Are you excited that Drake’s finally coming to town? Are you antsy because you have to wait nearly two months before he’s actually here? You’re not alone. One particularly excited fan tweeted that she started a Twitter petition six or seven years ago to try and get the rapper to come to Dubai. In the meantime, tabloid! rounds up five Drake songs to get you through the countdown to March 14.
The Motto
If you don’t already have this song on your Feel Good playlist, do yourself a favour and add it in there — twice. A take-no-prisoners anthem that never fails to pump us up, The Motto does exactly what it says on the tin and gives us a mantra to adopt: you only live once. Yes, it’s true, you have Drake’s existence to thank or bemoan for YOLO, an acronym that’s become so widespread that even Zac Efron has it tattooed on his hand. But one of our personal favourite lines from the song has to be “25 sitting on 25 mil”, wherein Drake establishes himself as young, rich and succinct, three things we can all aspire to be. Special shout out to Lil Wayne who features on the track and says many a thing we could never print.
Started From the Bottom
Watching the music video for this song probably makes most sense if you’re Canadian. As a nod to his past, the rapper is seen working at a generic Shoppers Drug Mart, which is the Canuck equivalent of, say, Choithrams. What Drake is trying to show is that once upon a time, in a land far, far away, he was holding down a standard job like the rest of us, and now he’s on top of the international hip-hop scene with his friends by his side. All in all, Started from the Bottom is the perfect tune to blast whenever you need that extra kick to go out and conquer the day.
Find Your Love
One of the slower Drake songs out there, Find Your Love became a massive hit after the rapper’s debut album, Thank Me Later, hit the shelves in 2010. Here, Drake shows off his singing voice and announces that he’s “more than just an option”, then croons about how he’s prepared to give a special someone his all. The song is catchy and vulnerable, providing a nice change of pace from the usual headstrong numbers we hear from Drake. If you’re feeling broody yet determined, this one’s for you.
Headlines
It’s difficult to pick our favourite tunes off Drake’s sophomore album, Take Care, without listing the entire track list. The record is a gold mine of songs that make us feel invincible. Headlines is a solid choice, if only for its opening line: “I might be too strung out on compliments, overdosed on confidence, started not to give a [expletive] and stop fearing the consequence.” The song also touches on the rapper’s triumphant return to the scene with another No 1 album, and as we listen along, we can’t help but feel like Drake’s successes are our own.
HYFR
Another collaboration with long-time friend Lil Wayne, HYFR might be the perfect three-minute-and-27 second summary of Drake’s entire appeal. When he isn’t crooning about tragic love, or making Top 40 earworms with Rihanna, the singer is known to drop tracks about making loads of money, celebrating with his exclusive crew and being really famous. This track is no exception. While the bridge serves as an eye roll towards journalists’ repetitive questions for both Drake and Weezy, the chorus — which features the unprintable title of the song in full – tells us the boys have no care in the world.
