DRAKE'S REIGN & THE GOLDEN AGE OF TORONTO
Spring 2012. My first time in Toronto, visiting family in Markham. It was my first time stepping out of the states on my own. As soon as I stepped foot in YYZ airport, ya boy transitioned into a different phase of life. The range of emotions I felt was casted onto the backdrop of Drake’s kingdom— I became a man in the 6.
Anyways, lets jump right into it and get to the topic at hand, the man of everyone’s musical hour right now:Drake.
Drizzy. Tha Boy. 6 God. Champagnepapi. Aubrey. Wheelchair Jimmy….the aliases go on. One thing about the man with many names stands clear: Drake and his influence on the city of Toronto defies the magnitude of power a musician can—or should—have on a city.
When you think Drake, you think Toronto. When you think Toronto, you think Drake. It can only be compared to Jay Z & Biggie's influence on New York City & Tupac’s influence on California, specifically Los Angeles. To the average person, these artists are synonymous with their regions. To hip hop purists, I know there’s more but I don’t have time and y’all don’t have the attention span to read through a list of them.
What I WILL do is go beyond hip hop/music to think of more public figures that are synonymous with their region: Michael Jordan and Chicago. Kobe Bryant and Los Angeles. Tom Brady and Boston. Pele and Brazil. Caesar and Rome. Napoleon and France. Ghandi and India. You get it. Drake is a big fucking deal to Toronto.
Ever since So Far Gone dropped, Drake and the city of Toronto have collectively hit the ground running through the 6——I’ll shut the fuck up lol. Co-signs from other rappers, fashion designers, actors, artists, athletes, public officials—pretty much anyone of importance—have stood by Drake and co. Because of that, Drake’s power and influence has leapfrogged music and flooded into other mediums of life and culture.
Let me outline examples of Drake’s power:
- global ambassador for Toronto Raptors Basketball team
- hosted the ESPY’s
- personal relationships with former Mayor Rob Ford and current Toronto official Norm Kelly
- I’m convinced he had a hand in the Canadian Border Patrol stopping Chris Brown and Meek Mill at the border
- SNL appearances
- Sasha Obama rocks OVO gear
- dating arguably the best female athlete alive in Serena Williams, and was front row at her fashion week show next to Anna Wintour
- meme-god, for better or for worse
- he’s got his own festival, OVOfest, and gets cameos better than some established cities’ festivals
- modern-day Ether of Meek Mill/ Mill is unofficially blacklisted in the hip hop game
- his shoe deal with Jordan brand
- figurehead musician for Apple Music’s crusade on music streaming service
I bring these up because I want to drive home the fact that Drizzy really does have the Midas touch. Literally anything he touches turns to gold. His air-tight OVO circle—whom by the way are essentially treated like young gods in Toronto(Shouts to ovoniko, ovogelo,ovohush, 40, ovoryan, ovomark, ovojonyroxx, Baka, & all the other young Toronto gods) . His sidepieces. His apparel. His fantasy estate. His Vines. His Instagrams. His music. His features. His co-signs of new/up-and-coming artists. His co-sign is as good as a 1 million label contract. He brought FUBU back. Dude could literally instagram a fruit and it’d be the highest selling fruit the next day in all markets, internationally and domestically.
I won’t even get into the whole “Drake Stimulus package” discussion; I’ll save that idea for another brilliant think-piece—rather, I’ll apply that concept to the city of Toronto as a whole.
Without Drake’s "Toronto Stimulus package", the swaggered out Toronto millennials I’ve met and kicked it with wouldn’t have the swagger they have today. I’m talking about the Scarborough, Brampton, Markham, ’Suaga kids that drive in the snow to turn up at tiny-ass Parts & Labour downtown: all super chill, collectively dress as well as the Londoners, Parisian kids and New York kids, and for the most part have great taste in music— culture connoisseurs with ambition, all influenced by The Boy and his success. He made it, so Toronto kids as a whole truly believe they can too.
Local artists The Weeknd, PARTYNEXTDOOR and RamRiddlz(lol) wouldn’t have the current impact they have right now. The overall improved upkeep and presentation of the city wouldn’t be where its at currently; the streets and establishments of downtown Toronto have visibly improved since the last time I visited. Drake’s fingerprint is evident everywhere you go in Toronto, be it the cuddy hip hop boutiques on Queen Street West or the Black and Gold OVO Raptor alternates at the Rogers Center.
Say what you want about the man, refuse to accept his calculated brilliance and his widespread influence—Drake’s reign on Toronto is visibly seen and physically felt by locals, foreigners, and those yearning to visit the 6, and Toronto’s golden age will continue to flourish. Drake’s got Toronto, and the rest of the world, on bated breath for his next move— and that move is Views from the 6—or the unexpected What a Time to Be Alive. Either way, he's got the game on lock.
Winter 2014. My most recent time in Toronto. Visited the fam in Markham. My cousins and their homies all had this ambitious bravado about them. Drake’s success in the past 2 years directly translated into the newfound swagger I sensed from these Toronto kids. Toronto as a whole seemed brighter, more vibrant, with a greater sense of identity.
In my head I thought “Drake had a hand in all this”. In my head I thought "Toronto’s got it’s best PR guy in history, and business is booming". It seems as Drake continues to grow, his city grows with him. As a fan, I’m excited to continue experiencing that growth alongside Drake, his city, and his music.
All hail Archduke Drizzy and his golden dynasty over Toronto.