When Drake's latest video, the Majid Jordan-assisted "Hold On, We're Going Home," was released earlier today, we noticed a scary sight in the cut: Fredo Santana, the Chief Keef-affiliated rapper from Chicago who stole the show on tracks like last year's "Beef" and this year's "Wassup," made a pretty noticeable cameo.
Fredo—immediately distinguishable thanks in part to the trademark cross tattoo located just over the bridge of his nose—shows up in the opening minutes to (spoiler alert!) steal Drake's girl for a character played by Steven Bauer, the actor widely known as Manolo from Scarface. Later on (another spoiler alert!) he engages in a shootout with Drake, A$AP Rocky, and the rest of his posse.
We spoke with Fredo about befriending Manolo, the process of shooting a big-budget music video, and who, exactly, was responsible for picking out the hat he wears in the video.
As told to David Drake (@somanyshrimp)
How did you get involved in the video? Did Drake contact you?
He contacted me. Drake followed me on Twitter for a year and a half now. We've been talking for a little minute. He hit me over the phone, he hit my line.
Did he tell you what role you were going to be playing?
Yeah, he emailed me and I read the script and shit. It was kinda scripted, but really wasn't. What [the script] was really about was what the whole story was about.
What was it like on set at the shoot?
It was chill, man. Drake was chill. Rocky, I've been fuckin' with Rocky for two years. That's like my brother.
Is this the most expensive video shoot you've been a part of before?
Yeah. Our videos, we don't set up—we don't be acting, we don't be doing nothing. Some of my videos have acting, I directed a couple of my videos. I just make it real and raw. I pull up on my block and tell my lil' niggas, man, we're shooting a video. And we just hop out and speak our words, how we're feeling.
Doing this video—was it supposed to be like a movie?
It was like a movie, big time directors—I forgot who was directing it, damn I forgot their name ["Hold On, We're Going Home" was directed by Bill Pope]. And you know Manolo, who was from Scarface? He was in there. It was a lot of big actors in there. I was Manolo's right hand man and shit. We was supposed to kidnap the bitch. We had a shootout with Drake and shit, you know.
I got to meet Manolo [Steven Bauer], we talk a lot. We exchanged numbers, actually. He a cool dude. That's what I really want to do. I really want to do movies. Something big in Chicago. I want to—not direct, but kind of direct. Creative director, you feel me?
How long did the shoot take?
My part took three days. We was in L.A., he flew me out. We was in a little trailer and shit.
Definitely the longest video shoot you've been in, right?
Hell yeah! My videos take about an hour.
Was it boring at all? Did you have to sit around waiting for them to shoot things?
One time they told me to come out at five o'clock. You gonna start shooting at 5:30, so be here at five. I come there at like 4:30! I ain't start shooting until 11:30. But it was good, I'm chill, I was out there with Rocky. That's my homie. And a couple more people from A$AP, A$AP Lou. We was chillin'.
Did they give you advice on how to act?
They ain't give me no advice! I got it natural, man. It's like, I got it, man.
Where did the hat come from? Who's idea was the hat.
It was really my idea. I was like, 'I think I need this hat to go with the Versace outfit.' They gave me a Versace outfit. It was a Versace outfit from 1983. Vintage. And you know, me, all I wear is Jordans anyway. I had my Jordans on. The classic '86 Mikes that came out.
So you were wearing a Versace shirt from the '80s and Jordans from the '80s.
Yeah. They were my own personal Jordans, though.
Have you and Drake gotten to work together?
We've been talking. He say if the timing right. I got a lot of new stuff with a lot of big big names. They sleeping on me, just because Keef and Reese and Durk, they overshadow me because they came out first. I ain't even gonna lie, I'm better than all them put together. And I tell them this in their face, and they know that.
Do you have a plan for when the new album's gonna drop?
Halloween. Look out for the biggest names in the rap game right now, man.
