Kara Lee

Following the “conclusion” of a very public beef between Drake and Kendrick Lamar, fans speculated on what the next move for the Canadian-born rapper would be. After months of sparse verses and mysterious Instagram posts, Drake finally announced his new album with frequent collaborator and fellow OVO Sound signee PARTYNEXTDOOR.

The album, titled “$OME $EXY $ONGS 4 U,” targets fans of Drizzy’s acclaimed R&B sound — a fitting theme for a Valentine’s Day release.

The album opens with “CN TOWER,” which references the historic tower of the same name in Toronto, Canada. Drake and PND sing over spacey, dark production as they tie the frequent colors of the tower — blue, green and red — to their past failed relationships.

Track two, “MOTH BALLS,” explores emotional detachment and self-destruction. Drake speaks about the effect his promiscuous habits with women, drugs and alcohol have on his relationships.

More ethereal spacey production queues up as “SOMETHING ABOUT YOU” begins. It is an intimate track where the duo talk about the complexities of existing within a relationship while being the superstars that they are, referencing things like non-disclosure agreements and sex with women in relationships with professional sports players.

“CRYING IN CHANEL” was the first song previewed by Drake just six days before the album’s release. It is a fairly underwhelming vocal performance from Drake, but a catchy bridge from PND at the end of the song saves it from being considered amongst the album’s worst.

Drake gets back on track with “SPIDER-MAN SUPERMAN” as he takes a look at his relationships through an introspective lens, and he delves into the unrealistic expectations often placed on him in his past ordeals. He wants to protect his partner and fulfill all her needs, but at the end of the day, he is no superhero. The track concludes with Drake singing beautifully over a sample of his own song, “The Real Her” coming off his 2011 classic “Take Care.”

PARTYNEXTDOOR gets one solo song on the album with “DEEPER,” and he excels in the spotlight. Lyrically, it is not an emotionally driven song. The Mississauga native sings about sex and the shedding of his ego in an attempt to connect with his partner.

A high-pitched sample flip rings out as “SMALL TOWN FAME” begins. This is arguably the most destructive track on the album with Drake, of all people, complaining how he does not receive enough attention from his partner. He claims that even though he may be more famous than his partner, he can still lose her to small-town fame.

The next four tracks all tie into each other.

“PIMMIE’S DILEMMA” showcases an up-and-coming artist from Houston, Texas. Wary of Drake’s freaky habits, Pimmie sings about how she does not want him to go to the club that night.

“BRIAN STEEL” is Drake rapping over a majestic sample flip about how he knows he should be inside but “has to pop out with the guys tonight.” The title references Young Thug’s lawyer Brian Steel, who played a large role in freeing Thug while he was facing a RICO case.

A soul sample plays as “GIMME A HUG” starts up, and Drake addresses a few of his adversaries, including Lamar and fellow rapper Joe Budden. Continuing the previous two songs’ theme, he revels in his return to the strip club, even mentioning multiple dancers by their stage name. A sample of Aaron Hall’s 1993 hit, “I Miss You,” is blended with Drake’s vocals as he emphasizes just how much he misses the strip club.

Drizzy’s love for Houston has been prevalent throughout his career and is on display once again with “RAINING IN HOUSTON.” The song begins with a sample of “Ain’t Nothing I Can Do,” by Tyrone Davis, and Drake reflects on his decision to go out with his friends that night against his partner’s wishes. The beat switches, and he sings over some wavy production that mimics rain droplets as he continues to show his love for the city of Houston and his lover — likely feeling just a little bit more love for the former.

“LASERS” kicks off a two-track run that fans of the “6 God” would like to forget. It is an underwhelming and unnecessarily lustful song that should have been left off an already hefty tracklist.

“MEET YOUR PADRE” is Drake rapping in Spanish for absolutely no reason.

Fans listening to the album to this point might need to be treated for whiplash transitioning from the previous song to “NOKIA.” It is a refreshing angle from Drake as he curates a fun and bubbly club banger featuring Elkan, a United Kingdom-based producer. The song is a smash hit, currently featured in the Apple Music Top 100: USA chart.

Continuing the theme of refreshing angles for Drake, “DIE TRYING” is Aubrey, PND and Yebba singing over an acoustic beat. It sounds like something Post Malone would have put out after he gave up trying to be a Soundcloud rapper. It is something fans have never seen from Drake before — and it works.

The tracklist’s final stretch reverts to the R&B style that dominated the album’s beginning. There are some high points, like the beat on “OMW” and the singing on “CELIBACY” and “WHEN HE’S GONE,” and there are low points — like the Ice Spice-inspired “GLORIOUS.”

The album concludes on a high note. “GREEDY” is one of the strongest tracks on the album, boasting a smooth and angelic beat; it is the perfect outro and an ideal song to “Drake-and-Drive” to.

The album simultaneously draws on Drake’s biggest strengths while exploring new avenues sonically. The production is consistent across the project’s entirety, and it is the shaky vocal performances and questionable flows from Drake on a few songs that prevents it from successfully being a flawless R&B record. His chemistry with PARTYNEXTDOOR has been elite since their first collaboration on PND’s self-titled debut album back in 2013, and they excel together on this album.

“$OME $EXY $ONGS 4 U” debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 and sold 250k units the first week and adds value to one of the deepest and most decorated catalogs in all of Hip Hop.