In honor of the upcoming 20th anniversary of the Toronto Raptors, Canadian singer/rapper Drake has been recruited by the Eastern Conference team to serve as host, business partner, and consultant for his home team beginning with the 2014-15 season.
According to Toronto-based The Star, the Young Money artist’s involvement with the team was solidified during a press conference this week.
As part of his duties, the Nothing Was The Same rapper will help the team completely redesign their franchise (logos, colors, uniforms, etc.) and image, will launch a clothing line with the Raptors, and will likely play a vital role during the 2016 NBA All-Star Game, which will take place in Toronto.
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“I truly feel that—I mean everywhere I go I realize how culturally diverse it is here. What a melting pot it is…There’s something genuine about this city. There’s something great,” said Drake during this week’s press conference. “I think aside from that with All-Star coming here there’s an untapped nightlife, restaurants, culture. There’s so much to soak in and I think that our goal is in 2016 to truly showcase that, not only for the players, but also for everybody.”
In addition to his newfound involvement with the Raptors, Drake is also founder of OVO Sound along with Noah “40” Shebib, and recently partnered with New Era for another sports-related venture. With help from New Era, Drake released two special edition Toronto Blue Jays caps during this year’s OVO Fest. The special edition caps retailed for $75.
The Toronto Raptors are currently the NBA’s only Canada-based franchise. Although Drake was tapped to help the team redesign their franchise, the team name will remain the same.
