I love Drake.
I don’t care if his music is too “poppy”, or if he sounds like a teddy bear trying to act tough. I love Drake. I think he’s a lot smarter and a lot more talented than many hip-hop purists give him credit for. He’s the artist who got me into the genre, and having spent the majority of my life living in either Toronto or the suburbia surrounding it (which I affectionately call the 5, for the Greater Toronto Area’s 905 area code), I almost feel obligated to respect him. After all, he’s the proud Canadian Boy-Next-Door who put Toronto back on the map.
It’s just, as much as I hate to admit it, I don’t always think this respect goes both ways.
Does Drake respect women?
It pains me to even ask the question, and not only because I’m a big fan of his. Everything about Drake’s persona just screams of respect for women. You listen to his music and develop this picture in your head of a man who will think you’re pretty without make-up, someone who thinks you deserve better friends, someone who still calls his mom regularly.
Hip-hop, and the music industry as a whole, has definitely capitalized on women’s sexuality in a way that is inherently exploitative- whether it’s pushing barley legal former child stars into “provocative” roles in order for them to prove their artistic merit, or casting women as nameless “hoes” in order for a rapper to prove his suave and superiority.
So it’s obviously refreshing to turn on the radio and hear a guy talking about he knows his girlfriends are actually “good girls”- it sounds, at first listen, like the women in Drake songs have their own agency and merit, and aren’t being degraded. But, with a closer look at both his hits and lesser-known songs a dark pattern is revealed. Between slut-shaming and condescending tones and the expectation that women owe him something, there’s definitely a darker side to Drizzy’s music that often goes unnoticed. But don’t take my word for, let’s look at the evidence
Hotline Bling
While we were all too busy jamming to what could potentially be one of the jammiest jams in the history of jamming, this hit was already sparking a mainstream conversation about Drake and feminism. While the song’s narrative clearly casts Drake as a heartbroken guy watching his ex “change”, the lyrical content has us questioning whether or not his position is righteous. He bemoans his girlfriend “running out of pages in [her] passport”, “hanging with some girls” he hasn’t met, and going out with friends more often.
Travelling and being social aren’t exactly things we should shame a woman for doing- and if she was unable to spend some fun nights out with friends and go globe-trotting while she was dating Drake, what does that say about their relationship? Drake definitely comes across as controlling rather than sensitive- and even adds a little slut-shaming jab about how she’s “wearing less”.
But at the same time, this song serves as a shining example of why I’m always defending Drake: his songs are such descriptive, personal narratives that you want to just immediately be like, no, you don’t understand, this girl shouldn’t be going out partying or drinking champagne, because like, if you knew this girl, it would be a total 360 from who she used to be. See, it’s only situational, not a general judgment of women.
But alas, things will get more general- and straight up scary.
And How About Now
In this track, Drake unleashes his inner man child. He tries to convince his ex- or his audience- that he was the picture-perfect boyfriend, deleting other girls from his phone, going to church for her, buying her dad Christmas presents and even being so courteous as to drive in the snow to take her to her BAR exam. This desperate attempt to show the world what a great guy he is comes off as the classic “Nice Guy” act- he put in the amount of effort that should be expected in a romantic relationship, and expects to be rewarded for it. The Nice Guy act is only strengthened by the fact he uses the chorus to brag about his success and talk about how his ex “sucks right now”. Don’t you just love men who are so nice to you- like, driving in snow nice- when they want to be with you, and then turn around and try to insult and embarrass you when things go sour?
Fireworks
“I’m such a gentleman, you should give it up for me.”
Need I say more?
Diamonds Dancing
This song, which is a collaboration with other problematic rapper Future, is one of the worst in his catalogue for slut shaming and sexism. In this song, Drake is once again faced with an ex-lover who just won’t stop living after their relationship is over. This time, she isn’t catching up on girl talk or making new friends, she’s doing what the majority of the human population will do at some point after a break-up: she’s moving on and dating others.
So, does Drake handle this heartbreak by looking back on happy memories? By pledging to improve himself in order to win her back? By being happy for her, or moving on himself? Nah, he just slut shames her for a couple verses. He tells her that her own mother would be ashamed of her, and asks her how she can live with herself. He says that her new man can’t “save her soul”- as though a) having sex is an unforgivable sin and b) sex with Drake is the one exception to this rule. He also calls her ungrateful, says she belongs with her new guy because they’re both “unstable”, condescendingly tells her not to have “late nights” anymore by shaming her appearance, and saying that it shows.
I miss the old Drake, girl don’t tempt me.
Make Me Proud and You and the Six
Both of these tracks always make me smile. In Make Me Proud, Drake talks about a girl he’s proud of: she’s university educated, she runs on the treadmill and eats salad, she’s interested in more than a one-night stand. Drake tells her that he’s proud of her, and that she can handle whatever life throws at her. It’s a genuinely sweet sentiment.
You and the Six is a song he’s writing to his mom- he tells her he’s grateful for her, and tells her not to worry so much. It’s another genuinely sweet song where Drake seems to show an authentic respect for the women in his life- even commenting that the girl his mom wants to set him up with is probably an “angel”, but doesn’t want her to get involved with the busy and hectic life of a famous rapper for her own sake.
So, does Drake respect women?
It’s obvious that Drake has some disrespect towards women- he shames them for not living up to his own standards of what makes a “good girl”, he thinks that women are sluts if they sleep with anyone but him, he often makes low blows against his exes in his songs, like telling them that their mothers should be ashamed of them. It’s very clear that Drake often sees the women in his life only in relation to himself and his needs- he sees them as people to potentially date or sleep with or care for, and not as beings with their own agency and individual needs. When he’s with them, they owe him for his gentlemanly nature, and when he’s not with them, they don’t have the right to enjoy their lives- whether that means having sex or being out with girlfriends or travelling. Drake’s sexism may be a lot more subtle than other artists’, but it’s still rooted in the belief that women are lesser- and that women have obligations to men.
However, I think there’s hope.
The reason why I included Make Me Proud and You and the Six is because I feel like the two tracks do highlight his ability to respect women. Yes, Drake makes it clear that his respect is conditional based on the fact the women he’s talking about have lived up to his standards- he wouldn’t be so proud if his girlfriend had, like him, chosen not to pursue postsecondary. But I think these two tracks really expose the Drake problem: he has respect for women, but he believes some women are lesser than others, and the criteria for a “lesser” woman is pretty warped.
But, after all, there are women who feel this way too- that harmless life choices that women make should dictate whether or not they deserve respect. I feel like Drake honestly feels like he is a nice guy- and that he’s looking out for a woman’s best interest when he chastises them. I honestly believe Drake, like many people in the world, could benefit from a little bit of feminist awakening- and that maybe we can expect to hear a Drizzy apology track sometime in the future. Maybe it’s wishful thinking, though, maybe it’s just because I love Drake.
I just feel like he has the potential to learn and love us- and respect us- back.
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