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It’s hard for someone like Drake to put the past behind him when no one will let him forget it. Still, despite a tumultuous year of rap beef, he seems to be trying to move forward with his latest music release.
Last Friday, the OVO Sound boss dropped “$ome $exy $ongs 4 U,” his R&B-centric album with longtime collaborator PartyNextDoor. It marks the 38-year-old’s first full-length offering since his verbal sparring with Kendrick Lamar last spring. It also comes on the heels of Lamar’s latest most-talked-about milestones: five new Grammy wins and a record-settingSuper Bowl halftime show performance, partially thanks to his victory over Drake.
Fans seemed mildly excited about Drake’s comeback project, even if it was a hard pivot away from most things rap. The arrival of the 21-track LP probably would’ve made a bigger splash had it been the Canadian rapper’s first post-battle retort, but much has transpired in his and Lamar’s feud timeline as of late.
For one, Drake sued his record label, Universal Music Group, in January for allegedly overpromoting Lamar’s “defamatory” diss track, “Not Like Us” — which swept all five of its nominated categories at the 2025 Grammys and had a viral moment at Super Bowl LIX. Earlier that month, Drake also dropped “Fighting Irish Freestyle,” a semi-post-beef revelation that took shots at those who switched sides on him amid the battle. But way before any of that, in July, Drake hinted at dropping his “baby making music” collaboration with PartyNextDoor, the bounceback he seemingly hoped would help him recover from Lamar’s lyrical lashings and sway public opinion back in his favor.
Needless to say, “$ome $exy $ongs 4 U” had great expectations. And for the most part, the album serves its purpose. Moody tracks like “CN Tower,” “Crying in Chanel,” “Spider-Man Superman,” and more harken to the good ole days of “Heartbreak Drake” and his sing-rap roots. However, the album isn’t a complete distraction from you know what.
Contrary to Drake rapping, “Fuck a rap beef, I’m tryna get the party lit” on “Gimme a Hug” — which features shit-talking rhymes and more subliminal jabs — it seems like the fallout from his battle with Lamar is still heavy on his mind.
Case in point: the timing of “$ome $exy $ongs 4 U” coincided with the aftermath of Lamar’s halftime show, where Drake was notably name-dropped and subsequently the butt of another joke. Sure, it was easy to disguise the calculated move as sappy songs released in the spirit of Valentine’s Day. But, like with many of Drake’s recent antics, we see right through the veil.
His new album seems to be yet another attempt to rehabilitate his image and move on after taking a brutal loss to Lamar last year, a loss still obviously lingering in the public eye (partly due to Drake’s recent court filings). But if the rapper himself can’t stop talking about it, whether on a song or through legal action, how does he expect fans to do the same?
This begs the bigger question: What exactly is Drake doing right now? And who does he think he’s fooling with his latest distraction?
That’s essentially what “$$$4U” is — something to shift the narrative around Drake’s reputation after getting embarrassed in front of his male peers and alienating his female fan base. But even with an album packed with nostalgic R&B samples and sadboy crooner tracks, it can’t wash away the cringe social media digs or bizarre rap litigation Drake has stirred up in recent months. All of it still carries the unmistakable stench of a rap feud.
If Drake truly wanted to move on from his battle with Lamar, he could’ve dropped one of his famous timestamp records by now, ruminating about how things have played out while accepting his loss. A few verses on that could help put this all to bed faster, but Drake seems more interested in getting fans back on his side by any means necessary.
To him, this means attempting to return to the Drake we used to know and love, the one who vied for his female audience’s affection versus his male peers’ approval. But that’s not possible anymore, because that Drake is so far gone.
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The Drake we know today is still bitter over rap beef, snubbing anyone who opposes him, and seems unconcerned with evolving his brand of music beyond toxic, misogynistic lyricism. It’ll take much more than some sexy wintertime songs to reverse those effects and return Drake to his glory days. The quicker the rapper realizes that, the better.
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