It was only right that rapper Drake take his own lines of fate into his hands when the ladies were first to take over the scene of his own song Hotline Bling.
Circa 1997.
Stepping first to the horn however, was Erykah Badu who, was the original DonDada of the phone love song [called] “Tyrone”-a song about a boyfriend who didn’t quite have his sh/t together. Tyrone exhausted her such that he eventually was cut off from any lovin’, quality time, and even cut off from using her phone—not even to call for help to come get his sh/t” (as Badu so eloquently sang it).
Fast forward to 2015 Badu covered the rapper’s popular “Hotline Bling” song, and although keeping in line with the tone and meaning of the rapper’s song [about not being able to catch up with his once homebody, shy girlfriend who, once upon a time in life-found solace and comfort in merely being curled up on the phone with him was now, on the scene—rather than own his “Hotline Bling”] this time around, in her cover, Badu was the “Tyrone” of sorts-unable to keep up with him [as she sings it in the cover] “used to call me on my ‘cell–u-lar’ ”…the word for the 1997 ‘cell phone.’
https://youtu.be/u2oT09OeeQU
Next up to the horn was DJ and director Vashtie Kola who dropped her video for the song, although not exactly covering it (by singing-like singer Badu did), Vashtie released a split screen (literal) video visual for the song depicting a character (based off herself) and her own night life experiences as perhaps perceived versus whats real and true in [her] real life while deadening the latter/left of the [split] screen of perception.
Fast forward a short bit, Drake took over from here and dropped his own video for his own popular “Hotline Bling” song which dropped in the wee hours of the morning whereby depicting his actual “Hotline Bling” being a string of phone sex call center honey’s who, throughout this imaginary underground look of a dream sequence of sorts, accompany the rapper as props to his slightly off beat dance moves but still, goes over well.
Check it out for yourself:
