Perhaps the greatest gift Drake has ever given us was deciding not to bark on his eighth studio album, “For All the Dogs.”
Closing in on two decades of dominating the charts, the airwaves and the tides of pop culture, Drake’s most-recent album signifies a new era for the Canadian-born artist. Still, his projects depict flashes of a life that, while dripping with opulence, leave one with the feeling that they have little to envy.
Yet again, Drake fails to convey any cohesive vision or overarching narrative throughout the project.
The thing that contributes most to the album’s disjointedness is the sheer number of tracks — some of which are, frankly, too lackluster to be worth the time that they add to the project. Drake is surrounded by a longtime crew of songwriters, producers and mixers; more careful selection of which tracks actually see daylight could go a very long way. At one hour and 24 minutes, with 21 tracks and two interludes, the album is a massive amalgamation, consisting primarily of retellings of Drake’s typical musings.
This subject matter — women (their tendencies and his own), competition (or lack thereof) and currency (which he apparently has a lot of) — is familiar. At times, we saw Drake spin it into something a little different. On “Rich Baby Daddy,” a standout track featuring verses from both rising St. Louis artist Sexyy Red and SZA, listeners found themselves thrown into an uncharacteristically hyper track driven forward by Sexyy Red’s commanding hook.
For the most part, the album has a few standout tracks with a few standout features, amidst a sea of filler songs.
The highest points come toward the middle of the album. Bahamas Promises, while lacking in substance, features Drake crooning along a piano-forward track about some woman who ruined his vacation. Like I said — lacking in substance. But it is one of Drake’s most impressive vocal performances to date.
The two most outstanding tracks are “Tried Out Best” and a new signature time and location track, “8 A.M. in Charlotte.”
“8 A.M. in Charlotte” was released a few days ahead of the entire project. Of all the tracks, it feels the most mature and consequently, the most refreshing. Given its early release, many, including myself, believed the entire project would take on a similar tone and were disappointed when it did not. Exceptionally sampled, the track feels almost paternal. He discusses his friends, who are in and out of jail, and the way he wants them to want more for themselves. He talks about his son, and in a carefully calculated diss, offers advice to NBA Youngboy: “You young boys take some of that money and set it aside / Not havin’ enough to pay your tax is a federal crime.”
“Virginia Beach,” while not one of my favorite tracks, featured lyrics and a surprise sample from Christopher Edwin Breaux, otherwise known as the wildly popular, but elusive Frank Ocean. This was a highly lauded addition to the album for many fans.
Another incredibly popular track was “First Person Shooter,” which featured an outstanding feature from fellow rapper J. Cole. His feature was so good, I was left wondering why Drake was even on the track. In any case, the song debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100, tying Drake with Michael Jackson for the male solo artist with the most No. 1 songs in Billboard Hot 100 History, according to Billboard.
Despite commercial success, Drake’s projects continue to lack artistry. In my opinion, he has not dropped an album that felt centered around a particular theme since “Scorpion” in 2018. That album, in particular, is such a powerful re-listen, for the ways that Drake so closely ties each track to issues — real issues — he was grappling with in his personal life, like fatherhood. With gripping production and a consistent cloudy feeling throughout the album’s highs and lows, it was a truly outstanding project. I’m starting to wonder if that’s where he peaked.
Since then, Drake’s albums — “Certified Lover Boy,” “Her Loss” and, now, “For All the Dogs” — have been mouthpieces for the artist’s emotional immaturity. Opportunities for him to whine over and over about problems he takes no initiative in solving through projects that just happen to make him millions. It’s getting hard to keep hoping that Drake will grow up, settle down and deliver us a project of substance. Still, it’s nice to know that while Drake’s projects may depreciate in substance, they will always be ripe with plenty of Drake’s signature corny one-liners.
Here are my top five from this project:
5) “You put the “no” in monogamy” (Bahamas Promises)
4) “Shania Twain notepad, I’m making it line dance” (8 A.M. in Charlotte)
3) “They say love’s like a BBL, you won’t know if it’s real until you feel one” (BBL Love Interlude)
2) “I swear to God, you think I’m Shakespeare / That’s why you always wanna play, right?” (Tried Our Best)
1) “Feel like I’m bi cause you’re one of the guys, girl” (Members Only)
