Drake & 21 Savage - Barclays Center (07/17/23)
Shot by John Myles, Designed by Casma
The Boy. The 6ix God. “Wheelchair Jimmy.” Champagne Papi. For those who don’t know, these appear random. But they all have one central meaning, Drake. The Degrassi actor turned one of the greatest rappers of all time, is finally back on the road for his “IT’S ALL A BLUR” Tour with 21 Savage.
It’s been 5 years since Drake has been on tour and Monday, July 17th, kicked off a staggering 7 show run in New York. Starting at the Barclays Center, and ending at MSG, we are witnessing Drake solidifying himself as one of the most substantial artists of all time.
But what does the artist from Toronto have in store? Is it worth the price? Should I just pull the trigger and go at the last minute? Removing all hyperbole, the short answer is absolutely.
The hype in New York is incredible. If you are driving anywhere in that direction, you’ve noticed that the traffic that’s always terrible, has doubled. Arriving at Barclays I am always brought back to previous artists I’ve seen there: J. Cole, Playboi Carti, and even the man himself JAY-Z. But the crowd and energy from outside the arena was unlike all of them. The sheer amount of people and movement seemed more like a festival in the middle of Brooklyn rather than a single concert.
But this isn’t a regular concert. Like only a few artists can pull off, this is a show. Some might think they’re one in the same, but if you get the chance to see one of these performances, you’ll understand exactly what I mean. The start alone had the arena’s atmosphere electric.
As some may have seen online, the stage lights up and in the center is a couch with what is made to look like a young Drake. He’s contemplating to himself and starts smoking. The screen shows this and even the sound begins to blur and fade, kicking off the concept of the show. From that kid in Toronto to the megastar of today, everything in between has been a blur.
Drake arrives from a tunnel, trekking through the thousands of fans on his way to the stage located in the middle of this astounding mass of people. Followed by his OVO crew, it was like watching Rocky Balboa in Rocky II, making his way down to the ring. Stopping for a split second to embrace a fan or someone he knew.
The beginning was everything a Drake fan could want. He sits on the couch with the younger version of himself and is handed a marble notebook. He begins to read from it, and thus starts one of my all-time favorite Drake songs, Look What You’ve Done. Followed up by Marvin’s Room, and a deep-cut favorite of mine, his feature from Say Something by Timbaland. It set the stage and started what would solidify just how many individual, certified features and songs are in the 6ix God’s discography. Every song left off seems like a miss, but it’s hard to accommodate when you have such an abundance of cache.
There were the songs you would expect, God’s Plan, Sicko Mode, and Nice For What. But he also did those cuts I didn’t expect, doing my absolute best to avoid any spoilers: Shot For Me, Jungle, Jaded, even his feature on the Beyoncé song, Can I. Songs going from one album in time, then skipping to years ahead, and then back to even earlier in his career. The set itself added to the concept, it was all a blur. The entire time he never missed a step. Some songs he put a little spin on whether it be a few words or singing certain sections rather than rapping them. It had everything you could ask for, even Steph Curry, posted up like he was just at a club, in what was the most subtle expression of extravagant wealth and stunting I have ever witnessed.
That stage was occupied by a man fully living in the moment, with the culmination of all his work throughout the years. His stage presence is here unto, unmatched. He had everyone glued to him. It is arguably the best time in his career to see him perform, aside from his early days, since he has become this icon. All the experience of performing culminated in this milestone moment with all his hits and classic cuts.
The show is intercut with the concept of the blur. Going back and forth between the present Drake and the younger version of himself. One moment we find him lying in bed watching classic sitcoms like Family Matters and Fresh Prince while current Drake does a wardrobe change and gives everyone a short breather. The other real distinction between Drake and other artists on tour right now is the other parts of the stage design.
One key aspect about Drake I think people miss out on is that he doesn’t take himself too seriously. When he has to be serious he can be, but he’s not like a lot of rappers who try to be serious all the time. He is one of the funniest artists out and he likes to play into the idea and persona; the corny and ridiculous bars that match what people describe him to be, which is perfectly on display in Certified Lover Boy. The stage design perfectly incorporates this throughout the show.
You may have seen the massive statue of the late-great Virgil Abloh holding a paper airplane on display throughout the show, but no surprise, it doesn’t stop there. There's a giant blow-up of one of the pregnant woman emojis from the aforementioned CLB. Peter Pan, a UFO, and a woman in a wedding dress appear and fly around the stage. One of the funniest moments comes from those who remember the Instagram rollout of Her Loss. There is a towering inflatable of what can only be described as an “anime waifu” similar to the ones he posted on his Instagram story, even landing next to him on stage. And yes, for those who’ve seen, there is a floating inflatable sperm cell, accompanying the others moving on the stage’s screen.
At one point he stepped down from the stage and moved to the DJ booth, doing club and dance-inspired remixes of cuts like Controlla and Find You Love. Then it was time for 21 Savage. It was a great showing and marked a moment for how far 21 has come. I have seen him on tour with other artists and never seen him as comfortable and energetic for a crowd that wasn’t mainly for him.
To close it out, Drake returns and the duo performs cuts including “Knife Talk,” “Jimmy Cooks,” and “Her Loss” tracks “On Bs” and “Spin Bout U” (please watch that music video if you have not). After embracing one another, 21 steps down and Drake moves to the statue of Virgil while he starts the song Legend. He had one last moment of closing remarks. Talking about all the labels in New York that told him no in the past and how far he has come. Concluding by telling the crowd to embrace the important people in their life because, like the untimely loss of Virgil, they can be gone before you know it. The beat fades out as the Virgil statue releases the paper airplane and it flies to center stage.
This will be one of those tours that are remembered from hip-hop. An artist at the peak of his music career, with a plethora of classics and hits, culminating in one of the best shows that have graced Barclays and any stage it has or will stop by for the next 3 months. The craziest part is that we still have another album coming out, sooner than we may think.
Below you can find the setlist and here you can find our Spotify playlist to relive and / or experience the tour.
Set I
Look What You've Done
Marvins Room
Say Something
Shot for Me
Can I
Feel No Ways
Jaded
Jungle
Over
Headlines
The Motto
HYFR (Hell Ya Fucking Right)
Started From the Bottom
Energy
Know Yourself
Nonstop
SICKO MODE
Way 2 Sexy
BackOutsideBoyz
Jumbotron Shit Poppin
Laugh Now Cry Later
God's Plan
Child's Play
Wait for U
In My Feelings
Nice for What
Set II: With DJ
Controlla
Too Good
Find Your Love
Fountains
Work
One Dance
Set III:
Calling My Name
Massive
Sticky
Search & Rescue
Set IV: 21 Savage
Red Opps
Peaches & Eggplants
Don't Come Out the House
10 Freaky Girls
Who Want Smoke??
rockstar
a lot
No Heart
X
Runnin
Mr. Right Now
Bank Account
Set V: Drake & 21 Savage
Knife Talk
On BS
Spin Bout U
Jimmy Cooks
Rich Flex
Encore:
Legend