Drake Says Inspiration Behind “Hotline Bling” Was a Woman’s Phone ‘Blowing Up’ Right After They Hooked Up

In the "Hotline Bling" folder on the 100 Gigs website, Drizzy was filmed holding a recording session about his hit 2015 single.

August 7, 2024

Drake performing on stage, wearing a black outfit and a chain necklace, with blue lighting. — Prince Williams/Wireimage

The 2015 Drake hit "Hotline Bling" was inspired by a hookup the artist once had.

On the 100 Gigs website, which Drake unveiled on Tuesday (August 6) along with three new singles, there are various folders dedicated to his life experiences. One, titled "Hotline Bling," shows three clips from what seems to be a recording session, where he discussed how the track came about.

In the first video, Drake is chilling on a couch and smoking hookah while repeatedly listening to the song, and towards the end, he sits up and dances on the couch.

The second clip shows Drizzy talking about an unknown woman whom he nicknamed "Hotline Bling" because her phone would ring continuously right after they hooked up.

"We used to be in bed together—we just finished fucking and her phone would be blowing up," he said. "So I saved her name in my phone as 'Hotline Bling.' That's always been her name on my phone."

He continued, "And I was looking at it today, I was like, 'Hotline Bling' is a sick name. That should be an artist name."

Drake also said in the video, presumably recorded in 2015, that he'd spoken to the woman that same day and shared that her nickname would be the "Hotline Bling" song title. "I was talking to her today, I was like, 'Yo your name, your nickname is such a good title for something.' And then I just told her today, I was like, you know I did a song called 'Hotline Bling,' thats crazy," he said in the clip.

While the woman who inspired "Hotline Bling" might never reveal herself, the track peaked at No. 2 on Billboard following its release in July 2015, less than a year before it was featured on Drake's 2016 album, Views. The song would go on to win Best Rap/Sung Performance and Best Rap Song at the 2017 Grammy Awards.

Drake's surprise dump of 100 GB of content—unreleased music, videos, and other material—via 100gigs.org, which he revealed on Tuesday through a private Instagram account, contains new songs: "It’s Up" featuring Young Thug, "Blue Green Red," and "Housekeeping Knows." At the time of writing, the music was not yet available on streaming platforms.