Cribs’ gaudy McMansions? Aubrey Drake Graham’s Toronto home is unique. Drake’s 50,000-square-foot mansion has an NBA-sized indoor basketball court with a 21-square-foot pyramidal roof.
Drake Manor, designed by Canadian architect and interior designer Ferris Rafauli, is a marvel of old-world craftsmanship made of limestone, bronze, exotic woods, and other noble materials. The vast estate was methodically designed and completed. Scarface posters are absent.
Beaux-Arts architecture has been condensed and abstracted to give the Embassy a more modern feel. The building is a 19th-century limestone palace. Rafauli, who owns an Ontario luxury design/build firm, says the external profiles are more simple and the lines are cleaner. “No stucco, paint, or fake gold.” That’s not Drake’s wish or mine.”
Drake’s 3,200-square-foot master bedroom suite with 1,100 square feet of covered terraces is his favorite space. “The bedroom is where I come at night to decompress and where I open my eyes to seize the day,” he says. The bed lets you float, the shower lets you escape and think, and the wardrobe lets you talk to yourself while getting dressed.
God is always in the details. Rafauli’s new Hästens Grand Vividus bed and foundation weigh one tonne and cost more than many people’s homes. A whiskey-and-champagne bar is beside the headboard’s antique mirror and channel-tufted leather. The bedding has a The Rug Company Alexander McQueen hummingbird tapestry and mother-of-pearl nightstands.
