Rapper Heartbreak Drake's mixtape earns a mixed review

02/20/09 - The East Coast claims Biggie, Jay-Z, Grandmaster Flash and Wu-Tang as the representatives of rap from its region, while the southern United States has no shortage of rappers proclaiming themselves as the "Kings of the South." Many Left Coasters consider rappers such as a Dr. Dre, Ice Cube, Snoop Dogg and Tupac to be the godfathers of rap from their area and the Midwest aggressively claims Eminem (Detroit), Kanye West (Chicago) and Bone Thugs (Cleveland) as the artists who put the center of the country on the Hip-Hop map. Even little Puerto Rico has Daddy Yankee and Pitbull to be proud of.

Now I know I'm going to be making those "Freedom is not Free" Americans mad when I say this, but what about Canada? The vast majority of Canadians speak the same language, and American rap is the most popular form of music in all major Canadian cities.

Sure, there have been Canadians like Dubmatique and the Dope Poets Society to scratch the surface, but let's be honest: record-breaking, smash-hit-producing, hip-hop legends they were not. Nope, in my eyes, there hasn't been any memorable or promising hip-hip talent to ever come out of Canada . until now.

Enter Aubrey Drake Graham a.k.a. Drake a.k.a. Heartbreak Drake. This Toronto born rapper, actor, poet and general entertainer has burst onto the scene with an agenda: to bring Canadian rap to the mainstream.

If you recognize the name Aubrey Graham from anywhere, it is probably because you watch "Degrassi: The Next Generation," where he played the physically disabled student Jimmy Brooks.

Unusual beginnings aside, Drake, along with DJs Rockstar, Rampage and Ill Will have, as of Dec. 11, released a best of Drake mixtape entitled "Heartbreak Drake."

I found the first song on the album, "Say What's Real," to be interesting for a couple reasons. First off, I really liked the lyrics, mainly because -as the name of the song would suggest-they were very real. It was almost as if Drake was trying to have a conversation with his listeners about how hard life can be, and how, even when you are rich and semi-famous, he still goes through the same universal struggles.

The other reason I found the track interesting was because of who produced it. Kanye West has always advocated for up-and-coming rappers, but has consistently had a very high standard for the artists he endorses. To put it another way, West has never put his name on something that he didn't feel was 100 percent on his level. Bearing that fact in mind, this bodes well for the 22 year-old rapper.

The first song that I could foresee being very popular is the fifth track on the mixtape, "Ransom," featuring Lil Wayne. This song had a really intense beat with strong lyrics and exuded that "I don't give a (expletive deleted)" attitude that most songs involving Lil Wayne possess.

Another reason I felt this track was strong was because of how consistent the two rappers were throughout the over five minute long song. Such a fast-paced beat along with the length of the song makes Ransom hard to perform, even if it was done in the studio.

I was feeling pretty good about this album as I moved onto the next song. Maybe I was wrong about Canadian hip-hop. Maybe all Drake needed was a little bump from some big names to get him on the fast track to hip-hop stardom. But then, something started to happen- something that I really wasn't expecting.

By track 11 of 24, I started to get bored with the Drake. I took that as a sign to take a break from the album, but upon returning to it the next day, the same thing happened. The music that I had been so enthused about was beginning to become tiresome. The beats stopped being unique from one another. The lyrics became weaker and weaker, even repeating multiple times whole bars from other songs. What was worse was that I began to look forward to the other artists featured on the album more than Drake.

I finished the mixtape with a strange sense of ambivalence. There were certainly tracks on the album that I would consider highlights, such as "Forever," "Still Fly" and "Stunt Hard." But it was also hard to ignore duds like the whiney "Brand New" and his versions of "Swagga Like Us" -which has been done too many times to count-- and "Pop Champagne" which he renamed, "Pop Rosé."

Another thing that bothered me was that the general theme of the subsequent tracks was for the most part repeated. A rapper can only say "I'm the best ever" so many times.

On a different level, by the end of the album I felt that instead of that gentle nudge by big name artists I mentioned earlier, he was carried to semi-popularity by artists like Lil Wayne, Trey Songz, Kanye West, Nut Da Kid and Robin Thicke. I fully understand that in order to make it big in the hip-hop industry, it is all about who you know and whom you have perform with you.

I also know that Drake is affiliated with Young Money, so Lil Wayne being on a couple of tracks is to be expected. But the fact is Wayne is on almost every other track, and where he isn't present, there is another big name artist to step in. To me, that is not a good thing.

Overall, I would give "Heartbreak Drake" a C+ for a few reasons. As far as sheer entertainment value goes, this album was good, even though many times I would look forward to Lil Wayne's part instead of Drake's. In terms of a mixtape that would leave a lasting impression on hip-hop, "Heartbreak Drake" won't be setting any records. If it weren't for the other artists on the album, it would be downright unmemorable.

Drake is young, Canadian rap is young and I truly believe there is a lot of potential for both. When Drake is featured on a hit song or produces a hit song himself- and it will happen- I won't be surprised. For now, he needs to come into his own and gain a bit of much-needed experience before he becomes a genuine success.