Drake, the renowned rapper from Canada released his eighth studio album For All the Dogs on October 6, 2023. In this album he went back to the style of his older albums while also including some songs that are a part of his current style, which isn’t a bad thing, but it has caused a lot of discontent with the album.

Drake has been on the top of the music world for a long time now and it’s not easy to stay as consistently good as he has which causes for high expectations. I know most people don’t like this sudden shift and change in Drake’s music, but I do. I believe that his early music was his best and this album has the best of both worlds.

“8am in Charlotte” is my favorite song when it comes to relating to his older albums. In this song he reflects on being on top of the rap game and he questions his legacy without taking shots at other rappers which makes this song so good. The beat for this song also has that old R&B rap style that Drake used to have back in the early 2010s

However, For All the Dogs is not perfect. It relies heavily on guest features to elevate some songs. J. Cole carried First Person Shooter, 21 Savage carried Calling For You, and Yeat carried IDGAF. All these features played a pivotal role in enhancing the songs to make them better which can help make the argument that the album is great because when rappers collaborate an overall better product can be produced and in this case a better product was produced

What makes the album great is Drake’s ability to blend various different styles. He has songs that dive into the realms of R&B and hardcore rap which helps make the album fun to listen to.

The criticism the album has received has puzzled me. I know that people have high expectations for Drake because of how great he has been but that doesn’t mean everything’s going to be top tier and just because something he makes isn’t top tier doesn’t mean it’s bad.