Music

Drake as Mayor Rob Ford is both wondrous and creepy as hell

by Richard Howard

Earlier this week, we let you know that according to a casting call put out a few months ago, Drake would be playing Rob Ford in the video for “Energy.” It might have seemed too good to be true, but no—the video dropped today and it turns out the Rob Ford bit was just one in a litany of vignettes lampooning celebrities and pop culture figures including Oprah, Miley Cyrus, President Obama and OJ Simpson.

Using a mix of stock footage and recreations utilising body doubles, the “Energy” video sees Drake’s melon superimposed onto and blended with the other celebrities’ faces. It alternates between hilarious and super-creepy, which is apparently what Drizzy was going for. When asked how he came up with the idea, he revealed that he was inspired by Michael Jackson’s 1991 video “Black or White”: “I was like, ‘Man, you know, effects have come such a long way. I bet we could do something crazy with this.’” Unsurprisingly, 14 years later and with the his ridiculous bank account, he was right on that one.

The video is available only on Apple Music (there’s a free three-month trial, go get it already) but if you’ve got a vendetta against the company or something, we’ve put together a gallery of the best of it above. I do not apologise for the terrible Drake puns. But first, my favorite shot:

Extra points for the accurate portrayal of Ford’s fine decision making in posing for the camera whilst purchasing narcotics.