The Some Special Shows 4 U tour is an ongoing co-headlining concert tour by Canadian musicians Drake and PartyNextDoor, in support of their debut collaborative album, Some Sexy Songs 4 U (2025).[1] The tour commenced on July 11, 2025, in London, and will conclude on September 23, in Hamburg, consisting of 37 shows.[1]
In February 2025, Drake embarked on the Anita Max Win Tour in Oceania; however, due to scheduling issues and the release of Drake and PartyNextDoor's collaborative album, Some Sexy Songs 4 U, the final four dates of the tour were postponed and are set to be rescheduled.[2] Later that month, Drake was announced as the headliner for all three nights of Wireless Festival in London that same year.[3] All tickets for the festival sold out within minutes, setting the record for the fastest sale of tickets in festival history.[4]
On June 3, the Some Special Shows 4 U Tour was announced for Europe, with tickets available for initial presale on June 4, and general sale on June 6.[5] An extra date in Manchester, Birmingham, Zurich, Cologne, Amsterdam, Berlin, and Munich, as well as two extra dates in Assago, were added on June 5, due to extreme demand.[6][7] On June 18, an extra Manchester date was added for August 4.[8] The tour marks Drake's first live performances in Italy.
On July 21, the August 9 show in Zurich was cancelled, due to issues with existing venue renovations and expected setup timelines for Drake's staging.[9] Six days later, it was announced that the July 28 show in Manchester will be rescheduled to August 5, with the tour citing unforeseen ferry schedule and travel logistics.[10] On August 1, it was announced that the August 7 show in Antwerp was pushed back one day, with a spokesperson for Drake again citing issues with travel logistics.[11]
Concert synopsis
A typical show of the Some Special Shows 4 U Tour lasts around 2 hours. It consists of 41 to 45 songs, with Drake and PartyNextDoor performing independently and together. With slightly varying times for each performance, Drake typically comes on stage between 9:15pm and 9:30pm, performing independently until being replaced by PartyNextDoor at 10:25pm.[12] Drake returns on stage at 10:40pm and performs with PartyNextDoor until 10:50pm. Drake then performs independently until between 11:00pm and 11:30pm, when the show concludes.[13]
The tour featured a stage which forms a ring around the standing room audience, with walkways running along the long end of the floor and larger stages at opposite ends of the arena. Drake typically performs across all the stages during a show.[14]
The tour attracted some controversy due to audience members chanting "fuck Kendrick" during the shows, referencing Drake's 2024 feud with rapper Kendrick Lamar.[15][16] The tour also featured instances of crowd trouble: objects, including empty water bottles and toilet paper, were thrown on stage near Drake by concertgoers at some shows in Amsterdam and London.[17][18]
Critical reception
In a synopsis for Yahoo, Jaspreet Kaur wrote Drake "was intent on proving something [with his performances] and he more than succeeded". Kaur commended Drake's energy, stage presence and vocals, saying "he delivered every song with raw vulnerability; you could feel every word".[19] Maria Sarabi of Hello! praised Drake's stage presence and the versatility of the music, saying that it goes from "a burst of energy" to "intimate and nostalgic" and called the show "too special to miss".[20]The Source's Shawn Grant called the show "explosive" and noted the chemistry between Drake and PartyNextDoor.[21] This was echoed by Ian Westhead of ATV Today, who called the pair's chemistry "palpable" and underscored Drake's "high-energy" and "powerhouse" performance.[22] Writing for The Manc, Thomas Melia praised the setlist, calling it "stacked", and highlighted Drake's "comical and cheeky" stage presence and his chemistry with PartyNextDoor, saying, "Drake’s career is timeless... Forget "One Dance" – [fans] had many."[23]
In a review for Manchester Evening News, Danielle Roper also praised Drake's performance, writing, "[he] bounces around the stage and pounds down the runways with enormous energy [and] dexterity".[24] In a mixed review, Rolling Stone's Ben Jolley commended Drake's "tireless puppy-like" energy and the show's "visually impressive" production, but criticized it for being overlong and for PartyNextDoor's "filler" performances, writing, "certain rounds of this career-spanning show fare better than others. [It] would certainly have benefited from a sharp edit".[25] Kyann-Sian Williams of NME also gave a mixed review, praising its music selection but criticizing its conviction, and wrote, "watching Drake [is] still a rare, generational spectacle [but the tour] should've been [his] victory lap, reminding us why he earned all his success. Instead, it feels like a man floating above his own myth, still chasing the love he's already received".[26]
In a positive review for The Observer, Shaad D'Souza called the tour "a strange, soppy bubble of narcissism – and it's wildly entertaining", praising Drake's catalog and emphasis on audience energy, calling the crowd "its own form of visual entertainment". He also wrote, "[Drake's] music is about feeling good, feeling your own emotions, prioritising yourself in a totally toxic way. That feeling is magnified [by the tour]. Drake's universe is a strange but happy one".[27]
Set list
This set list is representative of the show in Birmingham, performed on July 20, 2025. This set list is not representative of every show on the tour.[28][29]
Starting with the July 21 show in Birmingham, "Blue Green Red", "Something About You", "Spider-Man Superman" and "OMW" were removed from the set list and replaced with "Come and See Me".
On the July 23 show in Birmingham, "Gimme a Hug" was replaced with "Iron Man" by Black Sabbath in tribute to singer Ozzy Osbourne, who died a day prior.[30]
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