Drake’s “Nothing Was The Same” not worth hype [Review]

Now here’s the thing that caught me off guard: after years of having Drake as a rapper that would reopen the wounds of a fan’s past heartbreak by just listening to the first line in one of his songs, I expected just that much from this album as well. I shouldn’t have made a conclusion so quickly. Drake’s newest album is nothing like the 2013 Best Rap album Grammy award winner Take Care. In fact, Nothing Was the Same shows a darker side of Drake that I’m sure not only myself, but others, weren’t expecting and didn’t exactly know how to feel about the new vibe during the first listen.

The first thing you would probably notice is the amount of tracks on the album; Drake always seems to leave us with enough music to keep us satisfied. But within the 16 tracks, there were maybe only three different topics discussed, just in different words and format. Songs such as “Tuscan Leather” and “Furthest Thing” show the point that Drake is trying to make in which he claims that fame will never change and that he’ll always stay real, and blah blah blah, we’ve heard it all before. Aside from that, Drake is not afraid to give shout outs to his haters by pointing out that he is at the highest he could ever be in his career and he has no one to thank but himself with “Worst Behavior”, “The Language” and “All Me” (which features 2 Chainz and Big Sean).

Although there were plenty of tracks about Drake and his struggles with women (“Wu-Tang Forever”, “Own It”, “Connect”, “305 to My City”, and “Come Thru”) they just really weren’t all that impressive when it comes to making the listener feel something, except for “From Time”. This song sounds almost like a “Marvin’s Room: Part 2”, with a phone conversation between Drake and a seems-to-be girlfriend. The song starts off with soft R&B instrumentals which goes along perfectly with Jhene Aiko’s soulful voice, until Drake begins giving his verse which speeds up the music without losing that R&B feel. Drake and Jhene continue on to do back-to-back verses within this song, where they explain their complications when it comes to commitment for each other and love in general. Out of all the songs on the album, this one reflects back to the Take Care-style of songs, which may be why I am so fond of it.

The album couldn’t be complete with the already chart-topping singles “Started From the Bottom” and “Hold On, We’re Going Home”. Honestly, why I think that these two singles are so popular is because they don’t really show the new Drake to his full extent, so although fans can tell that the sound is different, it’s not different enough for people not to get it and completely hate it.

Drake definitely takes a huge leap with Nothing Was the Same, because, well, the title holds true. The sound is completely different, and when it comes to this album, you’re either gonna love it or hate it. Sure, maybe I just don’t understand the meaning behind his songs or where he’s coming from. But like I said before, my opinion isn’t as important as the millions that Drake is making, because at the end of the day I’m one of those “at the bottom”. Score: 5/10.

Gabby Shusterman / Photo Editor