When Drake released his single 'Started From The Bottom' in 2013, we thought the lyrics alluded to his humble beginnings. You know, catching the bus to school in Toronto, or dropping out due to bullying and his dream to be an actor.

Little did we know the song might, in fact, refer to his days as a backing singer for a fellow Canadian singer that stormed the charts in the early Noughties.

You might have heard her songs 'I'm like a bird', 'Man-eater' and 'Promiscuous'.

Yes, ladies and gents, Champagne Papi sang as a background vocalist for the one and only Nelly Furtado.

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In an interview with Nylon magazine, the Grammy Award winner revealed she was looking forward to the future of music.

'I'm excited that its urban scene is on the map right now, because I've been holding it down for 20 years,' she noted.

Naming Drake as one of her favourite acts at the moment, she was reportedly quick to tell the interviewer how she was dominating the urban and R&B scene long before the likes of the 30-year-old rapper.

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'Drake knows,' she joked, before revealing the rapper toured with her for her 2007 'Get Loose' tour.

It's unsurprising Nelly is a fan of Drake, given the fact she covered the rapper's song with Rihanna, 'Too Good', last year.

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'He did background vocals for Socrates, my opening act,' she reveled – Socrates being another Toronto-Based singer/rapper who collaborated with the mother-of-one on stage during performances of 'Promiscuous'.

With news that Drake and another Noughties pop icon, Jennifer Lopez, have been working together on new music in recent weeks – amid rumours of a romance which we totally called out as false – we're hoping the 'Hotline Bling' singer will make a trend of collaborating with our favourite teenage icons.

We await with bated breath for a Drake and Nelly Furtado single. Give the people what they want, Drake!

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Katie O'Malley
Site Director

Katie O'Malley is the Site Director on ELLE UK. On a daily basis you’ll find Katie managing all digital workflow, editing site, video and newsletter content, liaising with commercial and sales teams on new partnerships and deals (eg Nike, Tiffany & Co., Cartier etc), implementing new digital strategies and compiling in-depth data traffic, SEO and ecomm reports. In addition to appearing on the radio and on TV, as well as interviewing everyone from Oprah Winfrey to Rishi Sunak PM, Katie enjoys writing about lifestyle, culture, wellness, fitness, fashion, and more.