Drake’s concert at the Bryce Jordan Center on Thursday night came right smack in the middle of one of the darkest weeks in Penn State history. Following the Sandusky scandal, the mood around Happy Valley has been far from happy. Aware of this overall sentiment, Drake came to the BJC prepared to show the audience a good time and reawaken the Penn State pride in our hearts. And, judging from all the loud cheers and screams the crowd gave, it is safe to say he succeeded.
Drake came on stage wearing a hooded jacket and hiding his face from the crowd. The audience watched as he knelt down and spray-painted the letters OVOXO onto the DJ booth, representing him and The Weeknd, a Canadian singer with whom he has done many collaborations.
He then officially began his performance with Best I Ever Had—the hit song that skyrocketed him to fame—and continued with other songs such as She Will, Over and Fancy. He also played Headlines, Make Me Proud and Marvin’s Room from his newest album, Take Care, which leaked this past week—but comes out officially on Tuesday, Nov. 15.
As he performed, Drake made sure to address the audience constantly, and maybe a little too much. At one point, he stopped the music and began pointing at people in the crowd. It is no doubt exciting for a famous rapper to point at you and acknowledge you in a crowd of thousands. However, after the about 10 minutes of him pointing at “the girl with the pink shirt” or “the guy jumping up and down,” the show lost a little momentum.
Once Drake continued with the music, however, the show was back in full force.
Whether his performance was good or bad, Drake’s show meant a lot more than just great music to our heartbroken community.
Early Thursday morning, Drake said in a tweet, “Despite all that is occuring on campus…I cannot wait to be part of the GREATNESS that is Penn State tmrw…rest well my friends.” At the concert,
he wore a white Penn State hoodie and acknowledged the recent events in our beloved town that have made national news. He also expressed his love for our school, calling Penn State one of the greatest places in the world.
“You should be proud of this motherf***ing school despite everything that has happened,” said Drake. He did not impose his own opinion about the scandal and instead simply sympathized with us. After being under the negative spotlight of the national news media for such a long week, Drake’s words were very much appreciated.
“This is one of the greatest schools in the motherf***ing world,” said Drake. He told the crowd he wanted to come back again and hinted at maybe bringing his good friend Nicki Minaj with him next time. “And until the next time I see you,” he said, “take care.”
And so the show was over, but the impact was not. Drake’s performance marked the beginning of a very hopeful recovery process for our shattered community.
Thank you, Drake.