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Drake surprises fan at Miami concert with $50,000 after spotting sign in crowd
It is not the first time the Jewish Canadian rapper has demonstrated his philanthropic nature
October 4, 2023 14:24
It is not the first time the Jewish Canadian rapper has demonstrated his philanthropic nature
October 4, 2023 14:24Rapper Drake has surprised a fan at a concert in Miami by promising to give him $50,000 (£41,000).
The Jewish Canadian artist made the impulsive offer after spotting an audience member holding a sign that suggested he had been left by his girlfriend for whom he had bought a ticket before the show.
At the concert at the Kaseya Center, part of the star’s It's All a Blur Tour, co-headlined by 21 Savage, the fan held up a sign referencing two of Drake’s albums. It read: “I spent all my savings buying tickets for me and my ex, but Honestly, Nevermind, it's really Her Loss.”
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Social media footage shows Drake onstage responding to the man: "I like that sign. That’s a good sign to pick tonight. Usually I’ll do something nice for a lady. I’ll do something nice, I’ll give away a bag or some s*** like that. But my bro right here…"
He continued: "So, she ain't come with you tonight — to the Drake show? What the f*** is wrong with her?" he asked "You know what? She’s gonna feel real f***ed up ’cause I’ma give you 50 bands, so you gon’ flex on her tonight," added Drake. "That’s how we doing it tonight, big dog. It’s your night tonight!"
This is not the first time that Drake has demonstrated his philanthropic nature. During a 2018 trip to Miami to shoot the video for his Number One hit “God’s Plan”, the rapper donated $25,000 (£20,600) to the high school where it was filmed, and $50,000 to a university student and a homeless charity.
He later distributed gift cards to families and paid for customers’ groceries in a supermarket. The previous year, when Hurricane Harvey hit Houston, he donated $200,000 (£165,000) to a relief fund to help victims of the storm.
Born Aubrey "Drake" Graham to Sandra "Sandi" Graham, a Canadian Ashkenazi Jew, and Dennis Graham, an African American drummer, Drake has sold more than 170 million records, and won five Grammys and two Brit awards.
He was brought up as Jewish and attended a Jewish day school before going to a comprehensive. "I went to a school where nobody understood what it was like to be Black and Jewish," he later said.
He most famously showcased his Jewish roots with his 2011 music video for HYFR, in which he re-created his bar mitzvah.
Opening with the line: “On October 24 2011 Aubrey ‘Drake’ Graham chose to get re-barmitzvah’d as a re-commitment to the Jewish religion,” the video features the star at a Miami shul reading from the Torah.
“I’m a proud young Jewish boy," he told Digital Spy at the time.
"When I had a bar mitzvah back in the day, my mom didn’t really have the much money. I told myself that if I ever got rich, I would throw myself a re-bar mitzvah. That’s the concept of the video.”