Drake
Born Aubrey Drake Graham, the Canadian rapper’s lyrics tend to be more on the emotional side. For years, Graham was a child star on the popular teen drama Degrassi: The Next Generation. He appeared on over 150 episodes of the hit television show that crossed over onto U.S. channels and also did several television movies, ensuring that he was, in fact, not on any hard streets.
Bow Wow
Shad Gregory Moss released his first album “Beware of Dog” at 13. He was noticed by rapper Snoop Dogg at 6 and began being mentored by record producer and songwriter Jermaine Dupri at 11, which left little time for the young rapper to gain street credibility.
Iggy Azalea
The “Fancy” rapper, Amethyst Amelia Kelly better known as Iggy Azalea, grew up in Mullumbimby, New South Wales. She left her Australian home at 16 to begin rapping in Miami. Though she raps with a “hood accent,” she is still distinctly Australian.
Former Flipmode Squad member Rah Digga recently expressed outrage over Azalea.
“Don’t come to America and try to convince me that you’re Gangsta Boo. … We’re not going to believe you if you’re trying to convince us that you’re out here trap shooting,” the rapper said in an interview with This is 50’s Gossip Viv.
Nick Cannon
The actor released his debut, self-titled album in 2003, which contained his hit single “Gigolo.” After his initial hit, it was hard for Cannon to remain relevant in the rap world. He sealed the coffin on his rap career in 2014 when he released his album “White People Party Music” and dressed in white face, shattering what little street cred the “Wild ‘N Out” TV producer had.
