Drake Review: Rap's most eminent star turns the O2 to the O3

When an artist sells out seven dates in one city and changes the name of a world-famous venue to mimic his Grammy-award winning lyrics, it’s nothing less than legendary. Rap’s most beloved sold out the O2 for his second night on the Assassination Vacation tour and delivered a performance full of energy and charisma as always.

Starting back in 2009 with mixtapes and classic heartbreak tunes on So Far Gone, Drake’s built himself up to be the world’s biggest artist, holding the space of the most charted songs in the history of the Billboard Top 100. Since, he’s released six studio albums, each sky-rocketing his fame and credibility, but showcasing his versatility and various world influences.

He celebrates his subsequent successes 10 years later with a world tour, knocking it out the park with graphics, visuals and a floating yellow Ferrari. He opens with “8 out of 10 Cats” and “Mob Ties” from his most recent project, running laps, tirelessly it seems, around the bright, white rectangular stage that was bang in the middle of the arena.

The music stops and all that can be heard is the noise of 20,000 welcoming him. He walks around slowly, listening to us cheer for him for two minutes, finally breaking the silence with “London, what the fuck is good?!”

Having seen Drake many times before, I’d hoped that I wouldn’t fall for his words every time he says we’re “the best audience he’s ever had.” But the 32-year-old has a flair for making you feel special, even though you know all the other shows are the exact same.

He keeps this up the entire time – serenading us with slowed down, sexy (or sexier) versions of “Passionfruit” and “Jaded”, standing on a swing. He glides around the stage, singing melodically and hitting high notes, staring every female in the eye – looking slightly smug.

10 years of a lucrative career called for a medley of throwbacks that threw the crowd into a nostalgic frenzy. 10-year-old me cried inside as the all too recognizable intro to “Over” started playing, followed by his popular collab with The Weeknd, “Crew Love”, and he stopped the music to listen to his fans sing “The Motto” back at him.

Drake’s undying love for the UK, London in particular, is no secret. He reminds us when he says this is where he “gets the most love”, and the opening night in London had seen the likes of DigDat, Unknown T and Krept and Konan join him on stage. During one of his many monologues, the stage transformed to show a Union Jack, which was followed by a performance from Lethal Bizzle. I wasn’t too happy about this – I was singing along to “Fester Skank” at a Drake concert. But he made up for it when Giggs emerged to perform “KMT”.

£120 for a standing ticket, but it’s evident everyone got their money’s worth. The man is kinetic – superhero-like. His stage presence exudes love and passion for his supporters and he sure knows how to put on a show.