Look of the Week: Was Drake’s suave soccer dad outfit another Kendrick Lamar rebuttle?
By Leah Dolan, CNN
(CNN) — Over the weekend, Drake posted an outfit to Instagram that has since generated a lot of chatter online. Dressed in a pair of billowing stone-gray slacks, a cream T-shirt and a white sweater tossed and tied over his shoulders, the singer and rapper was pictured on the sidelines of his son’s soccer match. And the elevated ensemble put the padre in Champagne Papi.
He had clearly taken a spaghetti-stained leaf out of Tony Soprano’s style book, argued one half of social media, and was emanating suave, sharp mobster energy. Others were harder to convince, taking issue either with the preppy tailoring (several people on X likened his structured silhouette to that of Katherine Hepburn) or the voluminous cut of his pants. New York Magazine’s The Cut dutifully collected reactions from a range of fashion stylists, and even industry experts were divided. “The silhouette is perfect,” chimed one. Another dissented: “It’s styled like cosplay. It’s too much of a concept and looks forced.”
Everyone could agree on one thing, however: This was a sartorial gear shift for the 37-year-old artist, who is more often seen in puffer coats, sports jerseys, hoodies or Letterman jackets. Fans flooded the comments, calling him a “soccer dad” or “soccer papi.”
“Next level dad duties fit,” read one comment, now liked by almost 40,000 people. Was Drake channeling the look of a 1950’s father?
The elevated ensemble had, an undeniableair of old Hollywood stardom to it. Drake looked like an off-duty Cary Grant, or one of the debonair salesmen from “Mad Men,” oozing the kind of traditional masculinity that has since been upended by a proliferation of skinny jeans and sweatpants. “The look gives ‘good dad,’” one fashion stylist told The Cut. The fathers of yesteryear, with their dapper tailored trousers and argyle polo shirts, have been somewhat mythologized in collective consciousness. During the ‘50s and ‘60s, the nuclear family unit was considered the fundamental basis for a functional, healthy society — with fathers at the center.
In April and May, a series of brutal diss tracks were issued between Drake and US rapper Kendrick Lamar. As the lyrical sparring continued, things got personal. In the 6 and a half minute song, “Meet the Grahams,” Lamar called Drake a “deadbeat” dad, even suggesting he has fathered a secret, second child. Drake’s response — a track called “Family Matters” — was swift and unwavering in its denial.
Now the dust has settled, Drake’s latest rebuttal transcends tit for tat rapping into something more visual. “Goats don’t worry about one trick ponies,” he captioned the post. If Lamar’s fighting words caused any doubt over Drake’s parenting abilities, here he was, for all to see, spending an afternoon cheering on his child — dressed as the all-American family man.
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