Review: Drake makes love to Vancouver

Hip-hop star Drake played to a packed crowd at Rogers Arena in Vancouver Wednesday, Nov. 28, 2013. (Anil Sharma/CTV)

When no less a hip hop authority than the Wu-Tang Clan’s Ghostface Killah named his ‘Softest Rappers in the Game’ for 2013, it came as little surprise that Drake came in at Number One.

And although there was little on display at last night’s concert in Vancouver that would have changed Ghostface’s mind, seeing Canada’s third-best Jewish rapper enrapture a packed Rogers Arena did raise the question of whether “softness” is the hip hop faux pas it’s made out to be.

In Pictures: Drake brings the slow jams to Rogers Arena

Drake. Aubrey. Drizzy. Jimmy Brooks from Degrassi. Whatever name you choose, there’s no disputing the actor-turned-rapper’s global success. And if there’s one thing a Canadian crowd enjoys, it’s one of our own beating the Americans at their own game (which would explain the huge amount of love Steve Nash, unexpectedly in attendance, was receiving before the curtain rose).

Opening with “Tuscan Leather,” Drake shifted up a gear for “Headlines,” bouncing around the stage like a ball of enthusiasm.

“If you came here with your real friends, not your fake friends, make some noise,” he proclaimed, before taking off his jacket to a wall of feminine screaming. “I got to use my Canadian passport today. I’m happy to be home.”

Insisting that Canada, and Vancouver in particular, likes to party, Drake immediately put the brakes on with a barrage of slow jams – “Furthest Thing,” “Wu-Tang Forever” and “Connect” – all stressing his romantic abilities over his dance floor credentials. It took ten songs before “French Montana” arrived with the first genuine bass drop of the evening.

The energy level picked up as support act Future returned to share the stage for no-brainer banger “Same Damn Time.” It didn’t last, as the pace dropped once again with “Pound Cake” before going into snooze mode as vocalist Jhené Aiko (seriously, somebody treat her to a pair of shoes) joined Drake on stage for “Come Thru” and “From Time,” the rapper actually performing the first verse of the latter sitting down.

Things picked up after a brief interlude. Returning in a fresh tank top, Drake still wasn’t hitting the gas pedal, restarting with the pure r’n’b “Hold On We’re Going Home.” He was starting to play though, bringing one of the more mature ladies from a youthful crowd, “Jen from Vancouver,” onto the stage and crooning at her from close distance before planting a kiss on her forehead.

“You better be waiting for me at the hotel,” he joked as she was led off stage.

The pace slowly rose with “Worst Behaviour” and “The Language,” at which point the walkway suspended from the Arena scoreboard dropped to stage level, allowing Drake to hop on before it rose skyward again.

What began with a rendition of “305 To My City” turned into an endless personal shout out session, during which Drake demonstrated his superb eyesight by picking out individual crowd members; the highlight of the night for the dozens of fans graced with a greeting, a slow grind for everybody else. Although it did yield one “Happy Hanukkah” from the superstar and this advice, “You buy her tickets to the Drake show, then you go home and reap the benefits.”

Perhaps overconfident in the osmotic powers of his romantic allure, the weird thing was that on his return to the stage Drake hinted that there was an awesome rapper lurking underneath the loverboy persona all along, unleashing the best sequence of tunes all night in the shape of “F***ing Problem,” “The Motto,” “All Me” and “Started From the Bottom.”

As soon as Rogers Arena was genuinely hopping, it was all over, Drake giving his thanks and his love to Vancouver. Lights on. No encore.

Ghostface Killah isn’t wrong. But that doesn’t mean Drake’s marriage of sex, pop and hip hop isn’t connecting with millions of people across Canada, the US and beyond. And, as Ghostface probably knows, the top two Jewish-Canadian rappers are Chilly Gonzales and Peaches.