Drake

This isn’t their story.

You don’t need Pollstar to tell you that Drake could very well be the next rapper to go for gold (or platinum, in this case), claiming a spot among hip hop’s elite.

But what is important to note about Drake is that the team behind him gets it. Even when promoting the “next big thing,” there’s something to be said for a slow build, giving artists time to grow their fan base, catalog and live show.

“A lot of times you’ll see an artist that has his level of success, jumps out and says, ‘You know what? I’m worth 10,000 tickets. I can go into arenas,’” business manager Shawn Gee told Pollstar. “But the question is, do you know how to perform?”

ICM’s Robert Gibbs agreed.

“We could go into Madison Square Garden if we wanted, but we’re being smart about this and really building this thing,” he said.

Drake heads back across the States this fall, and plans to tour Europe are in the works.

Debut album Thank Me Later went platinum, selling more than 1.3 million units according to Nielsen SoundScan

Sold out two Radio City Music Hall dates within 60 minutes and the Nokia Theatre L.A. LIVE within 12 minutes

BET Awards’ best male hip-hop artist