Kanye West and Drake.Photo: Amazon
Their beef is a thing of the past.
On Thursday night,Kanye WestandDraketook the stage together for the first time since their public feud as they hosted the sold-out “Free Larry Hoover” benefit concert at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum.
He then “took it back to day one,” performing classics including “Gold Digger,” “Touch the Sky,” “Stronger” and “All of the Lights.”
Drake later took the stage to perform some of his biggest hits, including “No Friends in the Industry,” “Life Is Good,” “IMY2” and “Laugh Now Cry Later.”
“I appreciate Kanye for having me up here tonight,” Drake said. “It’s important that we make this happen. When we were walking through the arches right there it felt like a dream. It felt surreal. It was something I always wanted to do being on stage with my idol as he’s running through one of the best catalogs in music, period.”
To end the show, West hit the stage with Drake after changing into matching denim jackets and jeans to perform “Hurricane,” his song with The Weeknd, and “Come to Life.” He also performed “Bound 2,” “N—s in Paris” and “Father Stretch My Hands Pt. 1.”
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“I just get on the side of the bed and thank God for the hard times. The lessons,” West said during a prayer. “When he makes me who he wants me to be. I thank his son Jesus Christ for dying for me. For dying for us to save our souls. If you say and believe Jesus Christ is your lord and savior then you will be saved. 214 million homes have to bear that.”
The show ended with both artists performing Drake’s song “Forever.” The two embraced for a hug and then walked off stage together.
The concert comes about a month after the two rappers — along with J Prince — met up and said it was “time to put [the feud] to rest.”
“I’m making this video to address the ongoing back-and-forth between myself and Drake,” West, 44, said in the video. “Both me and Drake have taken shots at each other and it’s time to put it to rest.”
Kanye West (left) and Drake.Brad Barket/Getty; Karwai Tang/WireImage
“I’m asking Drake on December 7 to join me on stage as a special guest to share the two biggest albums of the year live in Los Angeles with the ultimate purpose being to free Larry Hoover,” he said, referring to the co-founder of the Gangster Disciples gang. (Drake and Westalso met upin Toronto soon after.)
Drake, 35, and West agreed to perform on Thursday to benefit Hoover, who has been incarcerated at the ADX federal prison in Colorado, where other criminals, such as El Chapo Guzman, are locked up.
The show was meant to bring awareness about his incarceration and Hoover’s family’s efforts to free him after the 2018 Free Step Act gave federal prisoners with drug-related charges the chance to reduce their sentences. Neither Drake nor West made mention of Hoover during the entirety of the show.
West raps with Hoover’s son Larry Hoover Jr. on his new albumDondaon tracks “Jesus Lord” and “Jesus Lord Pt. 2.” On the songs, Hoover Jr. promises his father won’t be involved in gang activity were he to get out. Hoover is now 71.
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“It’s a great thing they’ve done for our family to help promote and push for the release of Larry Hoover Sr.,” Hoover’s wife Winndye Hoover toldDenver Post. “He’s got people who love him just like other people do.”
She added, “We couldn’t repay them for what they’re doing. This is monumental.”
Hoover was convicted on 40 counts related to leading the Gangster Disciples and trafficking drugs from 1970 and 1997.
The concert also marks Drake’s returnto the stageafter appearing alongside Travis Scott during last month’s deadlyAstroworld Festival where 10 people were killed. Drake is among those named in several lawsuits related to the tragedy, includingone $750 million lawsuit.
source: people.com
