Drake’s Saturday performance served as a love letter to the U.K., which he considers to be the preeminent hip-hop country.
Drake performs live at Wireless Festival at Finsbury Park on July 11, 2025 in London, England.
Simone Joyner/Getty Images for ABA
Drake‘s love letter to London reached its climax Saturday night (July 12) when he performed night 2 of his Wireless Festival 2025 takeover. His second outing of the weekend had a grittier tone as he sought to abandon the melodies that had fans swaying Friday night and return to his punishing ways.
“London, tonight is different,” Drake warned. “All that sweetheart, singing s—? That s— is over tonight. This is for my motherf—ing dogs. I see my dogs came out tonight.”
Drake’s menacing methods were felt by fans early on, as he jumpstarted night 2 with “IDGAF” alongside Yeat. The 2023 For All The Dogs heater seared through Finsbury Park, with a crowd of 50,000 fans-deep rapping alongside The Boy. The vengeful MC didn’t hold back, either. He tossed darts at LeBron and Kendrick while crowning the U.K. as the preeminent leader in hip-hop. With his Iceman single “What Did I Miss?” brewing in contention for a potential high debut on the Hot 100, Drake performed the song for the first time. Surprisingly, fans recited the lyrics with gusto despite the track being a mere week old.
Aside from Drake returning to prime form, his altruism peeked through on several occasions: First, he brought out a slew of U.K. stars to share the stage with him, including Skepta, Central Cee and Dave. Then, he called in his friends from the States to join in on his overseas escapades.
Read on to see what made Drake’s night 2 at Wireless Festival 2025 one for the books.
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Drake Changes Lyrics on ‘Nonstop’ to Fire Subtle Shot at LeBron
The Drake-LeBron saga continued Saturday when The Boy subtly tweaked the lyrics on “Nonstop” to shade his newfound foe, LeBron James. “How I go from 6 to 23, no LeBron,” Drake rapped, flipping the original line and further straining the once brotherly bond shared between both men. The change in lyrics comes after fans noticed Drake recently covered his LeBron tattoo and replaced it with new ink honoring reigning NBA MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.
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Drake Raises a Toast After Fans Chant ‘F— Kendrick’
The residue from Kendrick and Drake’s contentious 2024 matchup seeped over the Pond on Saturday when fans hurled expletives toward the pgLang MC. As “F— Kendrick” chants echoed through the crowd, Drake caught wind and urged his right-hand man Chubbs to “grab me a shot. I’ll drink to that.”
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The Boy Uses His Platform to Spotlight London’s Deep Talent Pool
Drake has never shied away from sharing the spotlight. On night 2, he used the Wireless stage as a homecoming of sorts for some of the U.K.’s brightest names. As fans reveled in watching established acts like Skepta and Headie One take centerstage, the night’s biggest roars came when Dave and Central Cee joined forces and raced through the high-speed hit “Sprinter.”
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Drizzy Crowns the U.K. as the Most Dominant Country in Hip-Hop
Before Drake tagged in Skepta for a fiery rendition of “Shutdown,” The Boy made a bold proclamation against America. “Nobody can out-rap London — nobody,” he said. “No disrespect to America. No disrespect to my country. But, nobody can out-rap London rappers. This is the best, this is the highest level. This is what I aspire to be.”
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Drake Aims for OVO Fest Energy and Delivers
On Friday, Drake told the London crowd that he wanted to bring an OVO Fest-caliber performance during his three days at Wireless. On Saturday, he doubled down on those claims by bringing a bevy of guests ranging from Yeat to Latto and Sexyy Red to 21 Savage to prove that his Rolodex is still strong amid his feud with Kendrick Lamar.
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The Women Still Come First
Drake admitted to lying about Saturday’s set being strictly “for the dogs,” as he called on Latto and Sexyy Red to supply some feminine firepower. The femcees didn’t disappoint, as they punched in a fistful of anthems, beginning with Latto. The self-proclaimed “Georgia Peach” sweetened the night with “Brokey” and “Big Mama.” Following her performance, Sexxy Red kept fans enthralled with her buoyant bounce, ripping through her trifecta of hits like “Pound Town,” “Get It Sexy,” and “SkeeYee.” Despite the testosterone-driven night, the women held court with their vivacious presence.
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Drake Runs It Back With ‘NOKIA’ & ‘SOMEBODY LOVES ME’
Though Drake vowed to have an edgier persona on night 2, he still wanted to party. He didn’t shortchange fans, as he performed “NOKIA” and “SOMEBODY LOVES ME” with PARTYNEXTDOOR following their night 1 soiree, leaving fans satiated and swaying.
Great Job Carl Lamarre & the Team @ Billboard Source link for sharing this story.
