Edd’s MANtra: Everybody Loves Drake

Oh snap, light-skinned brothers are back in style!

You might recall me mentioning Drake, the latest rapper/singer that the kids are in love with. He has a achieved an inexplicable buzz in the past few months, like Lil Wayne did a year and a half ago. In an attempt to convert me into a Drake fan, or as just an excuse to get me to stop whining about young artists and their lack of skill, my brother-in-law recently gave me a copy of two of Drake’s mixtapes, Heartbreak Drake and So Far Gone.

And you know what? They ain’t half bad.

Lyrically, I’d say Drake is above average – which of course means he’s miles ahead of his peers. He possesses Wayne’s knockout punchlines, minus the bizarre, drugged-out goofiness. And as a vocalist, he’s just as impressive. He’s no Luther, but his range easily beats today’s acts, including that farce known as The-Dream.

Drake already has acting experience, playing on Degrassi: The Next Generation, has been endorsed by elder statesmen like Jay-Z and is being managed by the same group that help launch Kanye West’s The College Dropout. He’ll be in those skinny jeans in no time.

Even with all these credentials, even I had to take a step back when I checked out the wifey’s Facebook update yesterday afternoon:

“Javacia N. Harris can’t stop listening to Drake’s “Sooner Than Later.”

Keep in mind that this is the woman who only listens to Christian guys who strum guitars and rappers with the surname “Fiasco” or “3000.” With softly sung lyrics like this, you can see why the ladies drool over this dude: “When the lights don’t glow the same way they used to/and I finally get a moment to myself/I will realize you were everything I missing/and you tell me you’re in love with someone else.”

Awww, he so sensitive.

Of course, in the next song he’s talking about alternating booty calls between three girls and how rich he is (yeah, right), but that’s hip hop for ya.

When you see Al B. Sure’s mini-me all over the place in six months, remember I told you so. He’s sensitive enough to sooth the ladies, and he talks enough smack to appeal to dudes. There’s enough raw talent to make an impact. If he can smooth over some of his rough edges, like his needless reliance on that infernal auto-tune and lame beats, he’ll even win me over. But y’all know I stay hatin’.