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Nav (rapper)

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Navraj Singh Goraya (born November 3, 1989), better known as Nav, is a Canadian rapper and record producer. Nav originally began his career as a producer, in which he notably co-produced the 2015 single "Back to Back" by fellow Canadian rapper and singer Drake. He is signed to Canadian singer the Weeknd's record label, XO, and its parent label, Republic Records, where he is managed by XO managers Amir "Cash" Esmailian and Wassim "Sal" Slaiby.

Nav
Nav in 2018
Born
Navraj Singh Goraya

(1989-11-03) November 3, 1989 (age 35)
Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Occupations
  • Rapper
  • singer
  • songwriter
  • record producer
Years active2015–present
Musical career
Genres
Labels
Websitenavmusic.com

Nav gained mainstream attention in 2016 from his feature on the single "Beibs in the Trap" by Travis Scott and his own single, "Myself", went viral on SoundCloud. In 2017, he released his self-titled debut mixtape and his collaborative mixtape with Metro Boomin titled Perfect Timing, both of which had moderate success. In 2018, Nav released his debut studio album, Reckless, and was also the subject of numerous internet memes later in the year from his feature alongside Gunna on the single "Yosemite" by Travis Scott, due to his vocals on the song initially being mixed at a lower volume than usual before being fixed shortly after. His second and third studio albums, Bad Habits and Good Intentions both debuted and peaked atop the Billboard 200. The latter also produced his highest-charting song as a lead artist on the Billboard Hot 100, "Turks", a collaboration with Gunna that features Travis Scott, which debuted and peaked at number 17 on the chart. Later that year, Nav earned his highest-charting single overall with his feature on the single "Lemonade", which reached number six on the Billboard Hot 100. He released his fourth studio album, Demons Protected by Angels in 2022. His collaboration with Metro Boomin, Swae Lee, and A Boogie wit da Hoodie the following year on the single "Calling", which featured on the soundtrack for Spider-Man Across The Spider-Verse, was moderately successful on the charts. Nav is set to release his fifth studio album, On My Way 2 Rexdale, in late 2024.

Early life

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Navraj Singh Goraya was born on November 3, 1989, in Toronto, Ontario, into an immigrant Punjabi Sikh family, from Punjab, India. He was raised in the Rexdale neighbourhood. His mother was involved in computer manufacturing and his father operated a forklift.[1] Nav first became interested in music after his mother bought him a boombox in the third grade.[2] His uncle was also a popular Punjabi singer in India and brought him to a studio.[3] He began making mash-ups in high school and producing beats for local underground Toronto artists, and became popular on SoundCloud. Nav first started producing using Sony's ACID Pro software.[1] He attended West Humber Junior Middle School and then later attended Thistletown Collegiate Institute for his high school education and had to spend an additional year to graduate. Following high school, he attended and graduated from Metalworks Institute in Mississauga, Ontario in 2010 with a diploma in Audio Production and Engineering.[4] Nav also mentions that he briefly worked as an Apprentice in the Electrical Industry as an Electrician before quitting to pursue his music career full time.[5]

Career

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2015–2018: Commercial debut, Nav, and Perfect Timing

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Main articles: Nav (mixtape) and Perfect Timing (mixtape)

On July 29, 2015, fellow Canadian rapper and singer Drake released the single "Back to Back", which Nav helped co-produce. On September 4, 2015, Nav released one of his earliest singles on SoundCloud and YouTube, "Take Me Simple", which has accumulated over eighteen million listens. He released the single "Ten Toes Down" (abbreviated as "TTD" on streaming services) on SoundCloud and YouTube on December 15, 2015. In 2016, another one of his SoundCloud and YouTube-exclusive singles, "The Man", was played on Drake's OVO Sound Radio.[6][7] On January 12, 2016, Nav released the single "Myself" on SoundCloud and YouTube, which quickly became his biggest song at the time, earning him numerous cosigns, including one from American model and internet personality Kylie Jenner. On June 4, 2016, he released the single "Up" on SoundCloud and YouTube. Following the popularity of the singles, he was signed to XO and Republic Records, after being called by his now-manager Amir "Cash" Esmailian.[8] On September 2, 2016, Nav was featured on and solely produced the single "Beibs in the Trap" by Travis Scott, as part of the latter's second studio album, Birds in the Trap Sing McKnight, in which the song reached number 90 on the US Billboard Hot 100 and was eventually certified double platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) after selling over two million copies.[9][10] On December 24, 2016, American record producer Metro Boomin, who helped produce "Up", took to Twitter to announce that he and Nav would be releasing a collaborative project in 2017. On February 15, 2017, Nav released his debut single, "Some Way" featuring the Weeknd, who is his label boss from XO, as the lead single from his self-titled debut mixtape, which was released exactly nine days later. Exactly, one week after the release of the single, Nav tweeted that his collaborative mixtape with Metro Boomin would be titled Perfect Timing. "Myself" was chosen as the second and final single from Nav's self-titled mixtape as it was sent to rhythmic contemporary radio on April 11, 2017.[11] On July 14, 2017, Nav and Metro Boomin released "Perfect Timing (Intro)" and "Call Me", the dual lead singles of Perfect Timing, which was released exactly a week later.[12]

2018–2019: Reckless and Bad Habits

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Main articles: Reckless (Nav album) and Bad Habits (Nav album)

On November 7, 2017, Nav was featured on the single "Bali" by Canadian hip hop duo 88Glam, which consisted of rappers and now-former XO signees Derek Wise and 88Camino before the duo split in late 2022, as part of the duo's self-titled debut mixtape. Three days later, he released the single "Wanted You" featuring Lil Uzi Vert, which became his first single as a lead artist, as well as a credited artist, to chart on the Billboard Hot 100, reaching number 64.[13] In February 2018, Nav received a Juno Award nomination for Breakthrough Artist of the Year at the Juno Awards of 2018.[14] On March 16, 2018, he released the single "Freshman List", which saw him taking aim at the magazine XXL for not including him in their segment of the same name to highlight up-and-coming artists in 2017.[15] On April 6, 2018, Nav was featured on the single "Maintain" by fellow XO signee Belly, which later appeared on the latter's second studio album, Immigrant.[16] On April 26, 2018, during his concert for his "Freshman Tour" in Los Angeles, he announced that he would be releasing two projects that year, in which he said that his debut studio album would be titled Reckless and that he would also be releasing another collaborative mixtape with Metro Boomin titled Perfect Timing 2, which is a sequel to their project together that was released in 2017, but the latter project has still not been released as of 2023. The next day, Nav took to social media to announce that Travis Scott, who came out to perform "Beibs in the Trap" with him onstage the previous day, would be featured on a song from Reckless. On May 18, 2018, Nav released Reckless, with "Wanted You" and "Freshman List" serving as the respective lead and second singles.[17][18] "Champion" featuring Travis Scott was chosen as the third and final single from the album as it was sent to rhythmic contemporary radio on June 26, 2018.[19] On August 3, 2018, Nav was featured alongside Gunna on the single "Yosemite" by Travis Scott, as part of the latter's third studio album, Astroworld, which he received worldwide attention because his voice was initially mixed at a lower volume, but it was fixed and re-released with a better mix at the correct volume eight days later.[20][21][22][23]

On November 2, 2018, Nav released the single "Know Me".[24] He received two Juno Award nominations for Fan Choice and Rap Recording of the Year at the Juno Awards of 2019 for Reckless. On March 22, 2019, Nav released his second studio album, Bad Habits, with "Know Me" serving as the lead single.[25] Four days later, he released the deluxe edition of the album and "Price on My Head" featuring the Weeknd was chosen as the second single of the album on the same day.[26][27][28] It debuted number one on the US Billboard 200.[29][30] "Tap" featuring Meek Mill was chosen as the third and final single from the album as it was sent to rhythmic contemporary radio on May 7, 2019.[31] On June 28, 2019, Mustard released his third studio album, Perfect Ten, with Nav featured alongside Playboi Carti and A Boogie wit da Hoodie on the fourth track, "Baguettes in the Face".[32]

2020: Good Intentions, Brown Boy 2, and Emergency Tsunami

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Main articles: Good Intentions (album), Brown Boy 2, and Emergency Tsunami

On March 27, 2020, Nav released a collaboration with Gunna titled "Turks" featuring Travis Scott.[33][34] The song became his highest-charting song in the United States as it reached number 17 on the Billboard Hot 100 and served as the lead single from his third studio album, Good Intentions. The album was released on May 8 and debuted at number one on the US Billboard 200. Three days later, Nav released its deluxe edition with a reissued album titled Brown Boy 2, which also serves as a sequel to his unofficial EP, Brown Boy, which his manager Cash released exclusively on Audiomack in 2019.[35] Soon after the release of the albums, Nav released a merchandise collaboration with Vlone and Virgil Abloh for the album.[36] On August 14, Nav was featured on the single "Lemonade" by record label Internet Money, Gunna, and Don Toliver, which later appeared the label's debut studio album, B4 the Storm, and gave Nav his highest-charting song ever as it reached number seven on the Hot 100.[37] On November 6, 2020, Nav released his second commercial mixtape, Emergency Tsunami.[38] Five days later, he released a bonus version of the mixtape.[39] "Young Wheezy", a collaboration with Gunna, was chosen as the lead and only single from the mixtape as it was sent to rhythmic contemporary radio on January 12, 2021.[40]

2022–present: Demons Protected by Angels and On My Way 2 Rexdale

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Main articles: Demons Protected by Angels and On My Way 2 Rexdale

On June 27, 2022, Nav shared that his fourth studio album would be titled Demons Protected by Angels. On July 29, he released a collaboration with Lil Baby as the album's lead single titled "Never Sleep" featuring Travis Scott.[41] Nav solely produced the second single, "Wrong Decisions", which was released on August 23, 2022.[42] The album was released on September 9, 2022, and a collaboration with Don Toliver, "One Time", featuring Future, was chosen as the third single four days later.[43] On October 1, 2022, Nav shared that he would be releasing his third commercial mixtape, Nav2, a sequel to his self-titled mixtape, which was released back in 2017.[44] On February 10, 2023, he released the single "Lately", which is expected to serve as the lead single from the mixtape.[45] On May 21, 2023, Metro Boomin joined Nav onstage during the latter's performance at the Metro Metro Festival in Montreal, which was before his own set at the festival, in which the two announced that their collaborative mixtape, Perfect Timing 2, which was originally announced in 2018, would be released soon.[46] Exactly ten days later, Nav released a collaboration with Metro Boomin and Swae Lee titled "Calling" featuring A Boogie wit da Hoodie, which later appeared on Metro's first soundtrack album, which was for the film Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse.[47]

In April 2024, Nav performed twice at the Coachella festival in Indio, California, on April 14 and April 21, where he announced the title On My Way 2 Rexdale at the end of his performance on the former date although it was unclear whether it was a single or a project and performed the then-unreleased song from the album titled "Red" on the latter date.[48] On May 14, he released a trailer video for the album, where he confirmed the title of the album and announced that it would be released in the middle of that year, while also hinting at Future, Don Toliver, and Playboi Carti being some of the potential guest appearances on the album.[49] On July 31, 2024, Nav released the lead single of the album, "Rexdale".[50] Two days later, he released the second single, "6AM Thoughts", which is a collaboration with American rapper Bay Swag that features fellow American rapper Cash Cobain.[51] On August 16, 2024, Nav was featured on a new version of Australian singer Lithe's single, "Fall Back".[52]

Controversies

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In early 2017, Nav had received backlash for saying the word "nigga" in some his songs.[53] In an interview with Complex on July 21, 2017, Nav stated that the neighborhood he grew up in is very "multicultural" with members of the "Chinese to white to black to Jamaican" openly using the word with one another. He admitted that he and his friends constantly used the word with one another, but he saw some backlash once he had gained some popularity. He also stated that he would not say the word in his music anymore, starting from his collaborative mixtape with Metro Boomin titled Perfect Timing, which was released on the same day as the interview.[54]

Nav publicly criticized XXL through a series of tweets and Instagram posts along with releasing the single "Freshman List" on March 16, 2018.[55] His main reason for criticizing the magazine was due to not being selected for the 2018 freshman cover. In his tweets, Nav shared his thoughts that had ranged "from angry and bitter to motivational and inspirational". After his tweets and release of the single, Nav began addressing the outlet's editor-in-chief Vanessa Satten through now deleted Instagram posts and further continued to criticize the outlet.[56]

In March 2019, during an interview with Pitchfork, Nav was quoted by an interviewer to say: "Fame is something I want, it's a good problem to have. I'm still not there, because when I walk out of fucking Delilah in L.A. and TMZ will be standing out there with cameras and not even take a picture of me, I get sick. I get in my fucking Lambo truck right in front of them. All my jewelry on and they don't even take one picture".[57] However, he later clarified that this was taken out of context, as "sick" is in fact a positive term in Toronto slang, and rather than being disgusted for not being recognized, he is grateful to still have anonymity as a celebrity.[58] Nav further stated in the Pitchfork interview that he hoped his latest project, Bad Habits would help him become more noticed by TMZ along with other paparazzi. A week later, a TMZ interviewer found Nav in New York and did a brief video interview with him, asking him questions about a possible collaborative project with Lil Uzi Vert.[59]

Discography

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Main article: Nav discography

Studio albums

Concert tours

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Headlining
Supporting

Awards and nominations

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Year Awards Category Work Result
2018 Juno Award Breakthrough Artist of the Year Nominated
2019 Juno Award Fan Choice Nominated
Rap Recording of the Year Reckless Nominated
2020 Juno Award Fan Choice[60] Nominated
Rap Recording of the Year[60] Bad Habits Nominated

References

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  1. ^ a b "Nav Is the "First Brown Boy to Get It Popping" and His Meteoric Rise Is Far From Over". Complex.com. Archived from the original on October 14, 2017. Retrieved October 14, 2017. His parents are from Punjab, India.
  2. ^ "Nav: Meet the Toronto Rapper-Producer Opening the Weeknd's Starboy Tour". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on October 14, 2017. Retrieved October 19, 2017.
  3. ^ Carter, Brooke (August 5, 2017). "Nav Net Worth – How Wealthy is the Rapper Now? – The Gazette Review". The Gazette Review. Archived from the original on October 20, 2017. Retrieved October 19, 2017.
  4. ^ "Alumni Update: JUNO Award Nominations 2018, Metalworks Institute". Metalworks Institute. February 9, 2018. Retrieved May 31, 2020.
  5. ^ NAV used to be an electrician😱, January 8, 2023, retrieved November 16, 2023 Interview with Nav by Our Generation Music
  6. ^ "Drake – OVO Sound Radio Episode 13 Tracklist". Genius.com. Archived from the original on August 17, 2018. Retrieved August 17, 2018.
  7. ^ "Drake – OVO Sound Radio Episode 16 Tracklist". Genius.com. Archived from the original on August 17, 2018. Retrieved August 17, 2018.
  8. ^ Simmons, Ted (February 16, 2017). "Nav Signs Deal With The Weeknd's XO Records". XXL. Retrieved February 26, 2017.
  9. ^ "Travis Scott Chart History: Hot 100". Billboard. Archived from the original on September 26, 2018. Retrieved October 2, 2018.
  10. ^ "Travis Scott & Nav's "Biebs In The Trap" Just Went Platinum". HYPEBEAST. Archived from the original on October 20, 2017. Retrieved October 19, 2017.
  11. ^ "Rhythmic/Urban Radio Update". April 12, 2017 – via Fashionably.
  12. ^ "Nav and Metro Boomin Drop 'Perfect Timing' Project – XXL". XXL Mag. July 21, 2017. Archived from the original on February 1, 2018. Retrieved January 31, 2018.
  13. ^ Lamarre, Carl (November 10, 2017). "Nav & Lil Uzi Vert Blast Their Past Relationships on 'Wanted You'". Billboard. Retrieved July 15, 2023.
  14. ^ "Arcade Fire and Daniel Caesar lead 2018 Juno Award nominations" Archived February 8, 2018, at the Wayback Machine. CBC Music, February 6, 2018.
  15. ^ Mojica, Nick (March 16, 2018). "Nav Wants the Rookie of the Year Crown on New Song "Freshman List"". XXL. Retrieved November 30, 2022.
  16. ^ Zidel, Alex (April 5, 2018). "Belly & Nav Are Out Here Trying To "Maintain" In New Single". HotNewHipHop. Retrieved July 15, 2023.
  17. ^ Saponara, Michael (May 18, 2018). "Stream NAV's Debut Album 'Reckless,' Feat. Travis Scott, Quavo & Lil Uzi Vert". Billboard. Retrieved November 18, 2022.
  18. ^ "Nav's Debut Album 'Reckless' Is Here". Complex. Retrieved November 18, 2022.
  19. ^ "Top 40 Rhythmic Future Releases | R&B Song and Hip-Hop Music Release Dates | ..." June 14, 2018. Archived from the original on June 14, 2018. Retrieved January 12, 2020.
  20. ^ Findlay, Mitch (November 12, 2018). "Travis Scott Picks "Yosemite" As Next "Astroworld" Single". HotNewHipHop. Retrieved December 5, 2018.
  21. ^ Arcand, Rob (August 12, 2018). "Travis Scott Updates Final Mix of Astroworld Song 'Yosemite'". Spin. Retrieved December 5, 2018.
  22. ^ "Why Nav's Vocals on "Yosemite" Were Quiet, According to Travis Scott's Engineer". Complex. Retrieved November 18, 2022.
  23. ^ "Travis Scott's Engineer Explains The Low Volume Of Nav's 'Yosemite' Verse". Uproxx. April 7, 2020. Retrieved November 18, 2022.
  24. ^ Espinoza, Joshua (November 2, 2018). "Nav Drops New Single "Know Me"". Complex. Retrieved November 30, 2022.
  25. ^ Slingerland, Calum (March 21, 2019). "NAV Gets Meek Mill, Young Thug, the Weeknd for 'Bad Habits' Album". Exclaim!. Archived from the original on March 22, 2019. Retrieved March 21, 2019.
  26. ^ Chin, Mallory (March 26, 2019). "Nav Drops Future-Assisted Track on Deluxe Edition of 'Bad Habits'". HYPEBEAST. Archived from the original on April 16, 2019. Retrieved April 16, 2019.
  27. ^ Saponara, Michael (March 26, 2019). "Nav Connects With Future for 'Amazing,' Releases 'Bad Habits' Deluxe Edition". Billboard. Archived from the original on April 24, 2019. Retrieved April 16, 2019.
  28. ^ Legaspi, Althea (March 26, 2019). "Nav, the Weeknd's Toronto Hometown Burns in 'Price on My Head' Video". Rolling Stone. Retrieved April 6, 2019. The single appears on Nav's sophomore studio album, Bad Habits.
  29. ^ Caulfield, Keith (March 31, 2019). "NAV Nets First No. 1 Album on Billboard 200 Chart With 'Bad Habits'". Billboard. Archived from the original on April 5, 2019. Retrieved April 22, 2019.
  30. ^ Caulfied, Keith (March 29, 2019). "NAV's 'Bad Habits' Set for No. 1 Debut on Billboard 200 Albums Chart". Billboard. Archived from the original on April 30, 2019. Retrieved April 22, 2019.
  31. ^ "Top 40 Rhythmic Future Releases". All Access Media Group. Archived from the original on May 5, 2019. Retrieved July 4, 2019.
  32. ^ Devin Ch (June 30, 2019). "Mustard Floods "Baguettes In The Face" Of NAV, A Boogie Wit Da Hoodie & Playboi Carti". HotNewHipHop. Retrieved October 21, 2019.
  33. ^ "NAV, Gunna & Travis Scott Join Forces Again on 'Turks'". Billboard. March 27, 2020. Retrieved March 29, 2020.
  34. ^ "Nav and Shanender share "Turks" featuring Travis Scott". The FADER. Retrieved March 29, 2020.
  35. ^ "Audiomack | Free Music Sharing and Discovery".
  36. ^ "Nav Connects With Virgil Abloh, VLONE, and nWo on 'Good Intentions' Album Merch". Complex. Retrieved May 31, 2020.
  37. ^ Marke, Erika (August 14, 2020). "Internet Money Taps Gunna, Nav, & Don Toliver For "Lemonade"". HotNewHipHop. Retrieved August 23, 2020.
  38. ^ "NAV Announces New Mixtape 'Emergency Tsunami'". Exclaim!. Retrieved November 18, 2022.
  39. ^ "NAV Adds Future Collab To 'Emergency Tsunami' For Bonus Version Mixtape". HipHopDX. November 11, 2020. Retrieved November 18, 2022.
  40. ^ "Top 40 Rhythmic Future Releases". AllAccess. Archived from the original on January 4, 2021.
  41. ^ Espinoza, Joshua (July 29, 2022). "Nav Reconnects With Travis Scott and Lil Baby on "Never Sleep"". Complex. Retrieved July 29, 2022.
  42. ^ Shifferaw, Abel (August 23, 2022). "Nav Shares Video for New Track "Wrong Decisions"". Complex. Retrieved September 9, 2022.
  43. ^ Li, Joyce (September 14, 2022). "NAV Teams up With Future and Don Toliver in New Visuals for "One Time"". Hypebeast. Retrieved September 14, 2022. Following the release of his most recent album Demons Protected By Angels, NAV has dropped new visuals for his single "One Time" featuring Future and Don Toliver.
  44. ^ @beatsbynav (October 1, 2022). "Nav announces Nav2" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  45. ^ Cowen, Trace William (February 10, 2023). "Nav Teases Upcoming 'Nav 2' Album With New Track "Lately"". Complex. Retrieved February 10, 2023.
  46. ^ Hynes, Hayley (May 23, 2023). "Metro Boomin Confirms "Perfect Timing 2" Album With NAV: Video". HotNewHipHop. Retrieved February 10, 2024.
  47. ^ Fisher, Caroline (May 31, 2023). "Metro Boomin, NAV, A Boogie Wit Da Hoodie, And Swae Lee Join Forces On "Calling"". HotNewHipHop. Retrieved May 31, 2023.
  48. ^ Cowen, Trace William (May 14, 2024). "Nav Confirms Imminent Release of New Album 'On My Way 2 Rexdale,' Shares Trailer". Complex. Retrieved May 14, 2024.
  49. ^ Trapp, Malcolm (May 14, 2024). "NAV Shares Trailer For Upcoming Album 'On My Way 2 Rexdale'". Uproxx. Retrieved May 14, 2024.
  50. ^ Morton, Devin (August 1, 2024). "NAV Welcomes Listeners To "Rexdale" On Latest Single". HotNewHipHop. Retrieved August 1, 2024.
  51. ^ Price, Joe (August 2, 2024). "Nav Teams Up With Cash Cobain and Bay Swag on "6AM Thoughts"". Complex. Retrieved August 2, 2024.
  52. ^ "Rising Melbourne Singer/Songwriter & Producer Lithe Links Up with NAV on "Fall Back"". Imprint. Retrieved August 18, 2024.
  53. ^ "Why We Can't Give South Asian Artists Who Say The N-Word A Pass". March 5, 2017. Retrieved October 22, 2020.
  54. ^ "NAV Says He's Done Using the N-Word in His Music". Archived from the original on May 24, 2019. Retrieved May 22, 2019.
  55. ^ "Nav Debuts "Freshman List" Single Ahead of Tour". HNHH. March 15, 2018.
  56. ^ "Nav Blasts XXL's Editor-In-Chief, Says Freshmen List & Website is Trash". March 20, 2018.
  57. ^ "Lunch with Nav". Pitchfork. March 27, 2019. Archived from the original on May 3, 2019. Retrieved May 22, 2019.
  58. ^ "Nav Talks Working With Lil Uzi Vert, "Yosemite" Vocals & Haters". YouTube. May 15, 2020. Archived from the original on November 18, 2021. Retrieved May 20, 2020.
  59. ^ "Canadian Rapper Nav on TMZ is Finally a Thing". Archived from the original on April 1, 2019. Retrieved May 22, 2019.
  60. ^ a b "Juno Awards: The Weeknd Scores Leading 6 Nominations". The Hollywood Reporter. March 9, 2021. Retrieved March 12, 2021.
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