Drake appeared to “ice out” Toronto landmark the CN Tower with a blue glow this past Thursday night, utilizing millions of dollars’ worth of projection equipment to promote his latest album, Iceman, and its surprise companion releases Habibti and Maid of Honour.
CBC reported on the spectacle commissioned by the Canadian rapper and created by Anil Mohabir and his company Studio AM, a Toronto digital and visual design firm.
The azure, ice-like lighting crawled up the tower, giving the impression of it freezing, CBC video showed.
The lighting of the tower and a fireworks display on Toronto’s waterfront on the night of May 14th coincided with a livestreaming event that culminated in the midnight release of the three albums.
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“We took into account the 3D geometry of the tower, and we showed it freezing [in] real-time, with computer animation all the way to the top,” Mohabir told CBC. “Once it reached the top, we [had] a really fun lighting animation that kind of moves around ambient light, like lights were hitting the ice from different angles.”
Drake’s creative team, DreamCrew, contacted Mohabir and his studio with three weeks’ notice to create the massive lighting display.
A team of 300 people and 75 projectors sourced from around the world, along with cooperation from the city of Toronto and the Canadian transportation agency, came together for the publicity project.
The projectors alone were worth $15 million, and their lenses are valued at millions more, according to Mohabir.
“Everyone was almost in a bit of shock” when they triggered the projection, Mohabir humorously noted.
Drake and his team put “Canadian creatives at the forefront” and helped “elevate the entire city,” Mohabir told CBC.
“We’re just a bunch of kids from Toronto that kind of have crazy ideas and crazy dreams… Through the conduit of Drake, we’re given the opportunity to execute [them] at a really high level.”
Lighting up the CN Tower was the culmination of a series of stunts and publicity moves designed to build hype for the release of the album trio.
Drake installed a large ice sculpture in a Toronto parking lot, drove around in a box truck with “Iceman” written on it, set off an explosion in a city park, and froze his courtside seats at the Toronto Raptors’ home of Scotiabank Arena.
The much-anticipated Iceman came out May 15th, but Drake shocked fans and the music world by putting it out with two other albums, the R&B tinged Habibti, and the dance music-inspired Maid of Honour.
As expected, Drake dissed his rivals, especially Kendrick Lamar, on Iceman.
In a review, Consequence declared Drake is “focused on getting listeners to hark back to his glory days” and added that “the trio of albums amount to a complete Drake experience, for better and for worse.”
@cbcnews Drake’s latest publicity stunt turned the CN Tower to ice. But how did they do it? We talked to the man who organized it all. #Drake #Iceman #Entertainment #Toronto #CBCNews
