Drake has seemingly axed a Michael Jackson song from his UK tour, amid claims that the late pop icon sexually abused children at his home.
The rapper kicked off his Assassination Vacation Tour in Manchester on Sunday evening, ahead of dates across the UK and Europe to support recent album ‘Scorpion’.
While the US leg of the tour saw him performing album track ‘Don’t Matter To Me’, the track failed to appear during last night’s show in Manchester. It features a sample of Jackson’s vocals from 1983 and came under fire from Jackson’s nephew Austin in 2018.
Hitting out at Drake for using the unfinished sample, he said: ” I just feel like if [Michael] didn’t finish it, [Drake] shouldn’t use it.”
Although Drake is yet to confirm why the song was dropped, it follows the airing of Leaving Neverland last week.
The revelatory four-hour documentary features extensive testimonies from Wade Robson, 36, and James Safechuck, 41, who both claim that Michael Jackson sexually abused them when they were children.
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The controversial film immediately divided opinion when it premiered in the UK last week, with fans taking to the streets of London to protest it being broadcast. Radio stations around the world have also since banned Michael Jackson’s songs.
Adverts have also appeared on London buses in defence of Jackson, while there has been a surge for his music in the charts since the film aired.
Last week, Jackson’s nephew Taj also told NME about plans to make a documentary that he says will clear his uncle’s name.
Jackson denied any wrongdoing before he died in 2009.