Vanessa Carlton Details Joining Drake at Wireless Festival

Vanessa Carlton Details Joining Drake at Wireless Festival originally appeared on Parade.

It was a surprise performance that no one really saw coming but all millennials were happy about.

Vanessa Carlton called in to Sirius XM's Hits 1 Miami with Mack & Jen Wednesday after joining Drake during his three-night run at the Wireless Festival in the U.K., where she detailed how the last-minute performance came to be.

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"It was put together very well by our managers. I'm really impressed with both management teams because it was a lot to put together in sort of a short amount of time, but I was really happy to be a part of that show," Carlton, 44, shared.

Less than a week to be exact.

Clips of Carlton joining the "God's Plan" rapper, 38, went viral over the weekend after Drake, who brought out a handful of guests while headlining the fest introduced the singer to the sold out crowd, whose roars and applause nearly overshadowed Carlton on the piano as she played her smash hit, "Thousand Miles."

When asked what it was like to hear Drake's fans screaming to the famous lyrics, Carlton said it felt "amazing."

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"Well, it's funny. I didn't really experience that until I saw the video after. I felt amazing energy on the stage, however, I'm wearing inner ear monitors, and so I'm just really concentrating on, like I didn't get a sound check or anything, so I was just really for me, logistically, I just wanted to make sure it was all sounding okay, do you know what I mean, on my end," she explained.

Carlton took to Instagram after the show to share her love for both Drake and his fans as well as hers, writing, "Thank you to the one and only @champagnepapi for inviting me to be a part of his show and for the sweet introduction. I am so moved and have been a fan since the beginning. And thanks to everyone behind the scenes that pulled this one off for us."

As for the possibility of a collaboration with the Canadian rapper following the surprise set, Carlton didn't comment, but fans sure are hopeful, calling for the pair to get on a track together after bringing the nostalgia to the U.K. audience and fans at home.

In addition to Carlton, Drake brought a host of U.K. rappers and Afrobeats legends to the stage with him, as well as some American fan-favorites, including Mario, Lauryn Hill, Bryson Tiller, 21 Savage, Sexyy Red and more.

Vanessa Carlton Details Joining Drake at Wireless Festival first appeared on Parade on Jul 16, 2025

This story was originally reported by Parade on Jul 16, 2025, where it first appeared.