Drake

Aubrey Drake Graham was born on October 24, 1986, in Toronto, Ontario. He is the son of Dennis Graham, a drummer who worked with Jerry Lee Lewis, and SandiGraham, an educator. Two of his uncles, Larry Graham and Teenie Hodges, are also musicians.[11][12][13] Drake's father is an African American from Memphis,Tennessee, and Drake's mother is a Jewish Canadian. He attended a Jewish day school and had a Bar Mitzvah.[14][15][16] His parents divorced when he was fiveyears old, and he was raised by his mother in Toronto's wealthy Forest Hill neighborhood.[17][18] Drake attended high school at Forest Hill CollegiateInstitute, where he began acting,[19] but did not graduate.[20] He spent most summers with his father in Memphis.[21] Drake stated that his parents' divorce greatlyaffected him as a person, saying, “I had to become a man very quickly and be the backbone for a woman who I love with all my heart, my mother."[22] In 2001,Drake began his acting career, playing the role of Jimmy Brooks, a character on Degrassi: The Next Generation. In the show, Brooks is a basketball star whobecame physically disabled after he was shot by a classmate. His role on the show ended in 2009, when his character graduated from Degrassi. He appeared in138 episodes. He also appeared in the 2008 television movie Degrassi Spring Break Movie. Drake is mentioned in the 2010 television movie Degrassi TakesManhattan, making him one of two Degrassi actors (along with Shenae Grimes) who exist within the series' fictional universe independently of their characters.