The wait is finally over.
Drake aka the ‘6 God’ has dropped the much anticipated “Views”, which marks as his fourth official studio album. As expected, this project is already receiving tons of hot takes.
Whenever you have the clout of someone like Drake, you have to be prepared for polarizing opinions, whether they’re positive or negative.
Having said that, this album takes you on multiple highs and lows emotionally, but how was the execution?
Well, if you ask an old hip-hop head, they will tell you it’s a R&B album, which is totally understandable. Following his beef with Meek Mill, I thought Drake would rap more but that simply wasn’t the case.
As a fan of bars, it would’ve been nice to see him give us more punchlines and metaphors.
However, let’s breakdown each track:
“Keep the Family Close” – This isn’t the way I envisioned “Views” starting but then again maybe I forgot who we’re dealing with here.
Drake is very unpredictable at times, which clearly shows in this intro. This track is very heartfelt and downright sad to say the least. I don’t know this for sure, but it definitely sounds like he’s talking about Nicki Minaj here.
And its all because you chose a side
You’re supposed to put your pride aside and ride for me
Guess it wasn’t time
And of course you went and chose a side that wasn’t mine
Overall, this is a decent opening track but it doesn’t compare to his other intros of the past.
Throughout this song, Drake is talking about how friends how went left on him and considering he was just beefing with Nicki’s man, Meek Mill, you can just connect the dots here.
“9” – What is a six upside down?
Duh, it’s a nine.
And I turn the six upside down, it’s a nine now
I made a decision last night that I would die for it
This track is completely different from the intro. It’s a lot more energetic, but it still has the dark feel that fans of The Weekend would enjoy.
Near the end of the second verse, Drake starts to sing at the perfect time.
Keychain go jangalang, I wanna do major things
MJ in every way, I just don’t fade away
Six upside down, it’s a nine now
Like Mannie, like Stunna, man, shit is big time now
And I made a decision last night that I would die for it
“9” is one of them songs you can bump in the whip anytime of the day.
“U With Me” – Despite how DMX feels about Drake, that didn’t stop the Canadian superstar from sampling him at the start of this song.
What these b*tches want from a n*gga?
Then Drake proceeded with the opening first, which includes a funny line about Maques Houston
On some DMX sh*t
I group DM my exes
I told ’em they belong to me, that goes on for forever
And I think we just get closer when we’re not together
You tell me that I’m confusin’
More immature than Marques Houston
Cuts too deep for a band-aid solution
We too deep in this thing to never lose me
LOLOL I’m glad you find this shit amusin’
Heard a lot about me ‘fore we started off
I know you heard that my pool parties like Mardi Gras
I know you heard that my girl is sponsored by Audemars
That’s why she’s always correctin’ me when my time is off
And my house is the definition
Of alcohol and weed addiction
You got a different vision
You wanna walk around naked in the kitchen
Without runnin’ into one of my niggas
That’s not the way we livin’
Too much goin’ on, it’s just not realistic
These days I don’t talk ’bout them days like I miss ’em
And you shouldn’t miss ’em either, we different people
But every time we speakin’
As the song gets deeper, you’ll notice in the third verse how the beat sounds awfully similar to “Days in the East”.
“Feel No Ways” – There isn’t one song that separates itself more from the rest of the album than this one here. The beat has a pop/r&b feel to it.
As you dissect the lyrics, you won’t find anything super lyrical, but Drake is getting across a simple message. Apparently, him and some mysterious girl grew apart because Drake had to find himself as a person.
I try with you
There’s more to life than sleeping in
And getting high with you
I had to let go of us to show myself what I could do
And that just didn’t sit right with you
And now you’re trying to make me feel a way, on purpose
Now you’re throwing it back in my face, on purpose
Now you’re talking down on my name, on purpose
And you don’t feel no way, you think I deserve it
All in all, this may be my least favorite song on the album.
“Hype” – Here’s the first track on the album where Drake goes in. In only the way he knows how, Drake flows smoothly with a lot of subliminals.
In the beginning of the first verse, Drake appears to be talking about Meek Mill and Kendrick Lamar.
Last year I know you learned your lesson
I could GPS you if you need addressing
Boss up, I’m the bigger homie
But I’m one year older than my lil homie
Just in case you’re confused, Drake is one year older than Kendrick, so he is applying he’s K.Dot’s big homie?
I’ll let you be the judge, however, this track is straight heat.
“Weston Road Flows” – Noah “40” Shebib does it again.
As soon as I played this song, I noticed the amazing sampling of Mary J. Blige’s “My Life”.
The title of this song stems from where Drake grew up at. A lot of people feel that Drake was spoon fed growing up, but that’s far from the case.
For crying out loud, the poor guy couldn’t even afford pizza.
One of them ones
Right
Weston Road Flows, I did this shit for my nigga Renny
Back when we couldn’t buy pizza cause we were down to pennies
Whenever Drake is rapping on a mellow beat like this, it normally turns out good.
“Redemption” – Want to talk about sad Drake?
Well, this one right here will have you feeling some type of way. If we haven’t learned one thing from Drake over the years, we’ve learned that he’s pretty selfish when it comes to females he’s had encounters with in the past.
This song will make you want to hit up your ex and your side chick within a 30 minute radius.
“With You” Feat. PARTYNEXTDOOR – It only took us to reach the eighth song on the album to find a feature.
The pairing of Drake and PARTYNEXTDOOR shouldn’t come as a surprise, as the two OVO superstars have done plenty of work together.
The hook is receptive but dope nonetheless:
It’s about us right now, girl, where you going?
It’s about us right now, girl, where you going?
I’m with you
It’s about us right now, girl, where you going?
It’s about us right now, girl, where you going? Yeah
I’m with you
“Faithful” Feat. Pimp C & dvsn – “Views” doesn’t have many features at all, but on this track, Drake relies on multiple individuals.
In the intro, he uses Amber Rose’s voice, where she talks about how expensive her taste is.
However, the real surprise comes when Drake uses one of Pimp C’s old verses:
Foot off in their a** is what Ken told me
Ni**as like to play games cause they feel like they know me
You don’t know me, ni**a, I done changed
So don’t be trying to be putting on shit off in the game
This ain’t no motherf*cking ’91
We out here rapping for money you ni**as rapping for fun
I don’t f*ck with nobody in this sh*t but Bun
Then Drake decides to bring his new OVO signee “dvsn” into the limelight.
How far we go
Always seems to get better with time
Won’t you, outsmart me
Don’t mean that your brain works better than mine
Tell me I should know you
I got to know you again
You want me to show you
I’m gonna show you again
Now we’re in the zone
Gon’ let me all in again
And now you’re coming over
Over and over and over and over and over again
Over and over again
Over and over again
Now you’re coming over
Over and over again
Over and over again
You tell me I should know you
But I’ll get to know you again
And you want me to show you
I’m gonna show you again
When were in the zone you
Gon’ let me own it again
And now you’re coming over
Over and over and over and over and over again
Now you’re coming over
You’re coming over
This song has a lot of that “Take Care” vibe in it.
“Still Here” – Following a series of emotionally triggered tracks, Drizzy brings tons of up-tempo energy on this track.
It may seem crazy, but Drake has been in the game for 10 years, so of course he had to remind us.
Hook:
Me and all my ni**as doin’ well, doin’ well, dog
You not from the city, I could tell, I could tell, dog
Did it, did it, did it by myself, by myself, dog
Blew up and I’m in the city still, I’m still here, dog
This is one of them songs you blast in the whip with your squad.
“Controlla” – Upon further review, this sounds like Drake’s version of “Work”. It has a dance-hall type of vibe masked with Drake’s vocals.
The hook makes you want to sing along with Drake:
I think I’d lie for you
I think I’d die for you
Jodeci “Cry For You”
Do things when you want me to
Like controlla, controlla
Yeah, like controlla, controlla
Expect for this one to be played on the radio for a while. The execution was flawless here.
“One Dance” Feat. Wizkid & Kyla – Smooth transition from “Controlla”. Traditional rap fans won’t like this for obvious reasons, but it’s easy to see what Drake is trying do here.
Your girl will dance to this song, while you sit there and wait fo bars that won’t be coming.
“Grammys” Feat Future – You just knew Drake couldn’t do this album without obtaining a Future verse.
Hendrix snapped to say the least:
Gonna peel off like a bandit
I’m noddin’ off on a can ni**as
Get pissed off, start airing it
Get a head start, ain’t friendly
I stand out, don’t blend in
When I say that I meant that
I don’t want to talk to you has-beens
I don’t
I don’t want
You can’t even get on my guest list
They wan’t me to go to the met gala
I want a percocet and a gallon
That activis Hi-Tech it don’t matter
We sitting right on the courtside
I know players on both side
I’m cashing out, f*ck a cosign
I wear the chain like a bowtie
I wear the ring like a fo’-five
Keep a fo’-five for the poor guys
Black tints, low profile
Celebrating everyday cause I’m really really fresh at the coke house
Counting up every single day Gon’ bring a whole new whip out
Overall, I expected more, but it’s a solid listen.
“Childs Play” – Drake has so much love for the south, so it comes as no surprise to hear him sample Ha-Sizzle’s New Orleans classic “Rode That D*ck Like a Soldier”.
In this track, Drake talks about the American dream.
Well, maybe I’m over exaggerating, but he took a girl from the hood. However, it can get complicated.
Why you gotta fight with me at Cheesecake
You know I love to go there
Say I’m actin’ lightskin, I can’t take you nowhere
This a place for families that drive Camrys and go to Disney
They don’t need to know all of our business
You wildin’, you super childish, you go to CVS for Kotex
In my Bugatti, I took the key and tried to hide it
So you can’t drive it, and put on milage
Then you find it, awkward silence
Momma is a saint, yes she raised me real good
All because of her I don’t do you like I should
Don’t make me give you back to the hood
Don’t make me give you back
The baseline is so crazy on this one.
“Pop Style” – When this originally dropped, Jay-Z and Kanye West were featured, but Drake elected to cut them out on this version.
Just like the entire album, the production is sick on this joint and Drake’s second verse was cocky as hell.
They still out to get me, I don’t get it
I can not be got, and that’s a given
Give a real ni**a the number one
Even though I got like twenty-one
Cannot beat me I’m a one-of-one
Schooling your a** like one-on-one
They been out here tryna slide on me
They been out here telling lies on me
Everybody looking out for themself
But they still got they eyes on me
See me putting in the hard work now, aye
Momma doesn’t have to call work now, aye
I decide when I start work now, aye
Problems hit the gym, they all work out
MVP, MVP, oh-nine all the way to sixteen
Even next season looking like a breeze
Lot of y’all ain’t built for the league, yeah
Trade you off the team while you in your sleep, yeah
Y’all showed me that nothing’s guaranteed
And you don’t know what you started
My friend’s chain so big that he look like the artist
I can’t trust no fuckin’ body
They still out to get me cause they never got me
Vintage.
“Too Good” Feat. Rihanna – The chemistry between Drake and Rihanna is untouchable.
Unlike “Work”, this track is very relaxing and makes you think about someone in your life.
The two combined their vocals when the hook came around a second time and it worked masterfully.
I’m too good to you
I’m way too good to you
You take my love for granted
I just don’t understand it
No, I’m too good to you
I’m way too good to you
You take my love for granted
I just don’t understand it
Another one.
“Summers Over Interlude” – Drake made “Views” in Toronto over the winter time. He wanted this project to illustrate winter to summer to winter again from the perspective of the ‘6’.
Clearly the summer is over here, as Majid Jordan blesses this track with his heavenly vocals.
“Fire & Desire” – When 40 gets busy on the production like this, Drake can simply breathe on the track and it’ll probably be a hit.
To no one’s surprise, Drake is looking to take someone’s girl but who?
Look, you know I’m a writer, nothin’ left to hide
Your other nigga tired
Talk about you like you’ll never leave his side
But I don’t really buy it
Me I’m movin’ quiet, all the things we’re tryin’
Let’s just keep it private
Tell me should I cut these other girls right out of my life?
Cause we never decided
Tell me how you feel inside
Nonetheless, this song can be labeled as ‘baby making music’. Very soulful.
“Views” – Drake has a knack for ending albums with something tough. Just look at “Thank Me Now”, “The Ride”, “Paris Morton Music”, “6 PM in New York” and “30 For 30”.
This track is about loyalty and faithfulness.
The song samples “The Winans’ “The Question Is”, which is about faith in God.
However, Drake is addressing fakes in the game, while stunting on the competition.
Overall Grade: 8.3/10. As mentioned before, traditional rap fans may not like this album because there’s more singing than actual bars, but we must take Drake for what he is. He’s not Kendrick or J. Cole, Drake is a pop-rap star and we must appreciate him for who he is. The production on here is simply amazing and Drake has multiple bangers that will carry people through summer sixteen.