By Jake Cordiner (@jjjaketh)
I’ll admit it, I was apprehensive about paying £80+ to see Drake. I’d never paid that much to see anyone before, but as soon as Drizzy walked out onstage and fired straight into an incendiary version of Trophies it was made abundantly clear that I had sweet fuck all to be apprehensive about.
Drake absolutely killed it. Top to bottom, this was one of the most enjoyable gigs I’ve ever been to. Aubrey had the entirety of the Hydro in the palm of his hands. Arriving on stage at around 8:45 (the wait for him to actually come out was one of my very few complaints about the night. There was around 45 minutes between the main support and Drake himself) the 6 God was fired up for the duration of his 30 song set. Backed by a percussionist, a pianist and a DJ, he flew through the set with aplomb.
He frequently thanked the crowd for singing along and being so loud and he must have said Glasgow had been his favourite night of the 20+ date European tour about 10 times. Now I know what you’re thinking, “of course he did, everyone says that” but there seemed to be a genuine sincerity in his voice when he said it. On the subject of Drake speaking to the crowd, he really is a fantastic showman. At one point he told a story about how he and his pianist were in a restaurant-exclusive John Legend cover band and, around halfway through the set, he downed a half cup of straight whiskey because he’s Drake and he’s an absolute fucking nutter.
As far as the songs in the set, it was all killer no filler from beginning to end. Highlights included a MASSIVE sounding version of Know Yourself (in which Drake instructed his “Mosh Pit Gang” to “lose their fucking minds” bless him), undeniable bangers Hotline Bling, One Dance and Feel No Ways and a furious sounding Pop Style. However, my personal highlight was when he brought out motherfucking GIGGS, who played Whippin Excursion from his 2016 Landlord album, much to the joy of the 100 odd people in the crowd who actually recognised who he was. Drake also brought out Popcaan for a few tunes, which was bloody ace.
My only massive complaint I had with the set was the fact that Drake played next to nothing from his latest album/playlist/mixtape/whateverthefuckhescallingit More Life. Apart from walking out to Passionfruit, the only other song he performed from More Life was Fake Love (which, admittedly was absolutely awesome). It just seemed like a missed opportunity to have Giggs come to the show and not perform any of the songs he features on from the new album. That’s a very minor complaint, though, because at the end of the day this was an absolutely incredible show. From the stage production (which was cool as all hell) to Drake’s performance itself, this was a night no one in the crowd will forget in a hurry.
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4 responses to “GIG REVIEW: DRAKE @ SSE HYDRO”
This is was pretty bad. It names Drake with pet names like Drizzy and Aubrey as if it’s offering any sight but the proceeds to go ‘ya it was gud ya’. A big complaint about the wait between support and Drake himself was totally unworthy too, 45 minutes is nothing for an act as big as that. But the obvious problem is the amount of ‘it was so good’ without ever going into why — the stage production was great? Tell us why. The set was big? Why again? The songs? Performances? What makes them good? I feel like this entire review was basically a throwaway ‘what a night at Drake in Glasgow #MoreLife’ tweet stretched out to make it seem like anything was said, masquerading as critical look from a superfan (ala the pet names etc). I guess that’s fine, we’re all learning & improving, and it is what it is, but I wish I hadn’t wasted even a minute reading it.
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Have you ever read a gig review mate? Pet names are pretty much synonymous with the real acts name: there’s only so many times you can read Drake before it starts to get repetitive. Also, if you were incapable of taking away the passion, showmanship and sheer enjoyment that warranted the price tag then that’s your problem, not the review. Have a nice day 🙂
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Ah, so you meet criticism with snark, a poor testament of your trade as a writer.
You’ve completely missed my point about pet names and what they’re used to represent above, and instead reduced it to ‘durrr it’s called being a writer’.
And even the last part “if you were incapable…” what are you on about? Like, legit, where did I say I didn’t enjoy the show, or that I was even at the show? Seriously, I’m guessing you’re young in your writing career and we’re all growing, but this is how you meet with critique into how you write? Nothing to refute about WHY these things were good, just more ‘it was gud becuz it was gud’.
No need to reply, I won’t be checking back, and I appreciate you not deleting my post like many would. But my man, if you want to be anywhere near good at this, take something on-board. “Have you ever read a gig review mate?” I get the condescension here, but you should be asking yourself this and asking why this review has anything to offer at all.
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First of all, I didn’t write it. The byline shows that, you wouldn’t be talking to me right now but the case is the writer is yet to make an account and so it had to be posted via mine for now. The comment wasn’t meant to come across as snarky at all: the review was meant to describe the night as it was and since I was at the gig as well I thought it did the whole performance justice. The site is still as well as my journalism is still in its youth so I appreciate any criticism and I apologise for how angsty my reply came off.
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