Drake toyed with our emotions in 2012 as we all anxiously awaited a new song from the Young Money singer. As the year rolled on, we all became worried. When Fall came and Mr. October’s Very Own still didn’t have a single to his name, I think the world’s patience had run thin. Still, we had to respect that Drizzy had something planned and that he had been all over the hip-hop game with features on some of the biggest records of the year.
But finally, on February 2nd at 8:08 PM, the world received the first official Drake single in over eight months. That may not seem like such a long time, but it is when it’s actually your first new release as the lead artist in over 18 months. This being said, the world’s expectations grow as time passes, so the expectation for Drizzy’s first new single was very high.
“Started from the Bottom” was released by Drake personally on his blog, October’s Very Own. Aubrey attached a personal note to the post. The caption began, “My good friends, It has truly been too long”. The note went on to explain the meaning behind the song which tells Drake’s rags-to-riches biography in a way that doesn’t go too deep into personal experiences.
The world wasn’t expecting the new track until Grammys night (the next Sunday), as previously announced. The Twitter world was set afire by the news that “SFTB” had been released early. I, myself wasn’t able to hear the song yet, but I did scroll through my Twitter timeline to see a lot of tweeters expressing disappointment in the new single. Almost shocked that people would have anything less than positive to say about a Drake single, I took to the OVO blog to listen to the track for myself.
Off the bat, the first thing that has to be noted about “Started from the Bottom” is the production credits. Mike Zombie is a producer that I, nor most of the rest of the world I assume, were familiar with. A crucial part of the Drizzy formula is Noah Shebib (more commonly known as “40”). While this isn’t the first time that Drake has spit over an instrumental created by someone other than 40 (“HYFR” – T-Minus, “The Ride” – Doc McKinney & The Weeknd), it is slightly out of the norm. As the track begins, it becomes more and more apparent that 40 had no hand in this production.
Almost every Drake song in the past had a few key aspects that made it a Drake song. Among these are a 40 beat, poetic lyrics and a signature mixture of singing and rapping. This being true, when we’re introduced with a trap beat, a producer’s tag, and an almost mindless and effortless hook –“Started from the bottom now we here” repeated a few times — I think I, and the rest of the world, were a bit taken back. More than being taken back, I think a lot of us were thinking, “This can’t be Drake”. Not only is the beat selection different, but Drake’s vocals seem to have no regard for pitch, which is odd. It really almost sounds like this whole track was done in one take.
The only part where we really start to hear the Drake that we are familiar with come to the front is on the bridge. Entering with catchy lyrics reading, “No new niggas, nigga we don’t feel that, Fuck a fake friend, where ya real friends at?”, listeners could almost let out a sigh of relief knowing that there were still signs of a Take Care-type Drake in the future. This part really saved the song for me. Without it, listeners might think that Drake has moved to a dumbed-down, more “hip-hop”-type sound for the next phase of his career.
So, what does “Started from the Bottom” mean for Drake? Well, it’s not all negative. Of course, a new single means that Drake is back. In fact, he says so himself on the blog post, saying, “Judging by this post, the tour that we’ve been planning, the conversations about new songs and album artwork…I think it’s safe to say we’re back together again”. This is great news. The fear that I think most listeners and fans alike have, is whether this track is evidence of a new sound that Drake is moving towards or just a one-time deal. The biggest thing that we have to consider is 40’s absence. We have to wonder why Drake wouldn’t recruit one of the best producers alive to construct what would should’ve been one of his biggest singles to date. I hope that there hasn’t been some sort of falling out between the two. We still have no title for Drake’s third studio album, but we hope that 40 returns to handle the majority of the production.
Take a listen to “Started from the Bottom” below.
