A eva

» Certified Lover Boy review

Joseph Astana Contributor

espite industry enemies sneak dissing,

despite the criticism and memes, Drake is still at the top of the rap game. With the release of Certified Lover Boy, the man born Aubrey Graham does his utmost to remind everyone of that fact. Though the album stretches more than 80 minutes in length, Drake manages to blend enough of his signature style with new and fresh ideas to keep a listener engaged.

Throughout the 21-track album, Drake takes listeners through his life as both a lover and a mafioso. At times Drake tries to reach an agreement between these two disparate parts of his life: revealing his insecurities on his pillow in one line and promising death to his enemies in the next; bragging about his riches while reminiscing on the loves he has had and lost. The balancing act that he strikes as he moves smoothly between these two personas shows a lyrical and personal complexity few in the industry can claim, let alone match.

Throughout the album, the 6 God addresses his long-running beef with Kanye West and how little he thinks of the lines sent his way. Notable references include “7 am on Bridle Path” where Drake

speaks about West posting his address online and the chorus of “Love All” which features a verse from Jay-Z who discusses his own enemies and rivalries. Drakes attitude throughout the album is that of a man unbothered by the hate and animosity simply because he knows he is above it and in control.

Though he is criticized by some rap fans for his nice-guy image and seemingly shallow bars, Drake shows real maturity in the way his new music focuses on his family. From discussing his parent's divorce and going to therapy on “Champagne Poetry,” CLB Drake is aware of the responsibilities and treasures that come with his family life; in the same song, Drake calls himself ‘Co-parent of the Year. That’s not the only time Graham shouts out his son, on ‘F*cking Fans” Drake blends his longstanding ‘letter to an unnamed ex-girlfriend’ lyrical style with his new respect for his family by revealing how his unplanned child affected a relationship. Maybe the beef with fellow rapper Pusha T that revealed Adonis to the world helped Drake mature.

But Drake does not do all the lyrical lifting alone, he reaches out to many rappers including Rick Ross, Lil Wayne, Lil Baby, Future (of course), and more. All in all, the album mixes many of Drake's notable

88 8 88

contemporaries to produce a successful and entertaining rap tour-de-force.

Drake has not been without his controversies and troubles, but it is undoubtable that he is on top of the rap

Marvel's First Asian Superhero

Punches to the Screen

» Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings Review

Jerrison Oracion Senior Columnist

Note: This review contains no spoilers.

Be Toronto actor Simu Liu was in the hit Canadian comedy Kim's Convenience, he held roles in various TV shows including Blood and Water and Orphan Black, as well as modeling for stock photos. In 2014, he jokingly tweeted wondering when Marvel would release a film with an Asian superhero. A few years later, when Marvel announced the Shang- Chi film, Liu replied to them on Twitter. Some speculate this chain of events led Marvel to cast him as Shang-Chi, the role that will likely bring him worldwide fame and maybe make him the sexiest man alive. I learned about Liu while he was on Kim's Convenience; I also met him and engaged with him on social media a few times. By doing his own stunts and being passionate about Asian representation in the media Liu isa great fit for the role. I watched Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings in IMAX back-to-back with Black Widow. Both films tackle families and changing values. As expected, Shang-Chi is epic and fun with surprises along the way.

The film begins with an explanation about the ten rings where Wenwu (Tony Leung) collects them and lives a long life with his army for thousands of years. In 1996, he discovers a hidden village called Ta Lo where he sees a village keeper who he would eventually marry and have two children, one of whom is Shang-Chi (Liu). The movie time skips to the present where we see Shang-Chi (now named Shaun) living in San Francisco and working as a hotel valet with his best friend of 10 years: Katy (played by Akwafina).

Soon, Shang-Chi gets a postcard from his sister, Xialing (played by Meng’er Zhang); then, he and Katy are attacked by his father’s army to retrieve their necklaces. They must travel to Macau and meet in Xialing’s fight club to begin a new era in a more diverse Avengers universe. The introduction is serious with its majestic splendor before suddenly turning into a romantic comedy within the first 20 minutes. The rest of the film is complex though; at some points, I laughed a lot, while at other points, I was shaken. If you

Photo by Arnaldo Fragozo

¢ Drake is too sexy for your playlist

¢ Marvel's First Asian Superhero Punches

to the Screen

..and that's everything!

Drake is too sexy for your playlist

Cover of ‘Certified Lover Boy’ by Drake

game. Releasing his album immediately after Kanye West's, fully aware of the storm of anticipation Donda was generating is

a boss move, and the album itself proved that only Drake can take those risks.

watch the film, you will find out what shook me.

Shang-Chi’s relatives represent eastern values and sometimes question the western way. For example, in one scene, Wenwu explains how Chinese names are sacred while in another, Xialing asks Shang-Chi, if America made him soft. Conversely, Katy represents western or American values when she answers certain questions and talks about her childhood. Feminism is considered through Xialings’ experience of her father favouring her brother; this meant she had to train herself and build her fight club to grow.

Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings generated a lot of excitement, and it was worth the wait. Fans of the Avenger’s universe were hoping for something big and this delivers. As for Liu, he finally made it and you are going to see him in movies for a long time. If you are reading this Simu, I knew that you were going to be a big action star one day. Congratulations on the success and I hope that you will have a fun time with the rest of the Avengers.