MINI GRAMMY AOTY REVIEWS: SCORPION - DRAKE

Photo credit: Drake, Republic Records.

SCORPION by DRAKE


I have no problem with the rap genre. I think rap done well can be absolutely outstanding. I had a phase when I was about 14 of listening to Eminem and Jay Z and Dr Dre, so I really can appreciate rap. I'd never really listened to Drake other than the songs that are constantly played on the radio and in clubs and if I'm honest, I'm not really sure I'll listen again.

Drake is insanely popular and every song of his always goes viral, but not once during listening to his album did I actually feel, well, anything. I had to really focus on listening to even get through the whole thing (and at 24 tracks long, it was quite the achievement). The genre of rap is all about expressing feeling, from upset to rage, but Drake doesn't seem to do that. Maybe I'm not listening hard enough or maybe I've just listened to more emo rap in my time, but I just wasn't  feeling it. It seems like he sets out to make mediocre songs that the general public will enjoy listening to and might go viral, and there's no harm in that, but should that make a Grammy album? No.

Drake's work ethic is insane. He releases an album a year, and I Scorpion was 24 songs long so kudos to him. But, I know some of his older stuff is better than this and I wonder if he just took a break for, even another year between albums, he could make something great. This is no disrespect to Drake. Like, I get it. He makes an album a year and he's good at what he does, but what he does at the moment, in my opinion, isn't Grammy worthy. Would this album made by a less prominent artist make it to a Grammy nomination? Probably not. And surely that's the bar right? It shouldn't matter the size of an artist: a good album is a good album. However, Drake's takeover of the world right now has certainly helped his nomination here.

THREE WORDS TO DESCRIBE: DRAMATIC AND DISTINCTLY DRAKE

COULD IT WIN? Should it win? No. Could it win? IDK. Probably.

RATING OUT OF 5: 2/5

Listen on Spotify HERE
Listen on Apple Music HERE
Link to Drake's online store HERE

Written by Ruby Crowhurst