Drake's 5 best and 5 worst songs

From the album: "Care Package" (2019)

First released as promotional single for Drake's 2011 sophomore album "Take Care," "Club Paradise" is peak Drake.

Lyrically, he's at his introspective best, reflecting on his rise to stardom and how its changed him on the backdrop of a melancholic, ethereal-sounding Noah "40" Shebib beat. 

On the chorus, Drake also flexes his silky smooth vocal chords (something he's too often failed to do in his more recent music) as he sings of leaving old friends behind on his journey to the top.

It's melodramatic, it's moody, and it's the Canadian at his finest.

From the mixtape: "Dark Lane Demo Tapes" (2020)

A lot of us went mad during the COVID-19 lockdowns and judging by "Toosie Slide," Drake was no exception.

Drake's own version of the dance classic, the "Cha Cha Slide," the song features Drake recalling  the steps to a viral dance challenge of the same name while proclaiming he likes to move like Michael Jackson.

In the song's music video, Drake dances around his empty Toronto mansion wearing a balaclava.

Whether Drake was attempting to score a viral hit or simply trying to cure his lockdown boredom, it's bad. 

From the album: "Views" (2016)

"Feel No Ways" is the standout track from Drake's 2016 album "Views."

On it, Drake raps and sings about returning to Toronto to discover that an ex-flame has moved on from him.

Yes, the lyrics are sometimes a little entitled ("You got something that belongs to me / Your body language says it all") and gaslighty ("Now you're tryna make me feel a way"), but beyond that, the song is an anthem for those trying to find their way alone after leaving a relationship.

"There's more to life than sleeping in and getting high with you / I had to let go of us to show myself what I could do," Drake quips.

Plus — and it's a big plus — the production from Majid Jordan's Jordan Ullman, laden with summery chords and thumping drums, is simply heavenly.

From the album: N/A (released as a single in 2023)

Drake has never been known for his freestyling skills in the way that Lil Wayne, Black Thought, or Lil Dicky (yes, really) have.

His verse on "On The Radar Freestyle" with Central Cee proves exactly why. 

Across the space of two-minutes, a tired-sounding Drake delivers a distinctly monotone, one-cadence array of nothingness, filled with basic rhymes and multiple displays of his much-criticized Jamaican accent.

From the album: "Take Care" (2011)

"The Real Her" is a sultry love song in which Drake croons about a new love he swears he must have somehow met before.

"But I gotta say, oh baby, oh baby, why is this so familiar? / Just met her, already feel like I know the real her," he sings.

Not only are Drake's vocals alluring and seductive, the piano melody and accompanying beat are gorgeous, and Andre 3000's guest verse is just *chef's kiss.*

From the album: "Certified Lover Boy" (2021)

"Way 2 Sexy" — Drake's take on Right Said Fred's "I'm Too Sexy" — is cornier, sleazier, and more gimmicky than its predecessor.

And if you've ever listened to Right Said Fred's 1991 hit, you'll know that takes some doing.

Released in 2021, NME's Rihan Daly called it "the bottom of the barrel" and "one of the worst songs of the year."

I couldn't agree more. 

From the album: "Certified Lover Boy" (2021)

Drake and Tems sound like a match made in heaven on the 2021 track "Fountains," with Drake's velvety vocals and Tems' haunting voice working in symbiosis, both floating in-between the song's sparse percussion and minimalist guitar riffs.

The pair came together again on the equally beautiful "Wait for U," featuring Future, in 2022, which won the trio a Grammy for best melodic rap performance.

Here's to hoping they can continue to link up in the future. 

From the album: "For All the Dogs" (2023)

Drake's latest album "For All the Dogs" is, for the most part, a meandering record that lacks an identity.

The project gets especially messy towards the end, turning into a grab-bag of tracks including a moombahton number featuring Bad Bunny ("Gently") and synth-heavy trap song with Lil Yachty ("Another Late Night.")

The worst of the bunch, however, is "Rich Baby Daddy."

Featuring a customarily crude cameo from Sexyy Red and a horribly repetitive Chicago house-type beat, this one's a skip.

From the mixtape: "More Life" (2017)

Unlike "Way 2 Sexy," "Teenage Fever" proves that Drake can in fact interpolate a hit from the '90s to positive effect.

"Teenage Fever," featured on his 2017 mixtape "More Life," takes the chorus of Jennifer Lopez's 1999 hit "If You Had My Love," slows it down, and turns it into a melancholic and sexy  tale of lust.

Even J.Lo loves it. She performed the track at the annual Time 100 Gala in 2018.

From the album: "Scorpion" (2018)

The worst of the worst when it comes to Drake songs, "Ratchet Happy Birthday" is bad on so many levels.

The beat, if you can call it that, sounds like one that would accompany a nursery rhyme.

Drake's lyrics are also jarring, confusing, and clumsy.

"You talk so tough, I know you're soft like buttercups / Reese's, Reese's, don't be ridiculous," he raps.

Most disappointing of all, the song just doesn't deliver on its most basic promise: bringing the party. Nobody was expecting a masterpiece when they read the title "Ratchet Happy Birthday," but the very least we expected was something we could turn up on our big day. This wasn't it.