At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream publications, the album received an average score of 69, based on 31 reviews. Views received lukewarm reviews from critics. On May 14, Drake was the host and musical guest on an episode of Saturday Night Live, where he sang "One Dance" and "Hype". On September 26, Drake released a short film on Apple Music, titled "Please Forgive Me", which features several songs from Views. On April 29, the album premiered on Apple Music's OVO Sound Radio, following his interview with Beats 1's radio host Zane Lowe, and then released on both Apple Music and iTunes exclusively, followed by a release on to other digital retailers and a physical release a week later, and a release on to other streaming services a week after that.
After his last "pop-up" store stop in his home city of Toronto, Drake released the album's cover artwork on social media. According to 40, a mixes for the clean versions were finished, as well as having all sample clearances and credits were finalized On April 26, Drake revealed that Views would include 20 or more songs than any of his previous albums, excluding the bonus tracks.
On April 9, Drake released a trailer for Views on Twitter. Drake opened the "pop-up" stores, giving away free black and white T-shirts with "Views" written on the front. On April 4, 2016, the album was initially teased in London. The song peaked at number six on the Billboard Hot 100, selling 215,000 copies in its first week, making it the highest debut sales of Drake's career. On March 26, 2016, that single sold 358,000 copies in the United States. The song contains a slowed-down sample of "Glass Tubes" performed by Brian Bennett. The cover art was designed by Filip Pągowski, who was a creator of the Comme des Garçons logo. The track was produced by 40, Boi-1da and Cubeatz. The fact that Drake was significantly larger than life-size on the cover was widely discussed, and CN Tower's Twitter account later confirmed it to be photoshopped.ĭrake premiered a single, called "Summer Sixteen" through OVO Sound Radio on January 30, 2016. The cover artwork for Views was released via Drake's Twitter account on April 24, 2016, which features Drake sitting atop the CN Tower in Toronto. On April 29, 2016, it was revealed that the title had been shortened to Views. According to Drake on Twitter, "the 6" is a reference to his hometown of Toronto, Ontario. Drake gets nostalgic for his childhood friend Renny, an early producer.The album's title was first announced as Views from the 6, as it first appeared from a report in a July 2014 article from Billboard. In just one part, he reminiscences about a lot of what life was like growing up in a "sketchy" area of Toronto and gives a shout out to his a childhood friend turned collaborator.Īccording to Toronto Life, “ Weston Road Flows” is “a throwback to Aubrey’s younger days, growing up on the sketchier west side of town. He makes several references to his hometown throughout the album and “Weston Road Flows” is especially autobiographical for his fans and gives an inside look at his personal relationships. The song really paints a nice picture of Drake’s journey to fame. Blige in the background, "Weston Road Flows" tells a story of the complicated relationship Drake has with his hometown in Toronto since he's made it big and how he can stay true to his roots through it all.ĭrake’s entire fourth album is a shout out to his hometown in Canada and “Weston Road Flows” is a throwback to his past and is dedicated to the street he grew up on. After weeks of teasing, the Canadian rapper released his fourth studio album with hot singles like “Hotline Bling” and “One Dance” that obviously stand out and easily pump you up, but what does Drake’s throwback track “Weston Road Flows” mean? With the hazy vocals of hip hop legend Mary J.
You’re probably not alone if you’ve been listening to Drake’s new album Views from the 6 on repeat since it was released last month.