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For the casual observer, fakemink<\/a> might look like an overnight success: from niche internet celebrity to major festival slots, famous fans (including Drake<\/a>, Frank Ocean<\/a> and Timoth\u00e9e Chalamet<\/a>) and walking Gucci’s AW26 show<\/a>, all within the space of a year or so. But mink \u2013 real name <\/span>Vincenzo Camille<\/span> \u2013 rejects that narrative. <\/span>\u201cThere\u2019s nothing quick about my rise; I\u2019ve been making music for a long time,\u201d the rapper says in our new video, filmed while shooting his Dazed cover story<\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n Swinging on a hanging chair, fakemink goes deep into his background and process as an artist, revealing the inspiration behind his stage name, his early musical influences, the films he returns to again and again, and the meaning behind <\/span>Terrified<\/span><\/em>, the title of his upcoming album ( \u201cit\u2019s this extreme terror running through your veins, going like 100 miles an hour when you\u2019re driving but you feel so good that you might crash [and] that doesn\u2019t even matter.\u201d) There\u2019s also plenty of that characteristic fakemink swagger: \u201c<\/span>I\u2019m the best at what I do, I\u2019m better than everyone in the scene,\u201d he announces, explaining why Drake invited him to appear at Wireless festival.<\/span><\/p>\n As part of a new wave of young, internet-native Gen Z artists, fakemink reflects on the role that social media has played in his life and career. \u201cI\u2019ve definitely been raised by Instagram; there\u2019s probably not a corner of the internet I haven\u2019t seen,\u201d he says. One side effect of his success is the intense, at times parasocial attention which he now attracts. \u201cI have all these fans telling me they\u2019re in love with me, but that\u2019s really crazy, cause they don\u2019t know me. They\u2019re just in love with the idea of me,\u201d he says. \u201cYou shouldn\u2019t say I love you so willy nilly.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n It\u2019s not all serious, though. Fakemink also shows a more playful side, wielding a wooden sword like a medieval knight and enjoying a tender embrace with a huge, fluffy white dog. Watch all this and more in the video above.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n