Singer Drake is getting a helping hand, err, voice, in a time of need: Alicia Keys announced Wednesday that she’ll delay releasing her duet with Beyoncé to instead push “Un-Thinkable” with him — on the heels of the news that Drake’s debut album has been delayed.
“Thank Me Later,” which initially had a May 25 release date, is being pushed back to June 15, joining the Keys/Beyoncé duet “Put It in a Love Song” on the back burner.
A coincidence? Not from what we hear.
“It seems like a favor,” says one music industry insider, noting that Drake and Keys became friends when Keys’ boyfriend, Swizz Beatz, worked with Drake last year. “Drake has only had a few hot singles, and I think it’s understood that his album needs to do really well for him to be able to stay a fixture in the music industry.”
A rep for Drake would say only that he’s “putting the finishing touches on the album,” while Keys’ flack at J Records says the switch was due to the “public’s popular reaction to the single.”
But our source insists: “Drake is still very young, and his first album is crucial to his career. Luckily, Alicia is willing to help him out.”
Indeed, Keys is obviously fond of Drake and his jams. “He’s a great guy — I’m really happy for him,” she said in a previous interview. I’m really proud of all the things he’s been able to achieve, and we’re most likely going to do some kind of remix for the song that’ll be really good. There’ll be more of me and Drake.”
At any cost, apparently. Keys and Queen B had already flown down to Rio de Janiero to film the music video for “Put It in a Love Song,” one of the tracks on Keys’ latest album, “The Element of Freedom.”
“That video was highly anticipated,” continues our source. “It seems like there’s no other reason that Keys would postpone that if it wasn’t to lend Drake a helping hand.”
