Great watch wearers: Drake

In the case of Drake, anything but a watch. Because when it comes to timepieces, he has every base covered (and often covered in diamonds).

To say the Canadian MC has a watch collection is like saying Roman Abramovich once had an interest in a local sports team. As you’d expect, this isn’t a collection made up of exciting indie pieces or classic gems from the past. We’re talking serious bling here.

On his 35th birthday, Drake did what any man reaching that milestone might do: he bought himself a watch. But Drake’s was a little more extravagant than the average.

His was a pre-owned Custom Richard Mille RM 056 Design with a see-through crystal case, yellow small seconds indicator, tachymeter and crown band in midnight blue. Only five of the 056 are said to have been made – no wonder it’s valued at $5.5m.

This isn’t his only Richard Mille. Drake also owns a Richard Mille RM Tourbillon 69 ‘Erotic’ – a Grade 5 titanium piece that not only boasts a power-reserve indicator and ‘oracle’ complication but a changeable display that lets you show ‘sexy’ messages on the dial.

Drake’s collection also includes various diamond-covered Rolexes and a rare AP Royal Oak collaboration, but he has a powerful attachment to Patek Philippe’s Nautilus series.

First up is the Patek Philippe Nautilus reference 5740/1G, a PP ‘Grand Complication’ with perpetual calendar powered by an ultra-thin 240 Q movement – and made of white gold. As you’d guess, this is a difficult watch to obtain – second-hand models retail at £130,000+ – but its exclusivity pales compared to his second Patek.

Created by (now deceased) design visionary Virgil Abloh, this Patek Philippe Nautilus 5726 moonphase watch is wholly covered in emeralds, lending it an otherworldly deep green colour.

To achieve the effect, the original watch was disassembled, placed inside a vacuum chamber, coated in diamond-like carbon (DLC) and covered in diamonds. One of only two in the world (Abloh took the other one), you can see it in the video for What’s Next.

Whether you feel envious when you do is a matter of contention. But one thing is for sure, like the rest of Drake’s watches, you can’t ignore it.