Drake overcomes late start to dazzle American Airlines Center

“Uneasy lies the head that wears a crown.”

If quoting Shakespeare in relation to Drake seems a stretch, consider the last few months of his career.

The Canadian superstar’s fourth and latest album, the pensive Views, released in late April, has resided at or near the top of the Billboard charts for nine weeks — a remarkable run in the music industry’s current climate — while the 29-year-old has continued serving as one of the Internet’s primary meme generators, the on again, off again paramour of Rihanna and the target of more than a few vicious jabs from the likes of Joe Budden and Meek Mill.

Through it all, the man born Aubrey Graham sat, comfortably and calmly upon his throne, dispatching his foes and generally making superstardom — and the occasional Saturday Night Live hosting gig — look effortless.

Several have tried, but failed, to dislodge Drake from his perch.

He is, as much as any artist can be nowadays, as entrenched as a monarch of old.

Alas, not every kingdom is free from strife, as evidenced by Thursday’s delay-plagued stop on his “Summer Sixteen” tour at American Airlines Center, where Drake gave his first headlining turn in nearly three years.

Over three hours after the scheduled start time, Drake took the stage, at about 10:15 p.m.

It was never made clear why the concert was so late in starting; opener DVSN took the stage over two hours after the scheduled start time, with Future, the much-anticipated opener, effectively having his time on stage reduced by half and wedged into the middle of Drake’s two-hour set. (If Future was at all miffed about having to cram hits like [Expletive] Up Some Commas and New Level into a roughly 30-minute span, he didn’t show it.)

Regardless of the reason — which probably has everything to do with the fact that tour personnel could be seen scrambling about the stage, installing and tweaking equipment as late as 9 p.m.; “I had some problems setting up or some [expletive],” Drake offered, seven songs in — the man of the hour milked the late start for all it was worth, referring to it a handful of times as the night wore on.

“Can I pay to stay on stage?” he asked, squinting into the darkness behind him as Thursday turned into early Friday morning. “It’s Dallas — [expletive] it,” as he launched into Back to Back, a lacerating diss track aimed at Meek Mill.

The extended wait was worth it, as Drake delivered another bracing mixture of bangers and ballads, held together by his charismatic demeanor and penchant for delivering maximum visual stimulation.

The set list was stuffed with sides that had fans screaming, straining to capture video and shouting back the rapid-fire rhymes. The opener Summer Sixteen was followed close behind by Started from the Bottom, Headlines, Trophies, HYFR, Worst Behavior, Hotline Bling and newer favorites like Controlla and One Dance.

Drake even found time to allude to the spasm of violence that claimed the lives of five Dallas police officers earlier this month: “I love Dallas,” he explained, to lusty cheers. “It’s not some cliched [expletive] to say at a show; it’s one of my favorite places in the world. I know there’s been a lot going on lately [but] an unfortunate situation does not change how incredible this place is.”

The arena, filled to the roof, was turned into a rowdy art installation, with a mammoth video screen dominating the otherwise spartan stage, and rows of lighted balls descending, cascading and illuminating the space between the floor and the light rigging.

It was an arresting effect, evoking Radiohead’s iconic shards-of-light display during its 2008 tour, and one complementing Drake’s songs, toggling as they did between thoughtful and brash.

Drake is a benevolent ruler, someone whose paradoxically laid back yet intense demeanor in concert belies his tight grip upon the zeitgeist.

He might not seem like the off-with-their-heads sort, but you underestimate him — as his would-be detractors have found — at your peril.

Indeed, watching the capacity crowd give itself over — willing subjects, lost in a fog of weed smoke, bared breasts, pyrotechnics and brain-rattling bass — was to be reminded of another classic (albeit more contemporary) line about reigning rulers, from The Wire: “You come at the king, you best not miss.”

This story was originally published July 22, 2016 at 1:41 AM with the headline "Drake overcomes late start to dazzle American Airlines Center."