Coming off the heels of his 11th studio album, For All the Dogs, rapper Drake returns with his third installment of his Scary Hours series.
The six-song extended play contains a feature from rapper J. Cole, with production from industry giants like Boi-1da and the Alchemist.
The EP contains tracks that sound like the Drake fans fell in love with in the early 2010s. Throughout the project, Drake is trying to prove a point. He almost wants to regain the throne; being the best rapper of this generation.
This six-song run is the best sounding run from Drake in recent memory. If this was on For All the Dogs, along with the few tracks that stuck out from that record, we would be looking at one of the best Drake records ever.
Within the first line of the project on the track “Red Button,” Drake raps, “The most decorated, competition decimated.” Listening to that opening line along with the vocal sample in the production, it was without a doubt, that this was going to be a conscious session from Drake.
Drake throughout the record takes jabs at some of his most famous opponents, such as media personality Joe Budden, and fellow rapper Ye. Drake and Yeezy seemed to make addends when they did a joint concert, back in 2021. However, it seems like there are still a few rifts in the relationship.
“Every time that Yeezy called a truce, he had my head inflated. Thinking ’we gon’ finally peace it up and get to levitating,” Drake said “Red Button.”
One of the best moments is the track, “The Shoe Fits.” This six-minute rapping performance is one of his best. There are very few songs nowadays at that length that have replay value. This, however, gets better and better with every listen. You pick up on a different line each time you hit play. It is one of his best tracks in a long time.
The best track through is the one with J. Cole; “Evil Ways.” This track is proof that Cole and Drake are two of the best MCs in rap. The performance of both is braggadocios and it feels like they are trying to outrap the other person. The track is full of punchlines and bars. This is the best lyrical track of the year by a mile.
This year in rap has been a slow one with little quality, even though we have had albums by giants such as Travis Scott, Gunna, and Young Thug. Scary Hours 3 is one of the best records of the year. It is the best six song run this year and one of the best sounded runs this year.
Drake has once again proved, when in the right mindset he can hold his own with the greatest in the genre. Scary Hours 3 adds to his already legendary catalog and legendary lyrical cuts.
