By Matt Koper/ne news editor
The title of Toronto rapper Drake’s new mixtape, says it all: If You’re Reading This It’s Too Late.
Even those who heard the album the moment it dropped still feel they missed out on something. It’s just that good.
In the first full-length follow-up to Nothing Was the Same, this 17-track mixtape debuted No. 1 on the U.S. Billboard 200 charts, opening with “Legend” and closing with “6 P.M. in New York.”
Drake took a different structural approach to this mixtape. He does less singing and focuses more on rapping.
And the results are obvious from the first note of “Legend.”
“Legend” is how Drake wanted to kickoff this mixtape. Aimed to prove everyone wrong, even his record label Cash-Money Records, he sets the tone from the beginning with a simple chorus of “Oh my God, I’m a legend. If I die, I’m a legend.” This track is a friendly reminder that Drake is not just an R&B artist.
Another highlight of the mixtape is “star67” a direct shot at his record label with lyrics like “Walk up in my label like, where my check though?” The beat is subtle, allowing Drake to lyrically go off. He has flashes of Nothing Was the Same. With the phone call going on in the background, it reminds listeners of his previous album.
“You and the 6” is a lyrically tight, emotional song of Drake rapping to his mom back in Toronto. “Yeah this is a crazy life, but you and the six raised me right.” It is worth more than one listen.
So is “Jungle,” one of the few songs where Drake sings with a catchy beat in the background. He sings about a relationship. “These days, I’m letting God handle all things above me, the things I can’t change are the reason you love me.” This song showcases his R&B style.
Drake’s new mixtape is worth the $12.99 on iTunes as it is full of lyrical growth and erases any doubt about Drake not being one of the best rappers. The album not only gets better as it moves through tracks one-17 but also the more one listens to it.
His attitude from the beginning allowed him free rein to take this mixtape in whatever direction he wanted to go, and he went up.
Drake views himself as a “Legend,” and this mixtape definitely makes a good argument for that.
