Drake Is Still Chasing Ghosts on His Three-Album Megadrop

Three Drake albums released in one night total 43 tracks and about two and a half hours. The material centers on nostalgia for earlier “Blog Era” days, revisits conflicts with women through multiple tracks, and repeatedly brings up the Kendrick Lamar beef alongside other disses. Iceman is presented as Drake’s hardest solo rap album in years, featuring tough talk and “why-I-oughtas” that feel less coherent over time. Maid of Honour is expected to receive the most summer attention due to house-meets-dancehall stylings and prior experimentation. Habibti is R&B-steeped but described as directionless, with “WNBA” noted as a standout.

"Drake desperately wants us to remember. The Canadian hip-hop behemoth is so focused on getting listeners to hark back to his glory days that he released not one, not two, but three albums in a single night: Iceman, Maid of Honour, and the inexplicably-titled Habibti."

"At 43 tracks and two-and-a-half hours, the three projects feature an at-times angsty and always deeply-nostalgic Drake. He reaches back for the Blog Era days ("Firm Friends"), when times were simpler. He spins the block on all the women who thought he hated them (see: the entirety of Maid of Honour and Habibti). And he perplexingly brings the Kendrick Lamar beef back up, again and again, in addition to other disses."

"Altogether, the trio of albums amount to a complete Drake experience, for better and for worse. Iceman is Drake's hardest solo rap album in years, and it brims with tough talk and why-I-oughtas ("Whisper My Name"), which doesn't really make sense anymore. Not to be outdone, Maid of Honour will likely get the most play this summer, thanks to the house-meets-dancehall stylings of the record ("Which One," "Amazing Shape"), which Drake has previously experimented with on tracks like "Controlla" and projects like Honestly, Nevermind."

"Meanwhile, the R&B-steeped Habibti is lost at sea, buoyed only by the predictable, but effective, "WNBA." Below, Consequence reviews Drake's three new albums through 21 key takeaways from his latest sprawling release. 01. Drake Feels Like He Walked Away Unscathed"

Read at Consequence