Drake - More Life Review

A strong opener built on a Tony Yayo sample and Hiatus Kaiyote excerpts, with Boi-1da and Ritter providing the hazy, menacing production. Drake sets the defiant tone, addressing old grievances and positioning himself above the fray. The verse has energy and the beat has presence, but the writing leans on vague shots rather than specific targets. It works as a scene-setter but does not develop into anything more memorable than mood.

Giggs arrives on a Murda Beatz and Cubeatz grime beat that is all bass rumble and empty space, rapping in his own cadence without concession to Drake's audience. Drake matches the energy in the second verse, adopting a clipped flow that mimics the UK sound without the accent pastiche. The production is spare and effective, and the collaboration feels like a real exchange rather than a feature purchased for variety. One of the few tracks where the guest justifies the inclusion.

The best song on the record and the one that has aged into a Drake standard. Nana Rogues builds the beat on a sunlit guitar loop and a half-time drum pattern that pulls from UK funky and lovers rock, and Drake sings the entire track in a wounded falsetto that turns a breakup into a shrug. The hook is immediate, the production is immaculate, and the mood is the sweet melancholy that Drake does better than anyone. No wasted space, no unnecessary verse. The single edit is the album version, which is rare for Drake in this era.

Not an interlude but a full Jorja Smith performance over a 40 beat that interpolates Drake's own "Doing It Wrong". Smith sings about distance and longing, and the production is gorgeous, but the track feels like a showcase for Smith rather than a necessary piece of the album. The interlude framing is a way to include a collaborator without making her a feature, and the result is a song that does not belong to anyone.

A reworked Black Coffee house track with Jorja Smith on the hook and Burna Boy on uncredited outro vocals, produced by Nineteen85, 40 and Stwo. The Afrobeat swing is smoothed into the same reverb-drenched haze as "One Dance", and Drake raps in a relaxed, conversational flow that lets the beat do the work. The production is lush and the hook is strong, but the verse is underwritten, Drake coasting on the vibe rather than saying anything specific. The Burna Boy outro is the best part, a burst of energy that makes you wish he had a full verse.

A dancehall riddim with no hook and no developed idea, just Drake riding the Frank Dukes and Nineteen85 production for three and a half minutes. The beat interpolates Lionel Richie's "All Night Long" and the energy is there, but the track feels like a demo, a vibe sketch that was included because it fit the playlist mood rather than because it earned its place. Filler.

Another dancehall pastiche, this time with Drake singing in a Vybz Kartel-inflected accent over a T-Minus and Frank Dukes riddim. The production is clean and the hook is catchy, but the singing sounds strained, Drake reaching for a delivery that does not sit naturally in his voice. The track works as a mood piece but not as a song, and the accent code-switching feels more like cosplay than fluency. It was a minor single and it sounds like one.

A Sampha showcase with Drake as guest. The FrancisGotHeat production is minimal, just bass and hi-hats, and Sampha closes the track with an emotive vocal run that makes everything before it feel like setup. Drake's verse is fine, conversational and low-stakes, but the track belongs to Sampha. Another example of the playlist framing allowing Drake to step back rather than step up.

The hardest track on the record, a skeletal UK drill beat from iBeatz with Drake rapping in a clipped, menacing cadence that mimics grime flow. The production is all bass rumble and empty space, and Drake's delivery is the most aggressive he sounds on the entire project. The writing is still vague—more posture than content—but the energy is real and the beat is cold. One of the few tracks where the genre tourism results in a sound Drake had never committed to on record before.

Skepta gets two and a half minutes to muse about reincarnation as Fela Kuti over a Nana Rogues beat. It is a full song, not an interlude, and it does not involve Drake at all. Skepta's verse is sharp and the production is spare, but the inclusion feels like a curatorial choice rather than a musical one, a way to signal affiliation with the UK grime scene without doing the work of collaboration.

A posse cut with Quavo and Travis Scott over a Murda Beatz and Cubeatz trap beat, released as the fourth single. The production is bouncy and the hook is immediate, and all three artists match the energy. Drake raps in an Atlanta-inflected flow, Quavo does his ad-lib hook, and Travis Scott barks his verse in the same high-register yelp he used on "Goosebumps". The track works as a single and as a playlist moment, but it does not add anything to the record beyond variety.

A five-minute posse cut with 2 Chainz and Young Thug over a T-Minus and Deejae beat, and one of the few tracks where the writing has specificity. Drake paraphrases old grievances and name-checks people who doubted him, 2 Chainz raps about the cost of success, and Young Thug delivers a melodic verse that sounds like it belongs on a different song. The production is heavy and the mood is somber, but the track drags past four minutes, none of the verses sharp enough to justify the length.

A two-and-a-half-minute solo track where Drake reflects on fame and distance over a G. Ry and Wallis Lane beat. The production is minimal and the writing is introspective, but the ideas are underdeveloped, Drake sketching themes he has explored more fully on other records. It feels like a voice note that was included because it fit the mood rather than because it was finished.

Built on a sample of Jennifer Lopez's "If You Had My Love", produced by Hagler. Drake sings about a younger woman and the nostalgia of the relationship, but the track never finds a reason to exist beyond the sample. The production is lush and the melody is pretty, but the writing is thin and the song drifts. It sounds like a Take Care leftover that was polished enough to include but not essential enough to lead.

Giggs returns on a Ness and Chef Pasquale beat that samples Sonic the Hedgehog's "His World" and Skepta's "Shutdown", and the result is chaotic and aggressive. Giggs raps in his own voice, Drake matches the energy, and the production is loud and abrasive. The track has presence but no discipline, the beat too busy and the verses too short to land. It works as a moment but not as a song.

A five-minute R&B track produced by 40 and Stwo, with Drake singing about the fear of losing a relationship. The production is gorgeous, all reverb and empty space, but the writing is generic, Drake cycling through the same relationship anxieties he has been working since Take Care without adding new detail. The track is too long for the idea it contains, and the melody is not strong enough to carry the length. Filler.

Drake raps over a Jazzfeezy and Samson beat that is all bass and minor-key piano, reflecting on envy and success. The production is heavy and the mood is defiant, but the writing is vague, Drake addressing unnamed enemies and unnamed slights without the specificity that makes his introspective tracks work. It sounds like a Views leftover that was included to pad the tracklist.

A Kanye West collaboration produced by 40, West and Noah Goldstein, built on a sample of Earth, Wind & Fire's "Devotion" and excerpts from Gabriel Garzón-Montano and Drake's own "Jungle". The production is lush and the hook is warm, but the track is slow and meandering, neither Drake nor Kanye committing to a verse that justifies the five-minute runtime. It was released as the fifth single and peaked at number 54, which tells you how it landed. A missed opportunity.

A six-minute posse cut with PartyNextDoor over a G. Ry, PartyNextDoor, 40, M3rge and TOPFLR beat that samples R. Kelly's "Clipped Wings". The production is smooth and the hook is catchy, but the track is too long, neither Drake nor PartyNextDoor saying enough to justify the runtime. The beat switches halfway through and the song drifts, a vibe piece that was not edited down to its best two or three minutes.

The lead single, released six months before the album, and one of the most successful tracks Drake has ever released. Produced by Vinylz and Frank Dukes, the beat is built on a dancehall riddim and a haunting minor-key melody, and Drake sings about betrayal and distance with the wounded clarity that makes his best hooks work. The track is lean, three and a half minutes with no wasted space, and it still sounds fresh five years later. The sequencing buries it at track 20, which is a mistake, but the song itself is essential.

A Young Thug collaboration over a Supah Mario and S1 beat that is all bouncy hi-hats and synth stabs. Young Thug sings the hook in his melodic warble, Drake raps in a relaxed flow, and the track coasts on vibe rather than content. The production is fine and the hook is catchy, but the writing is thin and the song does not develop beyond its first minute. Filler.

The closer, and the best writing on the record. Produced by Boi-1da, Ritter and 40, the beat is minimal and somber, and Drake raps for five minutes about the cost of the crown, the distance from old friends, and the weight of being the guy everyone wants something from. He name-checks Club Palazzo in Woodbridge, a defunct nightclub in northwest Toronto, and the specificity grounds the verse in a way the rest of the record never achieves. The track has the same confessional energy as "Marvin's Room" or "Tuscan Leather", and it reminds you what the playlist framing allowed him to avoid for the previous 21 tracks. A strong ending that makes you wish the rest of the album had this much to say.