I hope your long weekend was wonderful. And if you worked, I hope people were kind to you. As I’ve mentioned before, losing track of the time is my ultimate indulgence. So, when social media pal (and world’s biggest tiny Donny Osmond fan) Carolyn retweeted Donny’s link to his and his wife Debbie’s new home furnishings collection, Donny Osmond Home, my inner child dove in to look at each and every piece. It’s a classy, fashionable line of tables, cabinets, couches and other beautiful items. They really are gorgeous and sold through Bed Bath and Beyond, Home Depot and other retailers in the US.
In contrast, rapper Drake’s new flagship retail store opened at Yorkdale Mall in “the six” on Saturday. Hundreds of people camped out and waited as long as ten hours to get inside OVO – October’s Very Own – and buy Drake’s merchandise. Up to fifteen people were allowed in the store at once and could stay as long as they wanted, taking selfies and taking their time, while others waited.
It’s a case study in the difference between generations except that Drake is using old-fashioned bricks and mortar while Donny is marketing online. Donny Osmond’s fans curled up on the couch to look at his catalogue at their leisure while Drake’s fans lined up like cattle to an abattoir in one of the priciest malls in the GTA. There was a time when getting crushed in a long, slow-moving queue was worth it to see a glimpse of my hero, but that was Tony DeFranco in the 70s and at Hamilton’s Eastgate Square, and this is now. (Now it’s an hour later and I’m back after googling Tony DeFranco and reading about his life after Heartbeat It’s A Lovebeat and his successful career as a California realtor.)
I may have grown up without computers and cell phones and the Internet but I also wasted a lot less of my youth being a slave to a brand. There’s nothing wrong with liking Drake, but he is a brand, and he’s sneaking his greedy little fingers into kids’ wallets. Donny Osmond seems so much kinder and gentler when he doesn’t force us to line up for hours on a hard mall floor.