Image via Publicist/Photo by Dimitrios Kambouris
“I’m tired of hearing ‘bout who you checking for now/Just give it time, let’s see who’s still around a decade from now,” Drake raps on “Tuscan Leather.” The line is commonly interpreted as a foreboding message to Drake’s retractors as if he’s gloating that his fame will outlast theirs. But what if the bar is a note to The Boy’s most loyal fans?
It’s cold and soggy outside of the Apollo Theater in NYC as hundreds of fans wait to see the OVO rapper for his second and final night at the legendary venue. Despite inclement weather, every seat in the venue is filled. The air is thick, but the energy in the building was electric as some of the rapper’s most loyal supporters pour in for the SiriusXM show—many of whom have, as he prophesied in 2013, been around for more than a decade. Two of those supporters are sitting beside me; the couple from Quebec bought tickets on the secondhand market for $700 and flew from Canada just to see their GOAT.
“We love Drake. He represents Canada,” 33-year-old Canadian Oliver tells Complex during the DJ set before the show. “This is a once in a lifetime opportunity to see him with only 1,100 people in the stands. I’ve seen him many times, but what’s going to make tonight special is it’s his first concert in 5 years. Just the energy in New York, it’s going to be incredible.”
The Apollo is a space of music legends—greats like Luther Vandross, Lauryn Hill, D’Angelo, and more have performed there. On this special night, though, the music landmark is warped into different key moments in Drake’s career. The now-mature Drizzy Drake turns back time to transform into the Aubrey Graham who wrote raps in his mother’s basement and got rejected in music label boardrooms, yet continued dreaming of recreating iconic rap moments with his idols.
“I’m always in competition mode, and I end up getting taken by that mentality,” Drake explains between songs as he sits on his childhood bed in Sandra Graham’s basement. “I get into this mode of competitive spirit, but tonight I wanted to leave that alone for a second, and I wanted tonight to be about gratitude.”
In the career-spanning set, Drake reminded us of why we started listening to him in the first place. It wasn’t the B-sides show some expected, but it served as a reminder of how deep his catalog is. Here are the biggest takeaways from the rare performance.
The Production Delays Make Sense
Drake pushed back this show twice, and attributed the second date change to production delays. Once we were in the room this January, those made complete sense. The traditional Apollo stage was converted into a glowing box with porcelain white shutters that would open and close to reveal different backgrounds from the rapper’s different eras—from Degrassi to his Take Care era, and beyond. The detail made the performance feel like a Broadway play. The stage was like an optical illusion because it didn’t have an exceeding depth, but the way the shudders moved and displayed different graphics made it look much larger than it was.
We began in Sandra Graham’s basement, where he wrote many of his early songs. The scene then shifted to look like a music label boardroom in New York to recall his first trip to the city to try and get signed. “Sorry, what was your name again?” a voiceover mimicking a music executive can be heard saying during the opening of the new scene. “Drake? That’s right. The rapper from Canada? Well, that’s interesting.” The stage would later turn into a dance floor fit for Honestly, Nevermind tracks, a Harlem bodega for the introduction of both guests on the second night, Dipset, and finally a smaller replica of the Apollo sign as he closed out the show with his Her Loss counterpart 21 Savage.
The Deep Cuts Still Hit
“I made a career off reminiscing,” Drake says on “U With Me?” The 36-year-old took fans on a trip down memory lane as he performed classic songs that set the bedrock for his career. From opening the SiriusXM show with the Take Care intro “Over My Dead Body,” to proceeding through a medley of throwbacks like “Wu-Tang Forever,” “HYFR,” “Trust Issues,” “Jungle,” and more, the rapper put his dense catalog on full display with wicked transitions between songs. While the early portion of the show was dominated by deep cuts and some B-sides, Drake also left a considerable amount of time for his more recent and mainstream hits, including tracks from Honestly, Nevermind and Her Loss like “Sticky,” “Massive,” “Spin Bout U,” and more that he hadn’t gotten the opportunity to perform yet, since his last time on tour was in 2018. All were well received as the audience remained engaged, spitting every track word-for-word.
The Crowd’s Energy Was Palpable
“This group of people in this type of setting, it’s almost impossible to get the two,” Drake said. The atmosphere in the Apollo was palpable. At some point, near the end of the two-hour show, a supporter in attendance fell from the mezzanine to the ground floor the moment 21 Savage appeared. Thankfully, the fan was not injured and the show was able to continue after a brief pause. The theater then hit a new octave once Lil Uzi Vert arrived to perform “Just Wanna Rock,” another testament to the impact of that amazing Jersey Club song.
At this point, Drake has filled stadiums and arenas, so this performance was a treat that allowed for a more intimate, personal experience for everyone involved. Drake took it as an opportunity to engage with his audience, rapping directly at people, and performing in a way that made you forget he’s one of the biggest artists on the planet. In those moments, he was less of 6ix God, and more of Aubrey “Drake” Graham.
Drake Respects Hip-Hop History
On Saturday night, Drake brought out Dipset and rocked Cam’ron’s iconic pink mink. And on Sunday’s show, he continued to show respect for his rap idols with the Diplomats return, this time adorning another authentic outfit once worn by Cam during a classic Dipset music video. Some have criticized the rapper for the extent he’s gone to pay homage to his rap heroes—recently purchasing several iconic pieces of jewelry owned by Pharrell—but in reality, sharing the stage with Killa Cam, Jim Jones, Juelz Santana, and Freekey Zekey in Harlem’s legendary theater is an accomplishment that few other artists can say they achieved. The moments of tribute paid great attention to detail, too. For example, the Harlem bodega stage design was modeled perfectly after the set Dipset performed in front of at the 2003 Source Awards. These moments added to the energy of the night because they show how tapped in Drake is to hip-hop history, despite now being a part of it himself.
He's Finally Touring Again Soon
The last time Drake was on the road was in 2018, when he went on tour with the Migos. He’s since released four albums. On Sunday, the rapper hinted that he would be touring again soon, and based on the show he put on this past weekend, this one is going to be special. “This summer, man, I’m back on the road, $100 million for some shows,” he improvises while performing “Started From the Bottom.” During the show, he also mentioned how excited he was to be able to engage with his fans in that way. The OVO rapper has teased an upcoming concert several times over the last few weeks, and in the days leading up to this one, dates for something called “It’s a Blur” tour leaked online. Some speculate that that will be the US tour that Drake and 21 Savage will be on together.
Drake Is Not Ready to Retire Yet
“It’s nights like these that remind me that I have the greatest job in the world,” Drake said before performing his last song, “Legend.” “And I feel like you give me the confidence to know that, after all these years and all the no’s we heard, it’s this group right here that lets me know that I’m exactly where I need to be,” he continued, “and I’m not going nowhere anytime soon.”
Despite making music for over a decade, Drake still has more gas in the tank. His two days at the Apollo put his dense catalog on full display and acted as a reminder of how many hits the rapper has. But beyond that, it also demonstrated that Drake thrives off his relationship with his most loyal fans. Artists have fake retired before, but that doesn’t seem to be in the cards for him.
The Apollo Brought Drake Back Down to Earth
These days, Drake is more easily found in the clouds, pondering what new heights he can reach while soaring the skies in his custom Boeing. However, on this rare, soggy weekend in the middle of January, The Boy came back down to earth to relive some of his most pivotal music moments with the fans that helped catapult him to astronomical fame. Despite being in a completely different tax bracket than he was when making many of the classic tracks he performed last night, Drake was still able to tap into the passion that made these songs so important to the loyal fans in attendance.
These fans have stuck by him for so long because his music makes it feel like you know him, and taking them back to his mama’s basement solidifies that sentiment. While most people in the crowd’s lives are different now from when they first heard “Trust Issues” or “Karaoke” or “Jungle,” being able to restore the emotions those tracks evoke is what makes Drake special. It shows that no matter how incredulous the flexes, unrelatable the bars, or untouchable the rapper feels today, he hasn’t forgotten what got him there. In these fleeting moments at the Apollo, he’s just like us again.