John Tory gets in on Certified Lover Boy spoof trend and everyone is cringing
In many ways, Toronto Mayor John Tory is the epitome of white, middle-aged male dad-dom, with his wacky hair (and his disagreement with a fancy new hairdryer that led to it), his snazzy runners, his fumbling of face masks and his tendency to leave Christmas lights up year-round.
He also likes to get in on what's hip and cool, whether it's hanging out in Trinity Bellwoods Park, using slang or jumping on the latest trend, which in the case of Toronto in recent days is parodying the peculiar art on the cover of Drake's new album, Certified Lover Boy.
In the lead-up to the record's Sept. 3 release, Drizzy released a teaser of sorts that many thought must have been a joke: an image that featured nothing but 12 pregnant woman emojis (which we now know is the actual CLB cover, for whatever reason).
Of course, people ran with the visual, mimicking it in all sorts of ways for promotional purposes or just a laugh.
Everyone from rapper Lil Nas X to Toronto celebrity chef Matty Matheson, from local bakeries, restaurants and candle shops to bubble tea chains and more have hopped on the CLB cover art bandwagon, including, now, Tory.
Is that how many boosters will be required in the end?
— shovas (@shovas) September 4, 2021
"CERTIFIED VACCINATION SEASON," Tory tweeted over the long weekend, along with 12 copies of himself rolling up his shirt sleeve to get vaxxed. (And in typical dad style, he is giving an enthusiastic thumbs up.)
Hundreds were quick to reply to the post, with some finding it absolutely hilarious, and others, completely cringeworthy.
"How do you do, fellow kids?" a few quipped, referencing the popular meme of Steve Buscemi carrying a skateboard.
"Amazing. Did you steal Norm's tweeter?" one asked, referring to, of course, former Scarborough-Agincourt MPP and Twitter sensation Norm Kelly.
Other replies ranged from "this is why you're so loved" and "this is great! Well played Mr. Tory" to "this is embarrassing" and "nooo what's going on with this trend?"
Then there was the person who tweeted back 12 eerie Premier Doug Fords in various coloured t-shirts, staring deadpan into oblivion.
— United We Sand (@sandgfx) September 5, 2021
Though he may not be as entertaining as Ford has proven to be over the course of his pandemic press conferences, like all somewhat out-of-touch dads, Tory seems to be just trying his best.
