DRAKE, HONESTLY, NEVERMIND

 Let me start by saying this, and I think a lot of people will agree with this, the Jimmy Cooks track is an odd selection for the album, especially when you consider that ‘Honestly, Nevermind’ is largely driven by club sounds. The song had me jumping up and down after digesting the rest of the album, which sounds nothing like the ultimate song.

It can’t be easy for Drake, as much as he’d make it perceive it that he is at peace with his lifestyle, to still drop music that would catch on. After all, the Canadian has been dropping music for over 15 years, and is probably the world’s biggest artist. There are not many records he hasn’t broken, not many people who come close in terms of content and presence in the game, and not many with his longevity and buzz. But you knew that.

So, when Honestly, Nevermind was announced last night,  naturally everyone jumped to speculate for what the sound was going to be like, and what possible guests he could bring. The project is 14 tracks long and has one feature, coming straight from Atlanta with 21 Savage.

Drake has a habit of dropping tapes only a few hours after he announced them, he gave us arguably one of his best work’s with If You’re Reading This It’s Too Late, then dropped More Life in 2017 with a very British/Caribbean influenced sound to then drop Dark Lane Demo Tapes in 2020.

Honestly, Nevermind perhaps didn’t drop by coincidence, just a few days before summer officially starts, Drake has always known how to best release his craft to the world; most songs on the project can easily be played in Ibiza and other popular party attractions, with slight tweaks from local DJs.

And that is exactly what Drake was going for here, although he mentions his past relationships rather often, but this full body of work sounds nothing like anything he has dropped in the past as a whole. Sure, there are similarities with the production that can be found on More Life, or at times with Views; but it’s undeniable that we cannot knock Drake for doing what he loves doing.

What is noticeable after finishing the album for the first time is the repetitiveness in each track, no two tracks sound alike but Drake sometimes falls short where some of the songs don’t need that extra 30-45 seconds.

On Falling Back, Drake uses autotune in a clever way, something that has rarely been seen with him, and most melodies throughout his seventh studio album work really well.

On both Calling My Name and Sticky, Drake uses different sounds, which were much needed, on Calling My Name, the beat switch was a good idea, but I would have liked to hear more substance within the first part of the song to fully appreciate the latter half, and I didn’t fully. Sticky is the first song where he starts rapping with heavy drums on the production, and throughout his text, you can pick many Quotables, which makes the song one of the strongest on the project.

I heard the start of Flight’s Booked and started freestyling really terribly, but this gives you an idea of what Drake does, he has this versatility that only a handful have; I would have loved to hear him rap over the initial sound on Flight’s Booked, but the track is actually very technical and slick. The album in itself doesn’t have many Quotables, but after a few spins on the whole body of work, people will have caught on the vibes, just a matter of time until one song stands out.

Drake is capable of elevating so many sounds that it almost becomes too difficult to please everyone, especially when you’re the biggest music star on the planet, we shouldn’t be too quick to judge because do not get me wrong, most songs have an unbelievable production. What can be reproached with the Canadian is that ultimately, his lyrics don’t contain a lot of substance, whether people agree with that or not, one thing is for sure, we’ll keep listening and hear new sounds.