So by now everyone knows what the noun “bling” means.

Bling-bling • Wikipedia

But I am wondering exactly how to parse “bling” in Drake’s hit song.

And I know when that hotline bling
That can only mean one thing…

First off, he uses it as a verb. Nouning a verb is itself not a difficulty. So maybe he just means that his cell phone makes a sound suggestive of the glitter of jewels and precious metals.

Still, maybe it’s just an alternative pronunciation for “blink”, particularly since “bling” and “blink” really just vary by a single terminal consonant.

• bling /blɪŋ/
• blink /blɪŋk/

Or maybe, it’s a portmanteau of “blink” and “ring”.

The Genius lyrics annotation suggests a different interpretation.