Justin Bieber Made DJ Khaled Play Hockey With Him Before He Would Make “I’m The One”
“I took the beating for the song,” Khaled told Billboard.
DJ Khaled earned a major career milestone in May when his "I'm The One" single — which features Justin Bieber, Lil Wayne, Quavo, and Chance the Rapper — debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100. The single was the first-ever chart-topping track for Khaled but, as he told Billboard in the cover story for their June issue, he had to jump through some hoops to pull the song together.
In the interview, Khaled described receiving the instrumental from producer Nic Nac, and realizing the pop potential of the song. Khaled reached out to Justin Bieber, who invited him over to his house.“I hung up, jumped in the Rolls and brought a PA just to make sure I presented it right,” Khaled remembered. But before he recorded the hook for the song, Bieber made Khaled play him in hockey, according to Billboard. “I took the beating for the song,” Khaled said.
Elsewhere in the cover story, Khaled refused to say Trump's name because, as writer Chris Martins notes, he "has a policy of not speaking about other people unless they’re great." Instead, Khaled said, “I expect our leaders to lead with love. Obama’s my president.”
Read DJ Khaled's Billboard cover story here.