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Popular Toronto internet personality Snowd4y surprise dropped a remix of Plain White T's 2005 single Hey There Delilah this week, on June 3, which includes a feature from Drake.
The single interpolates the lyrics of the original song, creating a parody track filled with Toronto slang, with words like Shordy (Shawty—"woman") and Wah Gwan ("What's up") representing the dialect predominantly spoken by a younger generation of Canadians.
The song has generated a significant amount of attention, being the second single with a supposed Drake feature to have been dropped since his iconic beef with Kendrick Lamar ended last month. Wah Gwan Delilah caught the attention of White T's band members as well, who shared their initial reaction to listening to the song on their social media.
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Tom Higginson's hilarious reaction to hearing Drake's verse on Wah Gwan Delilah was re-posted by several online news media outlets, as the guitarist stared right into the camera and said:
"That's not Drake. It's crazy that everybody thinks that it's real"
However, Drake himself subtly seemed to confirm his inclusion or at least a public endorsement of the song, as he posted a congratulations to Snowd4y releasing Wah Gwan Delilah on his Instagram Story.
Bar-For-Bar: Dissecting Snowd4y and Drake's latest single Wah Gwan Delilah
The song was uploaded to Snowd4y's SoundCloud this past Sunday, and the audio has generated over 500,000 streams since its release. Many believe the heavy use of Toronto slang on Wah Gwan Delilah is a possible response to Kendrick making fun of Drake by using Canadian slang on his first diss track, Euphoria.
The song, much like White T's original version, is centered around a woman named Delilah who lives in downtown Toronto. Both Snowd4y and Drake spend their verses expressing their desire for an intimate relationship with this woman, delving into themes like:
- Relationships
- Intimacy
- Love
- Violence
- Gang Affiliations
- Reppin'
- Drug Abuse
- Excess
- Wealth
Disclaimer: The following review is rated EXPLICIT. Reader discretion is advised.
(Verse 1)
"Wah gwan, Delilah? What's it like in Toronto City? / I'm two thousand kilometres away / But girl, tonight you look so bad, oh yes, you do / Dundas Square don't shine as bright as you"
Snowd4y opens the song by rewording the intro from Hey There Delilah. The rapper claims that although he lives 2000 kilometers away from Toronto, he's still willing to travel all the way to meet her.
Snow also references Dundas Square, Toronto's version of New York's Times Square. Given the sheer number of advertisement billboards placed around the square, it gets extremely bright at night.
"Top left, top left, Wah gwan, Delilah? You live far, it's such a mission / I can finesse my way on the transit / But nowadays, these guys are dissing / Are you dumb? I scan my Presto wit' no funds / Kick me off, you get brunched"
Presto Cards are part of Canada's automated fare collection system, used by citizens to access public transport.
Snow ends his verse by poking fun at the TTC (Toronto Transit Commission) enforcement, humorously citing a situation where he tries to get on public transport with an empty Presto card to meet Delilah while hoping he doesn't get "kicked off".
(Chorus)
"Oh, don't you be acting mean / Oh, there's a .40 in my jeans (Lah, lah) / And oh, your shordy wants to reach / Oh, these are Mike Amiri jeans (Lah, lah)"
Snowd4y adopts a hilarious vocal performance on the chorus parodies Hey There Delilah, with the rapper subtly threatening to get violent if anybody tries to press him. The .40 in his "jeans" refers to the .40 Smith & Wesson caliber handgun, which he presumably carries around at all times.
(Verse 2)
"Wah gwan, Delilah? Know I'm late 'cause there's bare traffic / I just show my dog your 'Gram / He said he knows a man that slapped it, I'm so cheesed / Your "mademoiselle" nights are geeked, I'm bent lowkey"
Drake opens the second verse with Toronto's assimilated Jamaican slang. He recounts showing his friend Delilah's Instagram account only to find out that she has already engaged in an intimate relationship with someone he knows.
Drake also references the fine-dining restaurant "Mademoiselle" when expressing his disappointment in realizing Delilah has been there before and is not the woman he initially expected her to be.
"Wah gwan, Delilah? Double date me if you like me / Brought my cro'nem for your bestie / Sorry, he's wearin' a shiesty, he's not beat / It's just too smokey in these streets / You're looking sweet"
Drake then highlights how he wishes to go on a double date with Delilah, promising to bring his own friend to keep her "bestie" company. The friend appears to have gang affiliations, which Drizzy apologizes for before ending the verse by praising Delilah for her looks.
The chorus repeats again as we get introduced to the song's third verse.
(Verse 3)
"Wah gwan, Delilah? Peeped your batty from afar / The way I'm chiefing on these Russian creams / My lungs are full of tar, I'm on the way / I spend that CERB, why would I save? Does it look like I own a cape?"
Snowd4y comes back for the third and fourth verses, both of which revolve around him expressing why he's so deeply in love with Delilah.
He proceeds to highlight his affinity toward self-destructive behavior when highlighting instances of smoking too many Russian Cream backwoods and even spending the 16,000$ Canadian Emergency Response Benefit provided by the government during the COVID-19 pandemic.
"Wah gwan, Delilah? Can you scoop me from the mall? / The pack came from British Columbia / Fiends blow my phone off the wall, I'm makin' waps / I get more bandskis than your pops, don't piss me off"
Snow ends the verse by speaking on his drug connections, referencing British Columbia, known for selling some of Canada's best weed when stating he bought a pack (slang for Marijuana) from BC.
The verse ends with Snowd4y alluding to his wealth by humorously claiming he makes more money than Delilah's father.
(Verse 4)
"And oh, if you're tryna hit a lick on the T.D, R.B.C, Scotiabank, R.B.C, C.I.B.C, P.C Financial / Holler at me, Miyute, don't be movin' tough / 'Cause I will call your Scarborough bluff / Like Tarzan, I am always on the Jane (Always on the Jane)"
The fourth verse clearly emphasizes the parody element of the song by asking Delilah to link with him in case she wishes to commit wire fraud before listing a number of banks, including Scotiabank and P.C. Financial.
He then compares his relationship with Marijuana (Mary Jane) to the romantic relationship of Disney characters Tarzan and Jane. The line could also be a nod to his affiliations with Toronto's notorious Jane and Finch neighborhood.
"I'm on your block like, "Where you at?" / They stay inside like Kai Cenat / My kicks are wet from trappin' in the rain / Stoleys moshed, I'll walk today, but don't walk in the bikers lane / Or you're gonna catch a deafazz to the brain / I can't explain / Oh"
Kai Cenat gets a shout-out when Snow makes fun of his opps wanting to not confront him by staying inside. The rapper ends the verse by citing how he ends up walking instead of driving today and issues a clear warning to listeners to steer clear of "biker lanes" unless they want to deal with Snowd4y.
The song ends with an outro from Snow, in which we realize he's moved on from Delilah. The rapper is now singing to another woman named Sabrina, who resides in Mississauga, Ontario.
