“You could thank me now…”

     ‘Thank Me Later’, the debut record by the popular rapper Drake was released two weeks ago. I finally got a chance to listen to the entire thing (twice, currently on play number three as I write this) and I was pleasantly surprised. Not because I didn’t think he would live up to his ‘hype’ (which he did) but because Drizzy was singing on so many of the tracks. Everyone who’s heard of him probably knows/thinks of him as a rapper. I know there were probably many people who were confused to hear this extremely hyped up and praised ‘rapper’ doing so much singing. (Insert *kanye shrug* here)

     This record, I feel, is exactly the record Drake wanted to make and not the record he thought he ‘had’ to make or that he was forced to make. I always feel like so many artists don’t release the records they’ve really ‘always wanted to make’ until it’s their third record or so! So, what does that mean for Drake? I definitely think he’s ahead of his time with Thank Me Later. He’s doing everything that most people don’t get to do until their third record! (Yes, that’s the rule apparently. It’s always the third record!) For instance, Kanye and 50 Cent didn’t start singing right away, it took them a while. Drake is doing it all and doing it big!

     As for the record, I LOVE it! Obvious favorites are Fancy and the singles he’s released already. (It’s fairly obvious that Fancy will be a single any minute now.) Shut It Down is so good but I can’t help but laugh at ‘put those fu*king heels on’ and I’m not sure if it’s even supposed to be funny? Oh well.

     We all know that Drake shines as a lyricist (91% of his hype are his smart/unique/metaphorical lyrics; the other 9% …well you get one guess and if it isn’t Degrassi/Jimmy Brooks/Wheelchair Jimmy, you got it wrong) that along with guest artists including Alicia Keys, Nicki Minaj and Lil Wayne helped make this an incredible debut for Drake and I’m looking forward to seeing what he’s going to do in the future. 

-Erica
The Spotlight