thank Me Later (due out February 2010) | My World (released Nov. 17) |
Music style | Inoffensive hip-hop | Inoffensive hip-pop |
Vocal style | A swaggering yet laid-back flow reminiscent of Kanye West | Pinched crooning reminiscent of Britney Spears on Auto Tune |
Hairstyle | Bald taper fade | Moppet top |
Sponsor | Hip-hop behemoth Lil' Wayne | R&B hearthrob Usher |
Previous claim to fame | Played Jimmy Brooks on Degrassi: The Next Generation | Posted cover of Chris Brown's With You on YouTube, and got a call — not from Brown's lawyer but from the singer himself |
Target demographic | Girls who wear tracksuits, thugs who like Degrassi | Suburban tweens, soccer moms, Ellen DeGeneres |
Lady-lovin' lyrics | "Sweat pants, hair tied, chillin' with no make-up on / That's when you're the prettiest, I hope that you don't take it wrong / You don't even trip when friends say you ain't bringin' Drake along / You know that I'm working, I'll be there soon as I make it home" (Best I Ever Had) | "When I met you girl, my heart went knock-knock / Now them butterflies in my stomach won't stop-stop / And even though it's a struggle, love is all we got / And we gon' keep-keep climbing to the mountaintop (One Time) |
Canadian pride | For an interview in Fader magazine, Drake took the journalist to visit his bubbe at the Baycrest home for seniors in north Toronto. | Embarked on a Canadian mall tour in which he performed exclusively in outlets of the homegrown clothing chain Urban Behaviour. |