Album Review: Drake-Views

Rapper/singer/human meme generator Drake is on top of the musical kingdom in 2016 and he's not afraid to let the world know it. His fourth LP, Views, is the work of an artist that knows what he's good at and has never been more confident in his skill set.

Fans hoping for an extension of the abrasive, faux tough-guy image he flaunted on last year's What a Time to Be Alive and Meek Mill-diss song "Back to Back" will be sorely disappointed with the direction he takes on this record. Views is Drake in full-on sad romantic mode and as far as I'm concerned, this is where he shines brightest as an artist. Drake is far more believable as the sensitive crooner making songs about lost love than the street-hardened badass he pretends to be when he's making songs with Future.

Drake's unwavering commitment to the softer side of this sound is the driving force behind the quality of Views. His laid-back flow and knack for catchy vocal melodies makes tracks like "U with Me?", "Keep the Family Close" and PartyNextDoor collab "With You" pop with subtle beauty and surprising poignancy. Even the "harder" pure hip-hop tracks headlined by "Hype" and "Weston Road Flows" feature a subtle sense of sadness that helps them align with the record's overarching themes of heartbreak and reflection on past mistakes. It may lack a true "HOLY SHIT" highlight track like Nothing Was the Same's "Tuscan Leather" or Take Care's "Crew Love", but as a whole, Views is Drake's consistent and cohesive set of songs to-date.

The quality of Views takes a pretty steep nosedive shortly after the halfway mark and like all of his records, the 81-minute runtime is excessive. Even though these issues with length and latter-half consistency prevent Views from achieving true greatness, I still have to commend Drake for the work he puts into improving as an artist with each new release he puts out. With his status as one of the biggest heavyweights in modern music solidified, he could've easily loafed through 20 songs of material and still sold a bazillion copies, but thankfully he takes his craft too seriously to go into autopilot at this juncture of his career. Unless you're looking for something truly unique or innovative, Views is an unabashed success for an artist that is only now starting to really hit his stride.  
3.5/5 Stars
Standout Tracks
1.Weston Road Flows
2.U with Me?
3.Keep the Family Close