Views

by Drake

Released April 29, 2016 via Cash Money Records / Republic Records / Young Money

Reviewed April 14, 2021

Top tracks (based on community voting)

Hotline Bling (35%), Weston Road Flows (35%), Feel No Ways (32%)

After a stretch of musical and marketing brilliance that spanned 2011’s Take Care, 2013’s Nothing Was The Same, and 2015’s If You’re Reading This It’s Too Late—and to a lesser extent, What A Time To Be Alive—Drake pretty much possessed the pop-rap genre in the palm of his hand. When he followed up arguably his best solo effort in 2016, the critical reception was largely mixed with a slight edge in the negative. Perhaps to the casual listener, the latter half of Views is largely uninteresting and the hits, namely “Hotline Bling” and “One Dance,” were immediately overplayed. Over time, however, some of the cream of this 80-minute-long album has surfaced. One of Drake’s biggest flaws in the second half of the 2010s is his hit-making ability; his biggest songs are so monstrous that others never get the shine they might deserve. Take “Too Good” as an example, his fourth collaboration with Rihanna and a sleeper dancehall banger among those tracks. Or the great tempo and airy atmosphere of “With You,” featuring PARTYNEXTDOOR. Views is by no means Drake’s best, as he utilized crooning R&B structure far more than the cutthroat raps he displayed on WATTBA. And while the repetitive nature of the tracklist can be tiresome, there are plenty of diamonds in the rough that just needed some time to be unearthed. – Pax (8/10)

It’s not uncommon to view Drake’s fourth album through rose-colored glasses and tout it as an overhated, misunderstood masterpiece that was ahead of its time. However, while time has allowed some of these tracks to age fairly well, the 80-minute runtime drags Views down from the upper echelon of his discography. Songs will have great production and lackluster lyrics (“Keep The Family Close” and “9”) and vice versa (“Hype” and “Redemption”), which makes one wonder what this would look like if he put all his effort into a consolidated 10-14 track album. Regardless of its quality as a full project, there are hidden gems found within the deep cuts. Potential is a terrible thing to waste, and this album had so much of it. Ultimately, the length and the near-insurmountable hype surrounding Views doomed it from the start. – Alan (7.8/10)

Despite its belabored runtime and occasionally creepy lyrics, Views is a decent album that sits just below some of Drake's all-time best products. There are certainly a few skips here, with "Keep the Family Close," "Faithful," and "Pop Style" being among the most notable. However, the other seventeen songs in the tracklist range from serviceable and solid, to remarkable and sublime. The album's singles, while largely worn out and overplayed on the airwaves, still bring about a nostalgia for one of the better summers in the last five years. In the end, Views experiences the highs of any good or great Drake album, paired with some lowlights that keep it just out of elite range. – DeVán (7.5/10)

Pax: 8/10 | Alan: 7.8/10 | DeVán: 7.5/10 | Enth: 7/10 | Hadley: 7/10