Drake rapped on the DJ Khaled track “No New Friends” in 2014, but the rule apparently doesn’t apply to new parents. The Grammy-winning artist befriended an Oklahoma City couple while attending a Rockets-Thunder game courtside Wednesday and afterwards, Drake posted an Instagram selfie with the couple — 71-year-old Renee Stanley and 75-year-old Jim Stanley.
His caption on the post referred to the couple — who were not aware how famous the rapper was at first — as “my new parents.”
“Well, I knew his name was Drake,” Renee told the Oklahoman, “but I didn’t know he was a rapper, and I didn’t know how popular he was. But let me tell ya, everybody else around me let me know.”
At first, the Stanleys had no clue they were sitting beside a megastar with a combined 139.6 million Instagram and Twitter followers. Their conversation began with Jim admiring Drake’s coat and Drake following up with a compliment on Renee’s earrings.
Drake and the Stanleys then talked about everything from hockey to Oklahoma sports and Lincoln Riley, which Jim thinks allowed Drake to put his guard down.
“I said, ‘That sumbitch took everybody and went to USC,” Jim recalled. “And he laughed over that, so maybe he thought, well these people are clueless and I can talk to them.”
Once Drake’s selfie with the couple went viral, Renee said friends from Alaska to New York city contacted her. Even Renee’s grandson, an Oklahoma student, told her, “Oh my god, Grandma, I’m following Drake and I see YOU!”
The connection the Stanleys built with Drake meant far more to them than any viral moment, however. Jim told the Oklahoman he appreciated Drake’s ability to have a “conversation like anybody sitting next to you at a game” despite his celebrity status.
“When you think of celebrities sometimes and how they can be real snobs, he was just an everyday person and was very cordial to us,” Jim said. “I appreciate that.”
And Drake showed his appreciation to the Stanleys with a kind gesture before leaving the arena.
“At the end of the game,” Renee said, “he stood up to look at me and I said, ‘Drake, you are just lovely.’ And he kissed my hand.”
