SCORPION
| Drake
SCORPION
Canadian rapper Drake released his fifth studio album—Scorpion—on 29th June, 2018, through Cash Money Records, Young Money Entertainment, and Republic Records. This double album consists of 25 tracks, with the first disc primarily featuring hip hop songs and the second disc being described as pop and R&B.
Drake himself is the executive producer of Scorpion, along with his manager Oliver El-Khatib and frequent collaborator 40. The album has guest appearances by Ty Dolla Sign and Jay-Z, along with posthumous appearances by Static Major and Michael Jackson. Read all about what critics have to say in Drake’s new album reviews!
Critic Reviews
Show All-
Flood Magazine
After years as one of music’s most upstanding role models, Drake now seems lost, afraid, and emotionless.
-
POPS CULTURE
We need something new from Drake in which he takes time to push his music forward and transcend these trivial topics we’ve already heard. It would serve him and his fans a lot of good, especially if he hopes to hold the crown.
-
richer sounds
The production on Scorpion is great and although there was some weak tracks there were still a lot of real stand out numbers.
-
Daily Lobo
Drake feels bloated on "Scorpion".
-
The National
The lengthy new album finds him struggling with the musical juxtapositions that have come to define him.
-
XFDR Magazine
SCORPION should have been the perfect book-end to an era of madness that uniquely related to him on all fronts, but unfortunately we got an album that missed the mark and left us a little less than deserved.
-
XXL Magazine
Scorpion has more than a few future hits, it also comes with the baggage of too many options. Oddly enough, it’s like Drake’s Apple Music notes and the final project weren’t truly in sync: One conveys that he doesn’t care about the critics, while the other feels like an attempt to please everyone. Maybe he should've named the album Gemini.
-
MEDIUM
Scorpion commits many Drake-album sins, including overstaying its welcome, exploring repetitive topics (i.e., money, career success, his relationships with women) with no new insight, and generally reveling in its own self-importance.
-
CULT
So okay, not all of this is great, but the sum of it is pretty damn slick, especially considering Drake is the poster child for a generation said to have buried the idea of full albums mattering.
-
BLUSH
Scorpion sees Drake in his most evolved form.
-
ALL MUSIC
Scorpion doesn't even come close to being one of his best; instead, it's a one-trick record stretched out into 25 endless tracks by an artist who's so deep into the self-obsessed, self-pitying rut he created for himself that he can't see daylight anymore.
-
FKB online
it’s the gift and the curse.
-
MEFEATER
Scorpion is Drake’s Attempt At Showcasing All His Artistic Range.
-
E Times
'Scorpion' and delivers more than what his fans were waiting for.
-
The Book of Man
Is Drake's new album the 'Thriller' of our generation? Well, Michael Jackson is on it for one thing. And given its ambition, it may well end up as a cultural touchstone.
-
The Crescent
I’d say it’s worth it to listen through the whole thing as it does vary in sound, levels, and style, but I can’t say I’m as impressed as I had hoped in terms of timeless tracks. If you love an easy, flowing album, give it a chance.
-
Dozen of Donuts
Scorpion could've been great. Instead, we're left with bouts of dynamic production, stimulating flows, and Pop-bound choruses caught in the rubble of tracks starkly attempting to imitate them.
-
Reknowned for Sound
Scorpion may receive praise from the dyed in the wool Drake fans, but those with a more critical bent are likely to walk away shaking their heads after sitting through the album, assuming they can make it all the way through in the first place.
-
Alice Music Reviews
He's a talented man and parts of side B were making me nostalgic for Drake's 'Take Care' album but 'Scorpion' felt like he was defeated. It was meant to be a victory lap, a celebration of him holding on to the throne so why did this feel lazy and if he were not challenging himself at all?
-
UPROXX
Drake's Moody Scorpion’ Is Too Long But Offers Compelling Creative Growth To Compensate.
-
The Washington Post
Here’s an epic double-album, a colossal 25 tracks, an odyssey somehow even lengthier than Drake’s previous emo-quests. And when you pop the top? Same old fizz.
-
Exclaim!
The boy is back.
-
Merry Go Round Magazine
it becomes a chore to justify whether it really has some cultural grasp, or is just strong poison for the masses.
-
Revolt.tv
Classics are born out of brevity, but because he’s proven himself invincible, Drake will never partake in meticulous curation; he truly believes we need to hear every single song he makes.
-
Business Insider
Drake's latest album, "Scorpion," is a slog.
-
The Ringer
The album is a stress test to see just how much Drake you can stand, and to what extent Drake can still stand himself.
-
hnhh
Everything We Know.
-
RAP REVIEWS
“Scorpion” is going to be exactly what his fans love and what his haters hate. It’s full of excess, hubris, vanity and unnecessary singing.
-
Rollingstone
‘Scorpion’ Is Indulgent, Obsessive and Brilliant – Just What We’ve Come to Expect.
-
HIPHOPDX
Scorpion solidifies his universal relatability while yet again supplying fans with an overload of tracks.
-
New York Times
For the first time, Drake runs from his feelings.
-
NO HIPSTERS ALLOWED
Scorpion isn’t perfect and definitely isn’t as good as Views, but it is a very strong showing from a rapper who is now almost a decade into his career.
-
VULTURE
Drake Fails to Grow on Scorpion.
-
CLEVELAND.COM
Fatherly admissions can't birth a classic.
-
The Observer
Love, loss and a lot less rap. Yet Drake’s sound still stings.
-
HIGHSNOBIETY
Is an Overstuffed, Inconsistent Big Business Move.
-
Pitchfork
Scorpion does feel like a double album, like there might actually be an artistic reason for it to be split in two.
-
sputnik music
That isn't what his fans want, and that clearly isn't what he wants. But based on everything I'm hearing, I think it might be time for him to try to grow.
-
popMATTERS
Drake Goes Long on 'Scorpion' and We're All the Better for It.
-
TIME
The ponderous choice to cleave the overstuffed Scorpion into Sides A and B results in two uneven suites of songs.
-
NME
This is mostly Drake on autopilot.
-
Pitchfork
2018 - Drake’s fifth proper studio album is richly produced, studded with gems, and grapples with his fatherhood in a way that casts his arrested development into sharp relief.
-
Rolling Stone
2018 - This is a masterclass in pop-focused execution and an exercise in inoffensive ambition swirling into itself.
-
Consequence of Sound
2018 - a body of work that is self-indulgent, largely evasive, and frankly boring when the beat is not quite strong enough to steady the ship
-
Billboard
2018 - a calculated album worthy of his own name
-
Hot New Hip Hop
2018 - Moments of nostalgia-fueled excitement arise upon hearing Nicki Minaj, Future, and Lil Wayne, each employed with restraint, more tools than collaborators.
-
Pop Matters
2018 - With Scorpion, Drake makes a cohesive argument for broadening our attention spans and enjoying life's music, regardless of run time.
-
The Guardian
2018 - Veering from swaggering soul to eerie electronica, this mega-album is bloated, rambling – yet frequently gorgeous and funny
-
Variety
2018 - But it’s hard to listen through the entire expanse without performing a backseat edit, and even after several spins, too much of the album remains an indistinguishable muddle.
-
Clash Music
2018 - Absorbing ‘Scorpion’s 90-minute run time in one sitting is a big ask, but the ratio of good to bad here is impressively in Drake’s favor.
-
AV Club
2018 - while the album is most noteworthy for its compositional clarity, it’ll probably linger in the memory only for a bunch of good Drake moments
-
DJ Booth
2018 - overall both sides have their shining moments
-
Irish times
2018 - A painfully dull barrage of lifeless tunes
-
Complex
2018 - It is, on one level, a disjointed by mostly successful collection of pop rap for the summer—and on another level, a frequently fascinating document of spin, which is only occasionally convincing, but consistently sheds new light on Drake and the way he views the world.
-
Independant
2018 - Double album sees Drake address family matters and old beefs, but feels too catered to the cherry-picking habits borne from streaming to enjoy as one cohesive work
-
LA Times
2018 - On `Scorpion' Drake is tired and tiring — but as beautiful an artist as ever
-
Time
2018 - his hitmaker’s instincts for melody have made him perhaps the hook-writer of the decade, with a superb ear for beats
-
Hip Hop DX
2018 - Scorpion solidifies his universal relatability while yet again supplying fans with an overload of tracks to willingly keep or ditch
-
The Atlantic
2018 - Scorpion subtly invokes spirituality as the rapper moves into fatherhood, but he’s missing the bigger message.
-
XXL Magazine
2018 - While Scorpion has more than a few future hits, it also comes with the baggage of too many options.
-
Esquire
At first drop, Scorpion is more a soap opera than anything else. Which is perfectly fitting for how popular music is consumed and analyzed in 2018.
-
All Music
Drake plunges headfirst into the icy depths of boredom and despair as the 25 songs go back and forth over the same lyrical territory and the monochromatic trap beats drag along slowly behind
-
Tiny Mix Tapes
2018 - Scattered across Scorpion are the ruins of what it aspires to be.
-
US Magazine
2018 - Yes, Scorpion is good — great at times — but like More Life, it runs about 10 songs too long.
-
San Francisco Chronicle
2018 - Drake’s sprawling ‘Scorpion’ lacks sting ... Somewhere in this expanse there might be a decent album — one that could have existed with a little vision.
-
The Quietus
2018 - This is a revealing, thrilling album by an artist who took a very particular experience and used it to create a beautiful project.
-
Noisey
2018 - The Toronto icon's newest album has moments of brilliance that are overshadowed by its length and predictability.
-
USA Today
2018 - Drake could lose half of the songs on "Scorpion" and have an excellent album
-
Entertainment Weekly
2018 - On Scorpion, he exhibits much more than a passing familiarity with that emotional side of himself.
-
The 405
2018 - "There's nothing the world needs less than a 90 minute Drake album," a peer opined upon learning I was covering Scorpion, Drake's new stream-centric, massive double album. It's hard to argue with him. Drake does his damnedest across (sigh) 25 tracks.
-
Spin
2018 These tracks succeed because they approach relationships and fatherhood as subjects for actual songwriting
-
cleveland.com
2018 - And maybe "Scorpion" is far from the classic fans were hoping for. But doesn't matter.
-
The Washington Post
2018 - And if we squint very hard, this might count as a new shade of blue for Drake. Hearing him do impersonations of more inventive artists is a specific kind of sadness that we usually see only on late night television.
-
The telegraph
2018 - the most entertaining 90 minutes you could ever spend with a miserable rapper
-
Pretty Much Amazing
2018 - Another reminder that more music doesn't mean more life.
-
Refinery29
2018 - If Drake began to allow fully formed women’s voices into his songs – not simply on the hooks – he might find himself creatively exploring new territory instead of making the same sad lonely boy record, over and over again.
-
Independent.ie
2018 - So it’s a surprise and rather a delight that Scorpion advances both our understanding of Drake and also his understanding of what is to be a superstar.
-
The Daily Dot
2018 - Within 25 tracks, an array of Drake in all of his greatest instances, both new and old, shines through.
-
Now Toronto
2018 - The hip-hop superstar's double album doesn't take chances, but at 25 tracks, it's a masterful summation of his strengths as a rapper and singer
-
Frank and Oak
2018 - What Scorpion lacks in individual track brilliance it makes up for in spades as a properly sequenced album.
-
Music OMH
2018 - There are good tracks here, about 35 minutes’ worth
-
91.9 KSDB
2018 - All 25 tracks are undeniably worth listening to. They just didn’t have to be in the same package.
-
Northern Transmissions
2018 - Drake takes what could be a tight and strong record, and instead makes it a mixed bag.
-
Treble Magazine
2018 - Drake can’t help but try to give everybody what they want, and he seems to be having a harder time deciding what precisely that is.
-
The Young Folks
2018 - Scorpion might be the most frustrating Drake album to date, because it seems like Drake taking two steps back when he had a chance to lunge forward.
-
Quench
2018 - One thing Drake definitely delivers on is the awesome variation of samples he utilises and which many you will have instantly recognised.
-
Renowned for Sound
2018 - Scorpion may receive praise from the dyed in the wool Drake fans, but those with a more critical bent are likely to walk away shaking their heads after sitting through the album, assuming they can make it all the way through in the first place.
-
Beat
2018 - All in all, pretty damn good album.
-
The Pop Topic
2018 - No matter how tired we all of Drake’s dominance, we can’t help but cheer for his new sense of maturity.
-
InspirEnrich
2018 - there’s something for everyone
-
Dope Cause We Said
2018 - it does cement Drake as being on the top of the game and shows why he’s not going anywhere anytime soon. Whether it’s his bars on side A or the emotional R&B songs of side B, "Scorpion" is definitely a must listen for the summer!
-
Vanity Fair
2018 - With Scorpion, Drake’s album release is something of a throwback (25 tracks, liner notes, and all!).
-
The Musical Hype
2018 - Although double album ‘Scorpion’ could use some edits, Drake gives listeners plenty of quality listening experiences throughout its 90-minute course.
-
Glide Magazine
2018 - It was absolutely genius that Drake made this a double album.
-
Soul in Stereo
2018 - And there’s a whole lot to throw away here. ... This album needed way less tracks. But instead it gets way more side eye.
-
Gigwise
2018 - So, look, it’s a satisfying listen, if you're in the car or whatever, and assuming you can hear past Drake's wounded pride and unseemly self-obsession.
-
Albumism
2018 - Posses Depth & Energy
-
The Illixer
2018 - If Drake just trimmed some of the fat off of this album, then I think it could have been a solid listen from start to finish.
-
College Media Network
2018 - This album specifically shows how polished the rapper is becoming. Just when you think he can’t get any bigger, he pumps out three major hits before the full album is even released.
-
Focus Hip Hop
2018 - this album is a chore to get through
-
411 Mania
2018 - There are around fourteen brilliantly constructed, content rich songs to be found on Scorpion.
-
The Nicholls Worth
2018 - While it’s too early to tell whether Drake’s most recent album is his best ever, it’s certainly justified to say that it deserves to be part of the conversation.
-
Phoenix New Times
2018 - I found every word he said corny, and because that, combined with the album’s sleepy production and overall lack of any interesting subject matter, it all coalesced into a horrible experience of unbearable length.
-
The Fresh Committee
2018 -a decent album exists here
-
Nicholas Jenning
2018 - By sticking with his confessional style, Drake continues to rule the roost.
-
Pop Dust
2018 - this album is fire — we have the sad, emotional R&B tracks that Drake fans love to hear, along with hard rap tracks that show how much time he has been in the industry
-
Top 5 Rap Website
2018 - A solid double album and the best album in years by Drake.
-
setlist.fm
2018 - The project carries an exhausted undertone, but is still found gratifying through its share of buoyant moments.
-
NME
2018 - For much of the record, Drake sounds like an artist treading water, one sticking to tried and testing methods. Lyrically, Drake too often resorts to variations on the same kind of topics and themes that we’ve become accustomed to – the claustrophobia of fame, the emptiness of loveless relations, the underdog becoming the top dog.
-
DJ Booth
2018 - The 12 songs that make up the A-SIDE is the strongest collection of records we've heard from Drake in quite some time.
-
Stereogum
2018 - Those few bright spots aside, Scorpion is an absolute fucking chore — a marathon of self-important bitching from a transformational star who’s come to believe that his success is what makes him interesting.
-
Ratings Game Music
2018 - Really, it’s just 24 solid tracks that have no interest in being trendy.
-
Hollywood Reporter
Drake's exhausting, uneven double rap/RnB record finds the artist trying to be all things to all people.
-
Diandra Reviews it All
the duality of loneliness.
-
SPECTRUM CULTURE
This is a record in limbo, a behemoth crippled by a well-timed shot to the leg.
-
EXEPOSE'
I’m struggling to figure out why Drake insists on this excessive quantity, since it would make the album a much more concise and enjoyable listen if it was cut to even 13 tracks. Whether it’s the aforementioned streaming revenue, or a desire to spread coverage of himself as far wide as possible, it’s a sting in the tail from what could’ve been a great project.
-
Daily Journal
this album is easily likable and there’s no denying it.
-
The Times
Drake has become so self-absorbed he has forgotten to make his music interesting.
-
the arts desk
Ironically given its depths of self-absorption, it’s possible that in years to come, Scorpion will be more remembered as a landmark in the rapidly shifting sands of music media and production, than for anything it says about Drake himself.
-
soulhead
Scorpion is a satisfying listen, one that finds Drake maturing, not only musically, but personally as well.
-
Reviews That No One Will Read
Outside of the 90-minute runtime, the only lasting impact that Drake can provide on Scorpion is the sheer amount of corny lyrics that teenagers can use for their captions on Instagram.
-
Financial Times
Scorpion — flabby and endlessly long.
-
SOFLOSOUND
Scorpion is lopsided as hell; Side A is better than Side B on nearly every single level, having a more interesting collection of songs, beats, flows, etc. Sure, I liked a decent amount of songs on the album, but they’re outnumbered by the sheer amount of skippable tracks. I’ll even go so far as to say that Side A wasn’t perfect at all, just good. A classic, this ain’t.
-
ErieReader.com
Scorpion is here, and it's exactly what fans can expect from 2018 Drake: a gargantuan, double-disc release designed to maximize streams and provide listeners with a normal album's worth of gems.
-
stereo board
'Scorpion' struggles to invoke much of anything at all.
-
BEAT
All in all, pretty damn good album.
-
I Know All News
Yes, Scorpion is good — great at times — but like More Life, it runs about 10 songs too long.
-
SHIFTER
Scorpion is one of Drake’s best projects in a long time. Overall, I give this album a platinum rating.
-
Wildcat 91.9
Love him or hate him, Drake will go down as of the most colossal artists of this generation. Scorpion isn’t perfect, but it only adds to his legacy.
-
GIG SOUP MUSIC
Overall, Drake is an amazing artist, understands what to piece together in creating a hit. With setting bars with every release, Drake can coast into the sun. Dropping records that no matter the case, people will stop and listen.
-
The Quietus
This is a revealing, thrilling album by an artist who took a very particular experience and used it to create a beautiful project.
-
OLDMILKTHEBLOG
Overall, “Scorpion” was one if the best Drake project’s I’ve heard.
-
Tatiana Irizar
Scorpion as yet another victory lap on music’s status quo, a stepping stone on the seemingly clear path to pop immortality.
-
OFM
The rapper opens up about his newly revealed son and reminds everyone why he’s the poet laureate of Instagram captions on a remarkably long but consistent album.
-
Ace Damon
Overall was a heavy album it’s a lot, you can’t really listen to the whole thing at once and just sitting there for a good time like I did the other day but it was a lot, and worth it.
-
MEniMusings
This album is so good with just the right amount of rap, trap and RnB with lots of replay value.
-
SLUM MUSIC
This Album deserves a solid 6.5/10 because of the packed songs that made this project, and some very mediocre tracks, but still assembling amazing production, and with showing some great spots on this album. Drake still needs to get back to his old roots but showing a sign of progression helps, and should help him in the long run.
-
SILAS BEATS
This album rinses the bitter taste of Views out of the mouths of Drake fans and shows exactly why he’s at the stage he’s at.
-
They Call Me Toast
A double-disc album can be a tricky thing and Scorpion falls from being too much. In a time in where hip-hop albums are under 10 tracks, Scorpion has some meat on the bone with plenty of fat that should’ve been cut.
-
Ball and Chain Blog
undoubtedly the best Drake project to me.
Rate This Album and Leave Your Comments