For the last year or so, Drake has undoubtedly been the hottest rapper in the world. You could not listen to mainstream radio stations or rap stations for more than an hour without hearing one of his songs or features. It was impossible to go on Twitter without seeing tweets of how Drake lyrically destroyed Meek Mill. Escaping Drake on Vine was the hardest, with every other vine mocking his dancing from the "Hotline Bling" music video. Drake has been nominated for a whopping 27 Grammy's throughout his short career. He has had more Billboard hit singles than The Beatles. As a long time Drake fan, I was ecstatic for his new album "Views," which was released April 28.

To fully appreciate and grasp the emotion and thought an artist puts into constructing an album, I like to listen to it from start to finish. "Views" has been out for about two weeks now, and I have listened to it the whole way through a good seven or eight times. Here are my thoughts on each track of the album as well as the album as a whole.

"Keep the Family Close" — The first time I heard this track, I was pretty surprised. After jamming to "Back to Back" and "Summer Sixteen" the last few months, I was expecting a different sound from the album. Nonetheless, after hearing it a few times I’ve come to respect this track. Drake sings about the trust issues he has had in recent years with people who are supposed to be his friends. This track is the groundwork for "Views." Throughout the album, Drake reminisces on past relationships and how they have affected him.

"9" — ­­Probably one of my favorite tracks off the album, "9" has a much more energetic beat and feel to it than most of "Views." Drake opens the track by rapping, “Momma hit my phone and said rap’s no good/ Better than her telling me the checks no good.” "9" is all about Drake paying homage to Toronto. He boldly states, “I turned the six upside down, it’s a nine now.”

"U With Me" — On this track, Drake questions if his girl is loyal in their relationship. As the track progresses, he starts to wonder if the girl even loves him. His flow is solemn, but steady, providing a unique sound that is reminiscent of his second album, "Take Care." “I made a career off reminiscin’/ Time got a funny way of ticking,” Drake states. In the last verse of the song his tone switches, bringing emotion that demands to be felt. "U With Me" is easily one of my favorite tracks off "Views."

"Feel No Ways" — "Feel No Ways" is one of the tracks on the album that is heavier with singing, as opposed to rapping. “And now you’re trying to make me feel a way, on purpose,” Drake sings as he reminisces about a prior relationship where he felt he was being held back. The production is upbeat, which provides a smart contrast to the down-to-earth lyrics. This track is not the best and easily forgettable.

"Hype" — "Hype" is all about Drake being done with Meek Mill and anyone who wants to try and beef with him. “Views already a classic,” he raps to ensure he doesn’t need to prove himself to anyone anymore. This is the closest track to "Back to Back" and "Summer Sixteen" off of "Views" in terms of flow and lyrics (although both of those tracks are far superior). The production is solid, combining to form a decent track.

"Weston Road Flows" — Weston Road is where Drake grew up in Toronto. On this track, Drake steadily raps about his childhood over a smooth beat that samples an old Mary J. Blige song. “It's raining money, Oklahoma City Thunder/ The most successful rapper 35 and under.” “Now the talk of the corner store is that I'm TBE/ The best ever, don't ever question, you know better.” With the best production (in my opinion) off "Views" and some very witty lyrics, "Weston Road Flows" is easily a top three track.

"Redemption" — "Redemption" is classic Drake, plain and simple. On this track, Drake expresses his conflicting emotions about past relationships with an emotional mix of singing and rapping. In the last verse, he even name drops some of his past exes. The production matches his inner turmoil, providing for a slow, but satisfying, track. While pondering his thoughts Drake admits, “They would sell my secrets for a tropical vacation/ Sell my secrets back to me if I was paying.” Although it's a slower song, redemption is still one of my top three favorite tracks on "Views."

"With You" (feat. PARTYNEXTDOOR) — Like the prior track, "With You" finds Drake looking back on a past relationship. Compared to "Redemption," there is far less hostility on this track. PARTYNEXTDOOR and the production both give it an uplifting, but stale vibe. This was one of my least favorite songs off "Views." I didn't find the beat catchy, I am not a fan of PARTYNEXTDOOR, and the lyrics were forgettable.

"Faithful" (feat. Pimp C & dvsn) — "Faithful" keeps on rolling with the R&B style of production. All three artists bring their own respective styles to the track, giving it a fresher feel than the previous couple of tracks.

"Still Here" — This is another track that combines singing and rapping as one. Drake pretty much covers all of his past accomplishments from acting on Degrassi to becoming a rap mogul. I thoroughly enjoyed the production on"‘Still Here" (this was one of the only songs that “40” didn’t produce). “Hittin' like that 30 on my jersey man I'm gifted,” Drake references Stephen Curry when speaking of his success.

"Controlla" — Eleven people have writing credits on this song. The lyrics are awful. The production is the only somewhat decent thing about this track, leaving "Controlla" to be one of the more forgettable songs on "Views."

"One Dance" (feat. Kyla & Wizkid) — "One Dance" was one of the singles released for "Views." It is catchy as heck and will likely be a summer jam the radio plays over and over again. Kyla and Drake mesh very well together and the afrobeat production is excellent. Kyla definitely gives Rihanna a run for her money for best feature off of the album.

"Grammys" (feat. Future) - Let it be known that I have an incredibly hard time trying to decipher anything Future raps in any song. That being said, "Grammys" sees both Future and Drake rap with confidence and swag. “I pull up in yachts so big that they try to hit me with boat fines/Hype Williams, Big Pimpin’, yeah, just like the old times,” Drake references an older Jay-Z music video. Both rappers make it clear they don’t need any awards to know they’re successful or at the top of the game.

"Child's Play" — “Momma is a saint yeah she raised me real good/ All because of her I don't do you like I should,” Drake says as he warns the girl he's with that she's crossing the line. “Why you gotta fight with me at Cheesecake you know I love to go there.” Child's Play has one or two decent lines with a poor production, giving it little replay value.

"Pop Style" — Originally, Drake released this song as a single that featured "The Throne" (Jay-Z & Kanye). For the album version, Drake added an additional verse and took out "The Throne." Personally, I like the album version a lot better than the single. The verse Drake adds is a lot better than the one Kanye had. "Pop Style" is catchy and presides as one of the better tracks off "Views." Drake lets the world know who's in charge by saying, “Give a real *explicit* a number one, even though I got me like twenty-one.” “MVP, MVP, 09 all the way to 16.”

"Too Good" (feat. Rihanna) — Drake and Rihanna go together like ketchup and mustard. “I’m way too good to you,” they both proclaim over the catchiest beat on the whole album. This song will likely find its way to the radio in a few months. Spoiler alert: Drake even lets loose a little Spanish on this track.

"Summer's Over Interlude" — The interlude is a nice transitional track, and with a 1:46 run-time it fits right in. The interlude itself preludes to the seasons changing in Toronto, and with it the feeling of the album. Four of the five tracks before the interlude are all songs I can easily see being played on the radio for summer. After the interlude, "Views" goes back to the fall and winter with more serious tracks.

" Fire & Desire" — "Fire & Desire" has a very R&B style feel to it. The production is excellent and Drake takes advantage of it showing off his vocals.

"Views" — The self-titled song is my favorite track from the album. It is refreshing to hear a song where Drake only raps, and skips the singing. Drake touches on his morals, relationship with “40”, and the future of his career. With top-notch production "Views" is a stellar outro. “I'd share more of my story but you wouldn’t believe it.” He closes the album by admitting, “If I was you I wouldn't like me either.”

"Hotline Bling" (Bonus Track) — This song has inspired many hilarious vines, videos and even a line of T-shirts and sweatshirts. If I had a dollar every time I heard Hotline Bling on the radio, my tuition would practically be paid for. Personally, I am sick of this song because I’ve heard it too many times in a short span. However, it is still incredibly catchy and I can’t knock "Views" because the radio overplayed it. "Hotline Bling" actually fits in well with the rest of the radio songs from the album. As a bonus track, it definitely succeeds.

Overall Rating - 7 out of 10

"Views" was a big album, with a whopping 20 songs. It could have easily been trimmed down to 15, which would have yielded a higher rating.

Pros:

+ I respect the album for sticking to a central theme: Drake reminiscing of past relationships, the city he grew up, and his current state of mind. Personally, I have always enjoyed Drake’s soft side. I think it’s impressive that he hits such emotional levels through rapping and singing. His ability do both really sets him apart from his competition.

+ "Weston Road Flows", "9", "Pop Style", "Too Good", "Views", "Redemption", and "U With Me" are my favorite tracks off "Views" and hang with the better work of Drake’s career. These tracks contain some fire lines and I am sure I will be jamming to them for years to come.

+The production on the album was rock solid for almost every track. “40” did a great job producing a majority of the album. Whether Drake was boasting of his accomplishments or reminiscing of lost love or inner conflict, the music always matched it.

Cons:

- At times, "Views" felt kind of repetitive in a negative way. There were a lot of songs that were heavy on singing and almost absent of rap. I love the singing, just in smaller doses.

- Lyrically, "Views" is slightly disappointing. Aside from the standout tracks, I’ve come to expect more from Drake over the years. If the four worst tracks on "Views" were cut, the album would receive an 8 or 8.5.

- A few tracks: "Feel No Way", "Controlla", "Child's Play", and "With You" are very forgettable. They feel lazy and seem to be provided for the sole purpose of having a 20-track album.

Overall, "Views" will never come close to "Take Care" and falls slightly below "nothing Was The Same." Time will tell how the replay value of "Views" will hold up. Ultimately, it is a good album, but it does not hang with the best of Drake’s work.

If you have any suggestions on how I can improve future music reviews, or want to discuss your opinion of this album, or other albums, feel free to message me!