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Drake made London feel like the best city in the world

Drake gave London all the respect it deserves on his opening night at the O2 arena

The opening night of Drake's Boy Meets World Tour was truly worthy of a global superstar. The staging was magnificent - you could feel the heat of the giant flames firing up the podium at the back of the arena - the production was flawless and the crowd heaved and roared with electric abandon. And yet, the real veneration didn't come from the crowd. It came from Drake, and it was directed at London.

In a divided and precarious political and social UK climate, in which Britain seethes and feels like it's been broken into a million sharp, angry shards, like no one is on the same side, Drake was a reassuring and uniting presence tonight at the O2 Arena. His opening speech stressed again and again the love and respect he felt for this city, and reminded the crowd of his gratitude for London's instrumental boost to his career. "I owe my whole career to London. This is my favourite city in the world," he called out, in his Toronto drawl, as sweet and scratchy as salted caramel. "Imma live here one day," he promised, and the crowd believed him. I mean, he had a Union Jack flag between his hands...

Drake's rhetoric wasn't just the standard blueprint bullshit we see at every big gig, in any city in the world. Drake is someone who has always championed London's unique urban music. Last year the Canadian rapper ditched the Brits red carpet to join road rap group Section Boyz perform at Village Underground, and before that he brought Skepta out at Wireless. This year, Drake once again met London on its own terms. Instead of impressing the crowd with a huge international act like Rihanna or Future, he brought out Giggs (who smashed it) and Section Boyz (less so) for the second time. He reminded London of its unique musical goldmine. Drake's respect for London's grime scene is evident from the urban inflections to his language. "Jheeez!" he whistled after he smashed a song, "mad!" he shouted with a clipped 'd'. We even heard, "selecta!" And the fact he brought out Giggs (with whom he has made a new track) rather than his longtime ally Skepta (although obviously Skeppy still got his shoutout), showed Drake has finger on the pulse of the UK music scene.

Drake is a born performer, and he runs a 360 show. From complimenting the girls (a bit too much) and bigging up the guys, to playfully turning his DJ and drummer into the show's antagonists – "man this is like some Adele acoustic or some shit" Drake berated them – everything was carefully planned and rehearsed. Every time the crowd thought the show would end, Drake asked them if they wanted more. "I'll give you more if you want more. I'll do whatever you want," he cajoled, leading them through a misleading ending, appearing beside a giant inflatable globe, and loading up five more bangers.

Particularly striking is the sheer number of hits Drake has to his name. Every time we thought there couldn't possibly be another song, he pulled out an anthem bigger than the last. When he switched from "Over" to "Worst Behaviour" the crowd bellowed. Drake has such a catalogue of number ones it was impossible to play one for longer than a minute. The effect was dizzying: the set-list chopped into fleeting moments of one hit after another. It's rare to see a crowd maintain such momentum for two hours straight, but then again, this is Drake we're talking about.

It's just a shame the flawless performance of the first two nights was bungled by Travis Scott disappearing through the stage and piercing the inflatable globe during last night's performance. However, it makes for comedy gold.

Tickets via Viagogo.co.uk and Thrsxty.com

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