Drake has become one of the top artists in the world over the last decade, but that doesn’t mean he’s above asking for a musical favor — especially if it’s from a worthy individual.
During the 6 God’s Montreal, Canada stop of his It’s All a Blur Tour on Saturday (July 15), he once again surprised the crowd by bringing out J. Cole as a surprise guest, much like he did the previous night.
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During a brief intermission, Drizzy touched on Cole’s next album and enlisted the help of the entire crowd while petitioning for a feature on the forthcoming project.
“Maybe I could get on the album?” Drake asked eagerly, which prompted J. Cole to let out an empathetic: “N-gga!”
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“Can I get on the album? I’ma ask in front of Montreal. ‘J. Cole, can we get on your album?'” Drake continued as the audience applied more pressure on the Dreamville founder.
Cole eventually relented by saying: “Say less, goddammit!”
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After successfully securing his spot on Cole’s album, Drake called on the audience once again to show love to his longtime friend and collaborator before he departed the stage.
“Montreal, I want you to understand something,” he said. “It takes somebody that really not only loves the art of this shit, but really loves all of you to get on a plane, come here for two nights and represent for Montreal.
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“So make some muthafucking noise for my brother, all the way from the ‘Ville, he goes by the name of Jermaine Cole. I need you to get as loud as you can!”
Additional concert footage showed the Fayetteville MC performing his cult classic song “No Role Modelz” and his verse on 21’s Savage’s 2018 hit “a lot.”
Drake pleads with J. Cole for album feature during Montreal tour stop https://t.co/52WCdDsvQrpic.twitter.com/sTI6zgggxW
— HipHopDX (@HipHopDX) July 16, 2023
Both Drake and J. Cole have had similar career trajectories since breaking onto the scene in the late 2000s/early 2010s, and have collaborated on a handful of tracks including 2010’s “In the Morning,” and 2013’s “Jodeci Freestyle.”
While sharing the stage together during the first of Drizzy’s two Montreal shows on Friday night (July 14), the Toronto megastar gave Cole his flowers by crowing him one of Hip Hop’s G.O.A.T.s
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“[He’s] one of the greatest rappers to ever touch a microphone,” the OVO boss told the crowd while introducing his friend. “I hope you enjoy yourself.”
Meanwhile, co-headliner 21 Savage was unable to make both performances, presumably because of his ongoing immigration issues. However, it’s likely he’ll return on Monday (July 17) when the It’s All a Blur tour heads to Brooklyn, New York.
The 56-date trek commenced in early June and has passed through Chicago, Detroit and Boston so far. The tour will cover more cities in Canada and the United States before wrapping up in early October.
Although 21 Savage is on a sold-out tour with Drizzy, he doesn’t consider Drake or J. Cole to be his peers because he believes he still has plenty of work to do before being worthy of standing next to both artists.
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“There’s just a difference, bro,” he told Complex earlier this year. “That’s, like, years of work and a fanbase that is going to be there until they die, that’s different. I feel like I’m working to be on that level that they’re on, but I don’t feel like it’s the same. I feel I could do something corny, and I would lose a lot of what I got. That wouldn’t happen with them.”
He added: “Drake could do whatever, Cole could do whatever, and they’re shit not going anywhere. I’m working toward that level for sure, but I don’t think I’m there yet. I’m not saying I’m light-years behind. They’re more solidified, and I’m still building on what I got. But I could be wrong… It’s all about how the fans look at it.”
