Nightclub Owner Credits Dinner Introduction for Bad Bunny and Drake Partnership

Miami nightclub owner David Grutman says he brought Bad Bunny and Drake together during a meal while the Canadian rapper worked on his album Scorpion. That meeting sparked their hit song "MÍA" and a restaurant venture between Grutman and Bad Bunny.

The 51-year-old businessman tells the story in his new book Take It Personal: How to Succeed by Building Relationships and Playing the Long Game, which arrives April 14. During their dinner, Drake asked him about the most exciting new artist around.

"Without hesitation, I said, 'Bad Bunny,'" Grutman wrote in the book, obtained by USA Today.

Grutman pushed Drake to contact Bad Bunny's manager. The Puerto Rican rapper — whose real name is Benito Antonio Martínez Ocasio — flew to Miami the next day with his team.

Drake delayed their first meeting because of a recording session. But he later wanted dinner at Komodo, one of Grutman's restaurants. "We all went to dinner, and the connection between Drake and Bad Bunny was instant," Grutman wrote. "They decided to record a song together called 'MÍA.'"

The track didn't make Scorpion in 2018. It came out as a single months later. The song debuted at No. 5 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, giving Bad Bunny his first top 10 single.

Grutman later told Drake to bring Bad Bunny onstage during a rescheduled Miami concert. "The crowd went wild" during the song's first-ever live performance, he wrote. The two artists teamed up again in 2023 on "Gently" for Drake's eighth album For All the Dogs.

That introduction created business chances. After bringing Bad Bunny into talks with Drake and a Live Nation executive, the rapper suggested they open a restaurant together.

"My answer was immediate — yes," Grutman said.

Gekko, a Japanese steakhouse, opened in Miami in August 2022. It's still running today. Grutman appeared in Bad Bunny's Super Bowl halftime show in February.

"For me, it wasn't just about launching a successful spot; it was about what it represented," Grutman wrote. "A connection that started with no expectations, just a desire to help someone grow, had led to something beautiful."