The Dissection of Drizzy

Saying that Drake is a phenomenon, may be an understatement. Over a year ago, he released a free mixtape titled So Far Gone, which spawned one of the biggest radio singles of last summer “Best I Ever Had.” With just the verbal backing of rap artist Lil’ Wayne, Drake became one of the biggest hip-hop artist period. He went on to be featured on songs with Jamie Foxx, Mary J. Blige and Jay-Z. Eventually he would sign with Universal Motown through Lil' Wayne's Young Money imprint. The buzz for the release of Drake’s debut CD, Thank Me Later, was beyond a fevering pitch.

Then June 15 came and almost 500,000 people purchased it in the first week. That’s kind of a big deal. With two weeks since the album’s release, I felt it was time for a dissection of Drake and not for a review of Thank Me Later. I’m not too big on music reviews, just because like all art forms, music can mean anything to any person, so instead I’ll try to express what Thank Me Later meant to me.

TML is a very smooth, cohesive project. Majority of the production is handled by Drake’s consigliere, Noah “40” Shebib, which gives TML a musical narrative. I like the production on this album because it suits Drake’s better qualities as an artist. Most of the tracks are minimalist in nature and are somber in sound. I applaud Drake on not having a real single. By that I mean, a song that sounds extra contrived made solely for the clubs or for the kids or whoever the hell rappers are marketing their music to nowadays. The lead single “Over” could never be confused with likes of a “Candy Shop” by 50 Cent or even a “Gold Digger” by Kanye West. If “Over" was just an album cut, it would still get plenty rotation. Though Drake is known for his ability to rap and sing (kinda), it was risky to release “Find Your Love” as the second single, where he only sings on the Kanye West-produced track. Again, I applaud Drake for being slightly unconventional with his album.

In respect to the songs I prefer, I tend to lean towards “Karoake” – another song that features a mostly singing Drake – or “The Resistance” where Drake raps in the second verse, “I heard they just moved my grandmother to a nursing home/ And I be acting like I don’t know how to work a phone/ But hit redial, you’ll see that I just called/ Some chick I met at the mall/ Who I barely know at all.” That’s Drake at his finest. His best quality is that he’s good at rapping about his life and transferring his feelings to the listener.

My biggest gripe with Drake has and will continue to be his flow. He never switches it up. Ever. And that’s his biggest weakness. Sadly, I think most rappers have a hard time switching their flow and the same might be for Drake. He also has a tendency to sound like a Bel-Air version of Lil’ Wayne. Just as much bravado, a lot less gang and gun talk. But, since Drake is able to carry a decent tune and is exemplary with melodies he stands to last a long time in the game.

And I’m very thankful for that.