R&B/hip-hop rapper Drake and trap enthusiast Future have officially dropped their joint-mixtape What a Time to be Alive. While the highly-anticipated work was predicted by fans to be “fire,” this mixtape’s flames can easily be put out by a hand towel.
A weak follow-up to Drake’s If You’re Reading This It’s Too Late and Future’s third studio album DS2, the underwhelming mixtape offers little chance of being remembered in the next year.
Travi$ Scott’s latest is ‘trill’ ode to 2015 trends like psychedelic vibes, The Weeknd
Drake’s unlikely collaboration with Future hinted a shift in style for Champagne Papi. But tracks like “Plastic Bag” demonstrate Drake’s reluctance to get trapped in the trap scene.
In contrast, Future goes hard (and quite possibly bumps his head on the way) in the opening tracks “Digital Dash” and “Big Rings.”
Droning on with the typical Migos-esque rap style, the mixtape is already repetitive and boring in its first 10 minutes. Though Drake’s style gets a bit aggressive, unlike his usual “Yolanda, why’d ya leave?” feelsy sound, his poor imitation of the trap scene leaves him disconnected from Future throughout the entire mixtape.
Along with the monotonous beats and styles, some of the hooks Future spits become mind-numbing after one verse. With lyrics like, “Really I’m the plug, really I’m the plug / Really I’m the plug, really I’m the plug / Really I’m the plug, really I’m the plug,” we wonder why it was really necessary to repeat that over and over.
Despite What a Time to be Alive’s mediocrity, in tracks like “Live from the Gutter” and “30 for 30 Freestyle,” Drake’s trademark sound was recovered. His signature style on the latter track proves to be the selling point of his involvement, and perhaps the mixtape itself. This comes to no surprise as “30 for 30 Freestyle” was solely produced by Noah “40” Shebib, Drake’s co-founder at OVO Sound.
In the following year, the mixtape will be lightly heard in the background of laid-back hangouts, with a slight chance of success for two or three tracks. But overall, the mixtape is dominated by Future with a few features from Drake. Future’s “future” in the rap game as a trap artist is solidified with this mixtape, while Drake will (or should) go back to rapping about Yolanda and why she left.
