Drake showed up to perform at Backstreet Boys in Toronto and fans went wild
Fans looking to get a solid dose of nostalgia by seeing the Backstreet Boys live in concert in Toronto got the shock of their lives this weekend when they were graced with a surprise appearance by the city's favourite export, Drake.
did y'all go back to Drake' mansion to play basketball after?
— ShawnFromToronto (@shawnhawaii) July 3, 2022
The rapper apparently decided to stop by the second of two shows of the boy band's DNA World Tour at Budweiser Stage on July 2, taking the crowd by complete surprise when he sauntered on stage.
Drake performing with the Backstreet Boys Saturday night at Budweiser Stage was everything 🙌 - 📹 @miss_miltchin #Toronto #Drake #BackstreetBoys pic.twitter.com/BF85Br3eSn
— blogTO (@blogTO) July 3, 2022
Thousands of cameras came out as he joined Kevin, A.J., Howie D., Nick and Brian for "I Want It That Way," and though he was rarely actually on the mic aside from during the song's opening and end, he was definitely feeling it, dancing and screaming the words to the 1999 hit.
The Backstreet Boys performed I Want It That Way with Drake at their show Saturday night in Toronto - 📹 @miss_miltchin #Toronto #Drake #BackstreetBoys pic.twitter.com/CZHv1ycUCw
— blogTO (@blogTO) July 3, 2022
The venue went wild, of course, as Drake served to further hype everyone up as they were already excited to relive their youth.
Howie even decided to throw a few lines of the star's Hold On, We're Going Home into the song, to which the 6ix God smiled and said "I like that!"
Drake also joked about being the sixth member of the group — something that fans appear to fully support.
Ohmygosh @Drake just sang #iwantitthatway with @backstreetboys !!!! He called himself the sixth member. If that doesn’t catch your attention to send your Advocacy Letter this week I’m not sure what else you need! - David pic.twitter.com/Cx96EQASCb
— Dr. David Edward-Ooi Poon MD MPH CCFP (@FacesofAdvocacy) July 3, 2022
"I just don't understand how after all these years they could forget about the light-skinned Backstreet Boy, it's offensive to me," he quipped to the crowd when he first walked out.
What a surprise! Drake showed up at the Backstreet Boys concert at Budweiser Stage Saturday night - 📹 @miss_miltchin #Toronto #Drake #BackstreetBoys pic.twitter.com/V84RQKpNSU
— blogTO (@blogTO) July 3, 2022
He also revealed how the surprise performance came about, saying that he ran into Kevin at a local restaurant and fan boyed.
"I was telling him that when I was in high school — well actually, I wasn't even in high school, I was in like junior high, I was 13 years old — and I was an awkward kid and I was in love with this girl at the time and she would pay me no mind," he told the crowd.
"At my Bar Mitzvah for the first time in my life, this girl that I was in love with came up to me while one of the greatest songs in the world was playing and she asked me if I would dance with her. It was the first time I ever felt acknowledged [and] like I had a shot at being cool."
The song in question, which Drake called one of the greatest songs of all time, ever made, was the Millennium track he came out to join in on.
Both the July 2 and 3 dates were to make up for a cancelled Sept. 19, 2021 concert, and it's clear that anyone who was lucky enough to get tickets to the second day was glad that they did.
I'm so glad my rescheduled show fell on the second day. Drake man. Holy hell. We didn't even see him at first, he just Morgan Freeman God'ed it and started talking about how he's the 6th Backstreet Boy.
— Gemma 🇨🇦 (@BackstreetGem) July 3, 2022
Drake, clearly excited, shared a clip of the set on Instagram, captioning it "When she says she’s over men in this generation and asks why I live alone…"
It was certainly not the mash-up anyone was expecting, but it's one we didn't even know we needed, and the crowd (and the internet) was definitely loving it.
