Drake had a very eventful 2024 to say the least. I am sure most people would consider it to be the worst year of his career. I mean, how could one not think this? I mean, technically one could argue that he still had a ton of success last year. He did drop more than one chart-topping single, and he did remain one of the most listened-to Hip Hop artists in the world. But, ultimately, his beef with Kendrick Lamar truly dragged him to depths that he had not seen. The biggest song of the year, ‘Not Like Us,’ was a song that essentially calls him a pedophile. This song was so big that it even ended up winning Record of the Year at the Grammys, and was screamed live by 100,000 people at the Superbowl a couple of weeks ago. Now, after such an embarrassing moment, most people would probably take a break and get out of the public eye for a while. But Drake can obviously not do this. One could blame his ego or his determination, but he is not someone who will just fade. Instead, Drake has doubled down, releasing a joint album with OVO label mate PartyNextDoor. This is an album that has actually been teased for quite a while, but has been getting pushed back for more than a year. Now, is it ironic that it finally got finished and put out directly following all of this drama with Kendrick Lamar? I will let you be the judge on that one. Regardless of intention, Hip Hop fans around the world wanted to see what Drake would have to say on this record. $ome $exy $ongs 4 U feels like Drake using this joint venture with PND to try to make statements about how he feels about the Kendrick beef and how he feels about the Rap industry as a whole. In my opinion, if he was going to do this, it should have been strictly a joint “love” album with his bro and should have nothing to do with what happened last year, but Drake could not do that. Regardless of the context and some of the complaining, I do think $ome $exy $ongs 4 U has a decent(ish) amount of music to enjoy if you like either or both of these artists. Drake and PND have always worked super well together for what it is worth, and their chemistry is palpable on the tracks they are both on. There are a few solo tracks by both artists as well, and at least a couple of the project’s best are actually among these. Below, I wanted to highlight some of the best songs from $ome $exy $ongs 4 U, then go into some more overall thoughts to close things out. Please let me know in the comments below what your favorite songs are from $ome $exy $ongs 4 U, and also comment on how you feel about it as a whole. 

CN TOWER – PND AND DRAKE

PND and Drake started off this project on a pretty strong note with its opening track, ‘CN TOWER.’ It has a very big and hazy feeling, starting off the album with a bang. The melody has a melancholy feeling to it, almost giving the track a forlorn quality. As the song progresses, the melody gets bigger, almost having an all-encompassing element the further you get. The beat for ‘CN TOWER,’ which has a slow yet punchy R&B Trap pattern, does not kick in until about halfway into the track, which adds to that growing feeling. Drake does his thing on this one, but I wanted to especially shout out PND. His tone works super well on this instrumental, and he certainly adds to the sweeping feel of the track. ‘CN TOWER’ is a pretty cool first song from this record that gets it going on a decently high note. 

MOTH BALLS – PND AND DRAKE

Considering ‘MOTH BALLS’ is the second song on this record, I would say that Drake and PND really started it off 2 for 2. I am not going to lie, with this one and ‘CN Tower,’ I got pretty excited about the potential of the rest of this album. At first listen, ‘MOTH BALLS’ is a track I was immediately drawn to. It is the first song that I saved to a personal playlist. ‘MOTH BALLS’ has the feeling of old Drake music to me. When I hear this one, I think of some of the softer, more R&B music he initially got famous for back in the day. The instrumental for ‘MOTH BALLS’ is very slow and spacey. The melody on this track makes someone feel warm and cold at the same time. There is something about it that feels distant, but also draws me in. Both PND and Drake show off their singing chops on this one in a big way. Both artists flex their range throughout the track. The emotions that both artists are feeling are super palpable in their vocals, which give the song a heaviness that is captivating. ‘MOTH BALLS’ is PND and Drake at their best when it comes to the old R&B sound that people love from them, and I am pretty confident it will end up being one of the biggest songs of the project. 

SPIDER-MAN SUPERMAN – PND AND DRAKE

When I heard there was a joint PND and Drake coming out, I honestly probably expected a full album like ‘SPIDER-MAN-SUPERMAN.’ This track just had the kind of sound that both these artists thrive at together and apart. The instrumental for this one is very floaty, methodical, and charming. The piano riff and guitar riff that drive this one are so welcoming, and the beat is very soothing as well. The soothing element of the track is taken over the top by the vocals from Drake and PND. Both artists more than do their part to match the energy of the instrumental. I really like how their vocals complement each other(like many other times on this record), as they play off of each other so well. ‘SPIDER-MAN SUPERMAN’ is the kind of song true fans of both these artists wanted to hear. 

PIMMIE’S DILEMMA – PND AND DRAKE FEAT. PIMMIE

‘PIMMIE’S DILEMMA’ is one of two songs from this record with an artist other than Drake or PND. What sets this one apart though is that it actually does not have Drake or PND on it at all. Instead, ‘PIMMIE’S DILEMMA’ is an interlude of sorts that solely consists of Indie Pop/R&B artist Pimmie. This is by far the most simple and light-hearted song on the record. The instrumental consists of a pretty warm and atmospheric guitar riff that is complemented by an airy vocal sample that comes in and out. Considering how low-key the instrumental is, all of the focus is put on Pimmie’s vocal performance, which is frankly great. I dig everything about her performance; her tone, flow, and presence on the track make this one a major highlight. ‘PIMMIE’S DILEMMA’ is literally going to make me look into more of Pimmie’s music, and it is pretty cool that Drake and PND gave her the spotlight like this. 

DEEPER – PND

I couldn’t make this list without shouting out the only solo PND song on this record, ‘DEEPER.’ To be frank, I wish there were more solo songs by him on the record, because he really does his thing here. To keep it simple, ‘DEEPER’ is completely a love-making song. This sentiment is felt through every aspect of it. When it comes to the sound, the song is aptly named. The melody for this song is so sultry and vast. The beat is very intricate, and its big, slow sound makes the song feel heavy. PND delivers one of his best vocal performances(if not just his best) of the record on ‘DEEPER.’ Everything about his vocals is great. From his range to his tone to his flow, he helps give this song a cozy sound that is full of lust. There had to be at least one song from this record that is truly for the bedroom, and ‘DEEPER’ fills that role.  

NOKIA – DRAKE 

‘NOKIA’ is a track that has immediately been popping off on social media since it was released. It is honestly very easy to see why so many people are attracted to this one; frankly, it has smash hit written all over it. ‘NOKIA’ has the kind of sound and energy that reminds me of some of the best songs from Drake’s album Honestly, Nevermind. ‘NOKIA’ is one of the solo tracks from Drake, having no assistance from PND at all. The first half of this track has an upbeat House music sound that will get anyone dancing when it comes on. The second half of the track has a bit more of an R&B Trap sound mixed with Boom Bap feeling, and it keeps the high energy of the first half rolling. ‘NOKIA’ has by far Drake’s most fun vocal performance of the record. He more than matches the pleasant and free-spirited feeling of the instrumental, singing and rapping in a manner that makes this song so captivating and cool. I would not be surprised if ‘NOKIA’ ends up being the biggest track from this record, as I bet it will get more and more popular as the weather gets warmer. 

DIE TRYING – PND AND DRAKE FEAT. YEBBA

Out of all the music on this project, ‘DIE TRYING’ is by far the least like the others. In fact, this song is pretty unlike anything I have heard from Drake or PND before. ‘DIE TRYING’ strays away from the R&B, Hip Hop, and Dance music we get on every other track. Instead, this one actually has a light and bright Soul music sound with a bit of an Indie-Pop tint to it. This song is driven by a sweet guitar riff, and the beat is by far the least Hip Hop-sounding thing on this record. ‘DIE TRYING’ has an instrumental that makes me think of artists like Steve Lacy or Frank Ocean on Blonde. Drake, PND, and Yebba sound great on this song, and they all complement each other in a nice way. Each artist sings with a tone that is adjacent to others, but differs from the others enough to be distinguishable. ‘DIE TRYING’ is a very cool moment on this record where Drake and PND go way against what they are known for, showing they can still grow this late into their careers. 

GREEDY – PND AND DRAKE

PND and Drake close out this record with a pretty similar energy to the way they started it. Like ‘CN TOWER,’ this is a somber and atmospheric track that gets stronger and more all-encompassing as the song moves along. At 6:26, this is by far the longest song of the record. It really only feels like a 4:00 track with a very extended outro, as the last 2 minutes or so of ‘GREEDY’ do not have any vocals. Instead, the instrumental gets more spacey and whimsical, sending the album off on an interesting and powerful note. As far as the vocals go, both Drake and PND once again do their thing on this one. I would not say that ‘GREEDY’ has the most powerful or rangey vocals, but Drake and PND do sing with a nice tone and flow that goes nicely with the airy feeling of the instrumental. ‘GREEDY’ is a song with a sound and feeling that really leans into what the fans of R&B-Drake and PND are known for, which makes it a solid way to send this record out. 

As I stated in the introduction, it felt like a pretty convenient time for Drake to finally release his long-anticipated album with PartyNextDoor immediately following Kendrick Lamar’s Superbowl performance and his domination of the Grammys(and also two months after his chart-topping record GNX). I do not want to say that Drake is taking advantage of PartyNextDoor because Drake is helping him achieve more success than he has had in the past, but I do feel like this release is not as genuine as it could be. With that being said, $ome $exy $ongs 4 U is decently solid for what it is worth. Now, this is not even close to the best record that either Drake or PND have ever released. It is far from it. But there is a good amount of music to enjoy on this record. I would even venture to say that some of the high points are really high. Songs like ‘NOKIA’ and ‘DIE TRYING’ are bound to end up being hits. These two songs can honestly carry the album themselves, and will probably keep people looking back on $ome $exy $ongs 4 U at least somewhat fondly. I will say, at 21 songs and 1hr and 20 minutes, this album is way too long and bloated. I wish that Drake and PND would have trimmed some of the fat, because it would make the album way more enjoyable overall. At times, it feels like $ome $exy $ongs 4 U drags along a bit. This can make it kind of tough to get into some of the highlights when listening to the album the whole way through, unfortunately. Overall, $ome $exy $ongs 4 U is an okay album with some moments that will make it seem better than the sum of its parts. I would not say this album was exactly a redemption tour for Drake, but it does show that he can still make hits that can make people forget about the drama surrounding him.

5.6/10