Drake credits John Lennon and Paul McCartney as co-writers on his long-awaited new album, Certified Lover Boy.
The former Beatles are listed on the opening track, Champagne Poetry, for the interpolation of their song Mitchell.
Drake's sixth album also features guest appearances from Jay-Z, Nicki Minaj, Travis Scott, 21 Savage, Lil Baby and Yabba.
Originally scheduled for 2020, then early 2021, the record was delayed when the star tore his anterior cruciate ligament, which required knee surgery.
"Between surgery and rehab my energy is devoted to recovery," he said in a message to fans in early 2021.
"I'm blessed to be back on my feet and feeling great and focused on the album, but CLB won't drop in January."
rap game changer
The 34-year-old is one of the most influential and successful hip-hop stars of the past decade, whose emotionally vulnerable lyrics and unparalleled vocal delivery fundamentally changed the nature of rap music.
"In Drake's hands, rapping and singing were in constant, beautiful dialogue," New York Times critic John Carmenica wrote last year in an essay on Starr's influence.
By blurring the lines between rapping and singing, the Canadian star "exploded the notion that those constituent parts were to be delivered by two different people, and also shattered what was expected of each of them." "
"His hip-hop was fluid, not dogmatic. And so remaking it, he set the blueprint for what would eventually become the global pop norm."
That template, first established on 2009's So Far Gone mixtape, remains largely intact for Certified Lover's Boy. Drake oscillates between sentimentality and bragdocio, sticking to his usual themes: he is misrepresented and misunderstood; He is better than the rappers who despise him, but are also hurt by his illnesses; And he is perennial, fatally unlucky in love.
In Race My Mind, she is looking for a boyfriend who is on her way home, drunk and not interested in their relationship. A few minutes later, on Get Along Better, he reminisces about a woman who ran away when their relationship got serious.
"You said I was too invested / And that's what forced you to go," he hesitantly sings to the beat of the soul.
He is also not afraid to address his failures. One track, whose name is not printable here, sees the star admitting that he was "shamelessly" sleeping with fans when he was in a relationship.
"Then I had a baby, even though I never planned to," he says, as an icy synth line cools the room. "I can't imagine when your girls told you this news. I know that... you probably wanted to kill me."
The lyrics refer to Drake's son Adonis, whom he gave birth to artist and former adult film star Sophie Brussaux in 2017, and fans are already trying to guess the identity of the woman he cheated on. .
Drake himself hints that this is someone in the public eye, rapping that "the whole world wants you to have them", while he was being unfaithful.
There's also plenty of fodder for anyone who follows Drake's relentless beef with Kanye West. At various points, he taunts the rapper for not being the master of his own music, and for, among other things, his failed presidential bid.
Musically, Certified Lover's Boy isn't as daring as Drake's previous records, though Fountain's Dembo beats and You Only Live Twice's soulful clatter are pieces of light between the more introspective, auto-tuned tracks.
But in the running time of 86 minutes there are always some wrong steps.
Way 2 Sexy Right Sad is a completely unnecessary rap update of Fred's novelty hit I'm Too Sexy. Even worse is Girls Want Girls—a harrowing account of trying to sleep with a lesbian woman, in which Drake actually utters the line: "You say you're a lesbian? Girl, me too."
It's beyond dated and seriously... as is arguably Damien Hirst's artwork, which, for some reason, featured 12 pregnant woman emojis licking their stomachs.
But wrong decisions and course corrections have always been part of Drake's brand. There's also a song on Certified Lover's Boy called The Remorse, a sparse, piano-driven track in which Drake lists his achievements and mistakes in equal measure, while calling attention to his particularly outspoken brand of hip-hop. Is.
"Pain is just the place I go to/bar off the anxiety medicine I use to get the job done".
Elsewhere, he suggests that the source of inspiration is starting to dry up. "I'm losing friends and finding peace," he raps on Fair Trade's low-slung beat, "but honestly it sounds like a fair trade to me".
It would certainly be interesting to see what a more contented, less embattled Drake would have to offer. But for now, Certified Lover Boy is an entrancing, if not ground-breaking, addition to his impressive catalogue.