Lykke Li on Drake interpolating 'I Follow Rivers' on Iceman: 'I was missing him'

A song that keeps finding new lives

Drake's interpolation of Lykke Li on his new Iceman album is not the first time the two have crossed paths. According to Billboard, Drake sampled her song 'Little Bit' back on 2009's So Far Gone, and now he has returned to the Swedish singer's catalog, this time lifting her 2011 hit 'I Follow Rivers' for the track 'Janice STFU' on Iceman, which arrived on May 15.

'It has that raw, revenge, hip-hop energy'

Lykke Li spoke to Rolling Stone over the weekend about hearing the interpolation for the first time. She initially thought co-writer Rick Nowels was trolling her when he emailed to say Drake wanted to use the song. Once the surprise wore off, her reaction was straightforward: 'I think it's potent. It has that raw, revenge, hip-hop energy.'

The 40-year-old has always been philosophical about 'I Follow Rivers,' a track that found a second wind after a remix by The Magician turned it into a global anthem. 'It is the most mysterious, incredible gift of my career because it's had so many lives and different iterations,' she said. 'As a songwriter, that's the greatest wish. It has a life of its own.'

Timing that felt almost inevitable

There is a strange symmetry to the whole situation. Li told Rolling Stone she had recently been playing classic Drake tracks like 'Marvins Room,' the 2011 cut from Take Care. 'Strangely enough, I've been really craving Drake,' she admitted. 'The old Drake was such an era. So yeah, I was missing him.'

On her own side, Lykke Li performed at Coachella in April and released her project The Afterparty earlier in May. Drake, meanwhile, dropped Iceman on May 15 as part of a trifecta of albums alongside Habibti and Maid of Honour.