DRAKE
African American, Ashkenazi Jewish (Russian, Polish, Latvian)
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Drake — heritage & background
Quick answer: Yes, Drake is mixed race and biracial — his father, Dennis Graham, is African American from Memphis, Tennessee, and his mother, Sandra "Sandi" Graham (née Sher), is a white Canadian of Ashkenazi Jewish descent with roots in Russia, Poland, and Latvia.
Is Drake Mixed Race? Is He Biracial?
Yes — Drake is mixed race and biracial. His father, Dennis Graham, is African American — a Black man born and raised in Memphis, Tennessee, with deep roots in American Black culture and music. His mother, Sandra "Sandi" Graham (née Sher), is a white Canadian woman of Ashkenazi Jewish descent, with family roots tracing back to Russia, Poland, and Latvia.
Drake grew up primarily with his mother in Toronto after his parents separated when he was around five years old. This upbringing gave him an unusual cultural formation: he attended a Jewish day school, celebrated his Bar Mitzvah, and was raised in predominantly white Jewish communities in Toronto — while simultaneously identifying deeply with his Black heritage and his father's African American roots in Memphis.
Drake's race, background, and heritage have been central to his public identity. He has been celebrated as a Jewish rapper, a Black artist, a Canadian, and a global phenomenon — and he resists being confined to any single box. He identifies as Black while acknowledging his Jewish heritage. His biracial background and his multicultural upbringing in Toronto inform virtually every aspect of his artistry, from his music to his personal brand.
What Is Drake's Ethnicity?
Drake's ethnicity is a blend of African American (through his father) and Ashkenazi Jewish — specifically of Russian, Polish, and Latvian descent — through his mother. Born Aubrey Drake Graham on October 24, 1986, in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, he grew up navigating two very different cultural worlds: the Black American South, which he visited through his father in Memphis, and the predominantly white Jewish neighborhoods of Forest Hill in Toronto where he was raised by his mother.
His mother Sandi's Ashkenazi Jewish family came to Canada as part of the Eastern European Jewish diaspora — families who emigrated from Russia, Poland, and Latvia during the late 19th and early 20th centuries to escape persecution and build new lives in North America. This heritage gave Drake access to a strong Jewish cultural identity, which he has honored publicly through his re-Bar Mitzvah ceremony in 2011 and his HYFR music video.
Drake identifies primarily as Black. In interviews and throughout his music, he grounds himself in African American culture, hip-hop tradition, and his father's Memphis roots. But he has never denied or downplayed his Jewish heritage — rather, he has celebrated it as a distinctive part of who he is.
Father's Side: African American Roots from Memphis
Drake's father, Dennis Graham, is an African American musician born and raised in Memphis, Tennessee. Dennis worked as a drummer and has performed alongside country music legend Jerry Lee Lewis, reflecting the crossroads of Black musical tradition and Southern American culture. His career spans decades of American music, and Drake has spoken about how his father's musical background influenced his own approach to artistry.
Dennis Graham's African American roots run deep in Memphis — a city historically central to the development of the blues, soul, and R&B, and a place where Black culture has been both celebrated and oppressed throughout American history. Growing up, Drake would travel to Memphis to visit his father, experiencing the Southern Black American culture that contrasted sharply with his Toronto upbringing.
Drake's paternal grandparents — and the Graham family line — are African American, with roots in the American South that predate the Great Migration. The Graham family's musical tradition, which produced both Dennis and his relatives Larry Graham (bassist for Sly and the Family Stone) and Mabon "Teenie" Hodges (guitarist and songwriter), speaks to the rich creative heritage of Black American music.
Mother's Side: Ashkenazi Jewish Heritage from Eastern Europe
Drake's mother, Sandra "Sandi" Graham (née Sher), is a white Canadian woman of Ashkenazi Jewish descent. Her family roots trace back to Russia, Poland, and Latvia — the Eastern European heartland of Ashkenazi Jewish culture, from which millions of Jews emigrated in the late 19th and early 20th centuries to escape anti-Semitic pogroms and persecution.
Sandi worked as an English teacher and florist in Toronto, raising Drake largely on her own after separating from Dennis Graham. She enrolled Drake in a Jewish day school, Akiva School in Forest Hill — a predominantly Jewish neighborhood in Toronto — where he received a Jewish education and celebrated his Bar Mitzvah. This upbringing gave Drake a genuine fluency in Jewish culture: the liturgy, the holidays, the communal identity, and the historical consciousness of the Jewish people.
The Sher family's Ashkenazi Jewish heritage is the source of Drake's European genetic ancestry — the Eastern European Jewish genes that mix with his father's West African-descended African American DNA to create his particular genetic and cultural profile.
Grandparents: A Complete Picture
Paternal Grandfather — [Unknown], African American: Dennis Graham's father — Drake's paternal grandfather — was African American from Memphis. Specific details about him are not extensively documented in public records, but his family's Memphis roots are the foundation of the Graham family's Southern Black heritage.
Paternal Grandmother — [Unknown], African American: Drake's paternal grandmother, also from Memphis, is African American. She raised Dennis Graham in the environment of Southern Black culture that would later influence Drake's artistic sensibility during his visits to Memphis.
Maternal Grandfather — [Unknown], Ashkenazi Jewish (Russian/Polish/Latvian): Sandi Sher's father — Drake's maternal grandfather — was of Ashkenazi Jewish descent, part of the Eastern European Jewish diaspora that settled in Canada. His family origins in Russia, Poland, or Latvia are typical of the Ashkenazi immigration wave that came to North America in the early 20th century.
Maternal Grandmother — [Unknown], Ashkenazi Jewish: Drake's maternal grandmother was also of Ashkenazi Jewish descent. Drake has referenced his grandmother and family in interviews, speaking warmly about the Jewish family environment he grew up in through his mother's side.
Children's Heritage
Drake has one known child: Adonis Graham, born October 11, 2017, with French-American model and artist Sophie Brussaux. Sophie Brussaux is of French descent — born in Bordeaux, France, she is of European (French) background. Drake initially denied paternity but acknowledged Adonis publicly in 2018.
Adonis Graham therefore carries African American, Ashkenazi Jewish, and French European heritage — a multicultural mix that spans West Africa, Eastern Europe, and Western Europe. Drake has spoken about Adonis with deep affection in his music, including the album Certified Lover Boy and the song "emotionless."
Drake in His Own Words on Race & Identity
"I'm aware of who I am, I'm aware of my culture, my heritage." — Drake, discussing his biracial identity
Drake has addressed his mixed background directly in interviews and through his music. He has spoken about the experience of growing up biracial — being raised in a Jewish household while identifying as Black, navigating predominantly white schools while connecting with Black American culture through music and his father. His HYFR (Hell Yeah Fucking Right) music video, centered on his re-Bar Mitzvah, was both a celebration of his Jewish heritage and a statement that both identities belong to him fully.
In his music, Drake frequently references both his Toronto upbringing and his father's Memphis roots — a dual geography that mirrors his dual cultural identity. He has also been vocal about the ways his background made him an outsider in multiple communities: not quite "Black enough" for some, not quite "Jewish enough" for others. This in-between position, rather than limiting him, has become the lens through which he sees the world.
Is Drake Alive?
Yes, Drake is alive. Born October 24, 1986, he is currently 38 years old. He remains one of the most commercially successful and critically discussed rappers in the world. He released For All The Dogs in 2023 and For All The Dogs Scary Hours Edition in 2024, and continues to be a dominant figure in global hip-hop and pop culture.
Visual Family Tree
Aubrey Drake Graham
Dennis Graham (African American — Memphis, Tennessee)
[Paternal Grandfather] (African American) · [Paternal Grandmother] (African American)
Sandra "Sandi" Graham, née Sher (Ashkenazi Jewish — Russian/Polish/Latvian Canadian)
[Maternal Grandfather] (Ashkenazi Jewish, Eastern European) · [Maternal Grandmother] (Ashkenazi Jewish, Eastern European)
Sources
Interviews & Direct Quotes
Genealogy & Ethnicity Research
Family Background
EthniCelebrity Research Team
Ethnicity & Heritage Writers
Our team specialises in researching and documenting the ethnic backgrounds, nationality, and ancestry of public figures — drawing on genealogical records, interviews, and verified biographical sources.