Features Gives Drake a Backpack Ride on ‘For All The Dogs’
Drake’s forays into the hip-hop/rap scene have made him a household name since his Young Money days, affording him a seat at the table even in the homes of those who don’t particularly like the genres he came to champion. Despite recent criticism from self-proclaimed hip-hop experts who aspire to be too contrarian, when you take one look at Drake’s vast and diverse discography, you’ll discover that maybe things went mainstream for a reason.
Drake’s uniqueness as an artist is given through him double standard, giving him the stamina to endure a career that has spanned 17 years and counting. He can inhabit two personalities at the same time: that of a dependent lover and that of a cold serial killer who collects corpses upon corpses (in more than one way).
From the vulnerability of mourning, the loss of love and the dangers of fame to the unapologetically frank and expressive form of his second album takes care, To the fierce and vindictive digs of men and women alike Her loss, Drake’s music catalog has something for every occasion. Songs from these respective albums like “The Motto (feat. Lil Wayne)” and “Rich Flex” with 21 Savage, on which Drake effortlessly matches the energy of his features, bear the mark of genius.
In his new project For all dogsDrake continues the chameleon act. But don’t be fooled — if the album’s consistency is a reflection of the regularity of Drake’s life, his ducks are far from being in a row. If it weren’t for some exceptionally catchy clips proving he can still keep it fresh, we might wonder if Drake knows where his ducks are. His little chick, 6-year-old son Adonis, is featured on the album’s fifth track, “Daylight,” and his rap game is controversial. Let me go so far as to excite a child, but I make the educated assumption that he is much better at drawing dogs than he is at drawing freehand. Children aside, For all dogs It uniquely unites artists, old and new, with polished production that paints the various shades of Drake’s life in the present, and emphasizes that fatherhood doesn’t kill old habits.
“Virginia Beach” is the number one song ever For all dogs; Listeners don’t need to shovel all eighty-four minutes of the record to benefit from its most emotionally moving track, which owes heavily to a sample of Frank Ocean’s unreleased “Wise Man.” Originally composed for Quentin Tarantino’s 2012 film “Django Unchained” but cut from the soundtrack, this vaulted masterpiece is at once lush and sublime, sounding as if it were stitched from the extraterrestrial “purple matter” sung in Orange channel“Pink Matter (feat. Andre 3000).” With Drake’s vocals superimposed on this sensual and expressive track, the R&B royalty’s chorus — “I bet our mama would be proud of you” — stands as a foil to the song.
“Virginia Beach” lives and breathes a world very different from what fans expected. Instead of taking a vengeful shot at old enemy and Pusha-T, a Virginia Beach native, Drake offers careful testimony about the unequal expectations between two people in a relationship, where the standards for his partner’s treatment are closer to being higher than is warranted. “Virginia Beach” reveals the trials and tribulations of always searching for romantic authenticity under the harsh glare of the spotlight. Despite his beautiful ocean-sounding cover, we’re reminded that he’s the same old Drake talking about “social climbing” and the objectification of women. In his many sexual endeavours.
Drake gives us a hard hit in “Calling For You (feat. 21 Savage),” bringing us back down to earth and taking us to church with the help of Teezo Touchdown after the previous song, “Amen.” Finally, Drake brings fans back into familiar territory, but not without asking them to check that they’re still listening to the same album. Fans are in for a treat indulging in another iconic crossover of “21 and The Boy.” Over the years, the two artists have formed their own bond on projects such as Second brutal mode And Her loss. With the monotonous, hypnotic horror-trap quality of 21 Savage interacting with the versatile, manicured pop-rap prowess of Drake, the duo’s musical lovechildren display a dual tenacity in both their powerful lyricism and steady beats. Fortunately, the vast majority of “Calling For You” is a testament to this shared excellence. Better yet, it escaped the inevitable risk of 21 Savage outshining Drake on his own album, with the two instead balancing their vocal differences on a relationship around women, sex, and expensive things and putting respect on their names.
Appropriately, “Calling For You” showcases the dynamic duo on a practiced beat (or at least as much as Drake can get), declaring their status, wealth, and frequent interactions with beautiful young women with an insatiable hunger for clout. It’s something listeners haven’t heard from them before, but – thanks to the addictive nature of their nightmarish hustle – their familiar sound works like magic. “Calling For You” proves that good things tend to come at a cost: this time, the price listeners pay lasts for approximately 82 seconds and may cause bleeding from the ears and/or significant loss of brain cells. From approximately 1:53 to 3:15, viewers are treated to an anonymous moaner, likely having a brief encounter with Drake. While listeners wait for Part 21 Savage, She went on like this for a very long time, whining and moaning – dare I say it! – Sitting in economy class and preparing chicken and oxtail every day with it Private chef in vacation. If Drake saved us this purgatory-like portion of the song, not only would we all be able to reclaim nearly a minute and a half of our lives, but the replay value of the track would be exponentially higher.
The twentieth song is on For all dogs, “Rich Baby Daddy (feat. Sexxy Red & SZA)” has ultimate replay value. But unlike the song “IDGAF (feat. Yeat)” which might be Just Despite being a Yeat track, “Rich Baby Daddy” marries an unexpected combination in a way that allows each member to bring something excellent to the table. A certified pre-game classic, this track maintains the needed, all-important verve that listeners rarely get on the rest of the album, and it’s Reed herself who gives it the kiss of life. A newbie to the game, Red has spared no time in establishing a reputation with unrepentant expletives delivered with a gooey flow and syrupy undertone. Like a summer day in her hometown of St. Louis. She exudes a sense of self-security that amplifies Drake’s sentiment, only capitalizing on his claims of being a “rude guy.” If Gordo’s solo rhythm evoking Miami bass and two-steps wasn’t enough, Reed echoes a series of demands in a rousing timbre that alone elicits a visceral response. Red’s sassy sensuality and SZA’s ravishing vocal charisma are so hypnotic that the listener forgets, at least for a moment, that Drake’s misogynistic undertones are hidden by a façade of femininity in reality. These women might also obey his orders – given on this occasion and many before – to leave their boyfriends for him.
While the fact that I only represented three of For all dogsThe 23 tracks in themselves might be an announcement that the album is halfway there, and Drake’s cleverness at recognizing the game in others and using it to his advantage continues on an album packed with features. However, only time will tell whether the infrastructure of this record can withstand the erosion of time and attention span.
Daily Arts Contributor Meli Birkmeier can be reached at melib@umich.edu.
