Once upon a time, I found myself arguing with a friend about music. My points were based largely around the artform; music is art, and you cheapen it if you listen to solely for entertainment. He, of course, provided a valid argument supporting the notion that music is entertainment, which I refused to acknowledge. Looking back, it is easy to see how we were both right – every art form is a form of entertainment. However, it is also easy to see how a lot of mainstream music is delivered strictly as entertainment, with art being a distant, secondary purpose. As a lot of this argument is a double-edged sword, it is worth noting that there are artists that become popular because they are, in fact, artists.
A large part of mainstream rap and hip-hop is created solely for entertainment; Lil Jon and Soulja Boy are prime examples, with several rappers starting with Young or Lil’, residing on that thin line between art and entertainment. Fortunately, there are rappers who get popular for the right reasons; Talib Kweli, Mos Def and Lupe Fiasco have all maintained fame because of their more “conscious” approach to hip hop (not to mention that Talib Kweli’s Reflection Eternal collaboration with Hi-Tek is one of the best hip hop albums of the last five years).
However, every time a new rapper gets a lot of marketing hype, it is easy to have preconceived notions of what they will sound like, what they will say, and how they will say it. Yet, last year, when there was a mini Kid Cudi versus Drake debate (who would be the next big thing in rap?), few could have predicted the large difference in style that would occur. Kid Cudi’s Man on the Moon debut was full of alt-indie rap producing, and a serious lack of flow – listeners were hard pressed to find a full verse from the MC. Drake, on the other hand, seemed to be more of a focused Lil Wayne (who is also his mentor) – writing down his lyrics instead of spitting improv hilarity.
On Drake’s majorly hyped debut full-length, Thank Me Later, his style is definitely more atypical than Cudi’s, but also less eventful than his mentor’s. While Lil Wayne’s lyrics utilize spontaneity and comedy (which help make up for the lack of actual quality), Drake’s lines that are so boring and stationary that they feel (cut and) pasted onto each track. It doesn’t help that the album opens with “Fireworks”, a track that, despite featuring rap’s favourite gueststar Alicia Keys, hinders the album from opening with a big bang. It isn’t till “Over” that Drake gets over his piss-poor attempts at r’n'b (later butchered by the seven-minute “Shut It Down”, once again), and delivers some actual verses worthy of mention, in which he contemplates his quick rise to fame in a competent manor. He follows it up with “Show Me a Good Time”, which slows down the tempo once again, losing any momentum gained from the previous track.
Drake’s achilles heel is his attempt to be varied; his best moments are when he is rapping and being clever, his worst coming when he ventures into uncharted territory. It seems like he is trying to maintain his artistic credibility (due to lack of a rags to riches story – he grew up in the well-off Forest Hill area in Toronto), instead of accepting that he is an entertainer. Unfortunately, this also affects his ability to entertain on his own, forcing others to pick up the slack, like Lil Wayne on “Miss Me”, where he utters “I swear my bitches do it til they suck the brown off”, and promptly responds: “ew, that’s nasty”. The second highlight comes from other recent Young Money signee Nicki Minaj on “Up All Night” (the best song on the record, bar none), where she manages to outsmart and out-rap every one of Drake’s verses on the album. Even Jay-Z can’t save face on “Light Up”, and the all-star filled “Fancy” falls flat as well.
In a recent interview, Drake mentioned his desire to “make a whole lot more [money]“, which means he has goals he wants to achieve with his music. However, they aren’t artistic goals. Thus, he must know that he is an entertainer, and as such, should make a record that entertains, instead of grasping at inconsistent, artistic straws. There is a purpose for highly marketed, entertaining music – something that I refused to acknowledge years ago, and something Drake has made me fully understand.
(3.0/10)
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