Drake’s sophomore album Take Care is on the way (Oct. 24th), and late last night we got our first official single off the album titled “Headlines.” Drizzy announced the title of the track mid-week last week and said it was coming soon, so although it was no real shock to see “Headlines” drop last night, there was no shortage of excitement and anticipation. Drake’s been on top of his game lately with tracks like “Dreams Money Can Buy”, “Marvin’s Room” and “Trust Issues, so the bar was naturally set pretty high for the first “official” single.
“Headlines,” produced by Boi-1da and 40, is a really impressive track. The beat is extremely catchy, and conceptually this song is cool – introspective but not overly self-indulgent. I’m not sure I like it as much as what I consider a riskier and more creative song like “Marvin’s Room,” but I think the first time I hear this on the radio in the car I’m gonna go nuts like I did with “Dreams Money Can Buy.” Hearing a song for the first time the minute it drops on the internet can make it pretty easy to critique it no holds barred, but often times it’ll sound totally different, better, once you hear it at a concert, club, on the radio (before it gets sickeningly overplayed), etc.
Either way, whether you love this track or hate it, you’ve gotta admit that Drake has really evolved from what he was a couple years ago or even this time last year. His flow and delivery have improved, and to me his voice never reaches that annoying pitch like it used to pretty often. Content-wise, the wordplay on Drizzy’s new tracks is just as strong, but the difference is there aren’t as many tacky metaphors and quick-hit similes like you could find in abundance pre-Thank Me Later. Instead, a track like this one has a more wholesome feel where you can actually follow from start to finish without getting caught up in what once felt like forced wordplay.
My guess is that this song will be hitting iTunes as a single on Tuesday. And remember, Take Care is set to release October 24th. That may seem like a long way off, but thankfully it’ll be here before you know it.
