Drake Bell has rebranded and, possibly, relocated.
The musician, perhaps best known for his role on Nickelodeon’s Drake & Josh, has changed his name to Drake Campana, at least on his social accounts. One viral tweet alleged Bell moved to Mexico due to his popularity there. However, his Instagram account shows he’s been rebranding for at least a year.
On Thursday, perhaps in response to this new wave of attention, Bell shared an April video from YouTuber Brandon Cerón. He explains that Drake & Josh is very popular in Mexico, and that Bell’s been touring there since 2008 and has a dedicated fandom.
In November 2019, Bell posted a photo of an ID that shows an address in Mexico, and the last name Campana, which is Spanish for bell. He also posted a take on the distracted boyfriend meme, but with Mexico and the U.S.
There was backlash, especially since Bell is not Mexican. “I guess all men named Drake get to choose their race,” said one commenter.
Some commenters attributed this rebranding to multiple allegations of assault against Bell. In August, ex Melissa Lingafelt accused him of verbal and physical abuse when they dated from 2006 to 2009, which Bell denied. Around that same time, other allegations surfaced on TikTok about Bell’s predatory pursuit of underage girls.
It’s not clear if Bell actually relocated to Mexico. His Twitter account still has his location as Los Feliz, a neighborhood in Los Angeles.