Rapper J Hus was brought up on stage by Drake at his London gig last night. The rapper had been in jail over possession of a knife since December.
Drake made the controversial announcement during his show: "We're about to celebrate one of our brothers tonight", Drake told the crowd, before the words "welcome home" appeared on the stage floor.
J Hus was heard saying: "I've missed you so much, I swear I missed you so much."
The move has been questioned by some as the rapper committed a crime in December.
Canadian rapper Drake said he had been waiting for this all week: "I waited for this all week so I could give you this stage so you can do exactly what you've been waiting to do," said Drake.
He said: "Anybody sitting down right now, I need you to stand up, because (we're) about to celebrate one of our brothers tonight."
J Hus, whose real name is Momodou Jallow, had apologised in court last June and said he regretted his "foolish actions" - carrying the 4in (10cm) blade near Westfield, in Stratford, London.
In a letter read to the court by his barrister, the rapper said: "My decision to carry a weapon was careless, ill-advised and utterly stupid.
"Being a public figure that many look up to, I simply should have known better."
The rapper won best song at the Mobo awards in 2017.
He had been sitting in his Audi with a woman and another passenger outside Westfield when they were stopped by police.
Prosecutor Helen Owen said there was a smell of cannabis from the vehicle and, when asked by an officer if he had anything on him, the star said he had a knife in his pocket.
Asked during the incident why he was carrying what was described in court as a folding knife, he replied: "You know, it's Westfield."
The court heard that J Hus's friend had been knifed and paralysed just days earlier and that the rapper, who was himself stabbed in 2015, feared he would be the victim of another attack.
