If you haven't been living under a rock for the last few weeks, you know that Drake released his highly-anticipated album "Views" (formerly from the six). After forming pop-up shops to give fans some free merchandise and announcing his Summer Sixteen tour with "What a Time to Be Alive" collaborator, Future, there was no short of hype for this project by any means. The 20 song LP is full of hard rap cuts but also that soft Drake that we've all come to love. Here is my ranking of every song off the project after listening to it for weeks straight on repeat.
20. Child's Play
Coming in at #20 on the album is 'Child's Play.' Don't get me wrong, I like this song a lot but for some reason I can't get myself to vibe along to it. And while I must admit that the opening line about the Cheesecake Factory is quite hilarious, I simply wasn't digging this track. Of course, I keep it in rotation and barely skip it when it comes on, but I feel it's on the bottom when it comes to the entire work project.
19. Summers Over Interlude
This song has limited words and is only a minute and 46 seconds long so it's hard to put this song higher on the list. This song actually doesn't even feature vocals from Drake, but rather from Majid Jordan, one of his OVO artists. This song is very jazzy and smooth, but it was hard to put it higher because it was just an interlude.
18. Hotline Bling
When Drake released the tracklist to the album, many (including myself) were surprised that his unforgettable hit "Hotline Bling" would make the project. I love this song so much and even dance like Drizzy above when I listen to it. My only problem is that it came out so long ago so it finds itself on the bottom of this list. I still bump it regularly though.
17. Views
It's so hard for me to rank all these songs because they're all just so fire. The title track "Views" reminds me of a 2016 version of "The Ride" from his Take Care album. Drake spits bars on the track for 5 minutes straight and you can't help but nod your head and appreciate. This song is slept on even though its #17.
16. 9
Drake rapping that he "turned the 6 upside down, it's a 9 now," is one of the best wordplays I can remember out of him recently. The upbeat tempo followed by his iconic flow serves as an awesome homage to his hometown of Toronto.
15. One Dance
When Drake released "One Dance" before the initial album drop, I was curious as to whether or not the album would be a lot of dancehall-Drizzy. It turned out not to be and that is why this song is so unique and fantastic. Every time I hear this I instantly jump off my chair and start dancing, it's so damn catchy. Despite the song being released before the entire album, this track still deserves endless plays.
14. With You (feat. PARTYNEXTDOOR)
Drake and OVO product PARTYNEXTDOOR have an extended history of collaborations, and one of them, "With You", made it to 'VIEWS.' In my opinion, this is one of the weaker collabs between the two artists, but it gets the job done. Drake sings a series of verses while PND hammers home the hooks. This is a great ode to one of your girlfriends, but I was expecting a little more out of these two.
13. Grammys (feat. Future)
Drizzy and Future are heading out on their arena summer tour this summer, so it was only right to drop a track together on the album. While I think the song still bangs, I feel it would have been better placed on their collab tape "What a Time to Be Alive." The way the verses are spit and the way the beat rings off makes me question the placement of the track on this album (but not in a bad way).
12. Fire & Desire
Drake slows things down and makes a sensual track with this "Fire & Desire" track. Channeling that soft Aubrey that we've come to know and love, he schemes on the 4 minute song to one of his girls about filling her desires. This passionate Drake is unique and something we haven't seen out of him in a while, which is why it comes in as #12.
11. Redemption
When I first heard this song, I instantly thought it was Marvin's Room 2.0. The way the soft beat rolls on and the tone in Drake's voice gave me that vibe. This is that song for when your girlfriend/boyfriend and you need a shoulder to cry on. I hate feeding into those Drake stereotypes, but this song definitely gives you the feels.
10. Faithful (feat. Pimp C & dvsn)
This song leaked a while back and caught the surprise of many when it made the album tracklist. At the time of its leak, it had just the Pimp C feature, so Drake clearly added dvsn's part when he was perfecting the album. This track is wonderful yet dark ode to all of Drake's loved ones. This is sonically one of my favorite songs off the album and the production is just great.
9. Pop Style
Taking off Kanye's and Jay Z' verses off the original track and adding his own extended verse, "Pop Style" is a standout off the album. Drizzy goes hard lyrically on this joint and is one of the greatest turn-up songs of the year so far. He boasts about his fame and money while snapping over a 3 minute track. This is FIRE!!
8. Still Here
Drake has made it very clear that he is from Toronto and that the 6 is not to be messed with. In this track, he boasts about how he beat the streets of Toronto to boost his rap career. Along with that and more importantly, he still represents everything that Toronto stands for. He makes it clear that he is literally still here and that the 6 will always be with him.
7. Weston Road Flows
This song is, in my opinion, Drake's most impressive song off the album. This 4 minute track has the sound of a freestyle, where the flow just continues on and on and on and on. He throws in tons of wordplays throughout and it almost reminds me of something of the 'Take Care' days. This sounds like a straight off the brain freestyle and that's why it's so high on my list, because of the impressive lyricism.
6. U With Me?
Considering this song is co-produced by Kanye West, you know it is going to be fire. Remember we saw Drake's name under credits for 'Ye's 'The Life of Pablo', so we were wondering if we would see the favor returned on 'VIEWS' and it was. This track is sonically beautiful and Drake's crooning over the track makes for a wonderful blend.
5. Hype
This song "Hype" is one of the obvious turn-up songs from the album. Boasting about his success with flows similar to that of "Summer Sixteen", this track will make you want to turn the volume to the next level. The beat will make you want to jump and down crazily while singing every line along the way.
4. Controlla
Even though this song leaked a while back and he took Jamaican artist Popcaan off the track, that doesn't take away how amazing this song really is. The dancehall Drizzy is definitely growing on everyone and I can assure it is growing on me too. With an added verse (from the leaked version), "Controlla" will definitely own the radios this summer.
3. Keep the Family Close
I LOVE this song. This is one of the best introductions to a Drake album I have ever heard. Of course nothing will top "Over My Dead Body" off 'Take Care', but this is a close second. The way the music is presented through drum beats and dramatic tones, it's sonically a masterpiece. Plus, it's a good reminder to keep your loved ones close.
2. Too Good (feat. Rihanna)
This is one of Drake's and Rihanna's best collaborations in my opinion. You can't deny the chemistry the two artists have and they make hits. From "What's My Name?" to "Work" to now this, these two artists are making more waves than any other duo right now. We'll have to see if they have any more fire collabs on the way.
1. Feel No Ways
I don't know what it is about this song but it has been my most played song off the album since the very beginning. Between the lyrics and the melody, this song has just been a constant vibe since the first listen. This won't be a song you hear get popular on the radio or whatever, but it's just a solid Drake song.
Let me know what you think of my list by hitting me on Twitter @cjames4_. But for now, grab Drake's platinum album 'VIEWS' now.