Maps of Music

Views (2016)

Where the lyrics of Views take you, and where it was really made.

The album was first announced as Views from the 6, and the shortened title Views was only revealed on its release day.

Key places

Recording location in London (2016)

Recording site The Connaught Hotel — The Connaught Hotel in London is listed as a recording location for Views. The point is placed at the hotel building. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Recording location in Toronto (2016)

Recording site Phase One Audio Group — S.O.T.A. in Toronto is listed as a recording location for Views. The point marks the city center, not the exact building. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Recording location in Atlanta (2016)

Recording site Triangle (Atlanta) — Triangle in Atlanta is listed as a recording location for Views. The point is placed at the studio location in the Virginia Highland area. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Album story

Overview

• Views: fourth studio album by Canadian rapper Drake
• Released April 29, 2016 by Cash Money Records, Republic Records, and Young Money Entertainment
• Drake and longtime collaborator 40 served as executive producers
• Guest appearances by PartyNextDoor, the late Pimp C, Dvsn, Wizkid, Kyla, Future, and Rihanna
• Takes influence from West Indian and West African music
• Marks Drake's first full foray into Jamaican dancehall
• Other genres include R&B, trap, Afrobeats, UK funky, and pop
• Themes: romance, betrayal, loyalty, and friendship

Background

• Working title was Views from the 6, first reported in a July 2014 Billboard article
• According to Drake, 'the 6' refers to his hometown of Toronto, Ontario
• Title shortened to Views, revealed April 29, 2016
• Drake had explored dancehall previously on the 2015 mixtape If You're Reading This It's Too Late
• Five singles: One Dance, Hotline Bling, Pop Style, Controlla, and Too Good
• Drake revealed on April 26, 2016 that the album would contain 20 songs, more than any previous album excluding bonus tracks
• On May 14, 2016, Drake hosted Saturday Night Live and sang One Dance and Hype

Recording

• Recording sessions took place from 2015 to 2016
• 40 primarily handled production, alongside Nineteen85, Maneesh Bidaye, Kanye West, and Jordan Ullman
• Recording locations listed for the album: London, Toronto, and Atlanta

Cover

• Cover artwork released April 24, 2016 via Drake's Twitter account
• Shows Drake sitting atop the CN Tower in Toronto, appearing significantly larger than life-size
• The image was widely discussed, and the CN Tower's Twitter account later confirmed it was photoshopped
• Album cover and booklet shot by Toronto-based photographer Caitlin Cronenberg

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Tracklist

Sources: musicbrainz.org

Artist

Career

• Aubrey Drake Graham, born October 24, 1986 in Toronto, Ontario, is a Canadian rapper, singer and actor.
• Gained recognition as Jimmy Brooks in the CTV teen drama Degrassi: The Next Generation (2001–2008).
• Independently released mixtapes Room for Improvement (2006), Comeback Season (2007) and So Far Gone (2009) before signing with Young Money Entertainment in 2009.
• Debut album Thank Me Later (2010) debuted atop the Billboard 200; followed by Take Care (2011), Nothing Was the Same (2013), Views (2016), Scorpion (2018), Certified Lover Boy (2021) and Iceman (2026).
• Views led the Billboard 200 for 13 weeks; "One Dance" became the first song to surpass 1 billion streams on Spotify.
• Among the world's best-selling artists with over 170 million units sold; the highest-certified digital singles artist in the United States.
• Accolades include 5 Grammy Awards, 6 American Music Awards, 41 Billboard Music Awards, 2 Brit Awards and 3 Juno Awards.
• Founded OVO Sound, DreamCrew and the fragrance house Better World; became global ambassador of the Toronto Raptors in 2013.
• Known for feuds with Kanye West and Kendrick Lamar; the 2024 feud with Lamar is reported to have damaged his public image.

Reception

At release

• Critics gave lukewarm reviews, and many found the album overlong and lacking a cohesive theme
• MTV's Meghan Garvey linked the response to Drake's unwillingness or inability to evolve beyond his signature sound
• The New York Times' Jon Caramanica said Drake's emotional excavations were less striking than a few years earlier
• The A.V. Club's Evan Rytlewski said Drake had done this before and done it better, calling the album too long and stubbornly low energy
• Neil McCormick in The Daily Telegraph praised the evocative production and rapping but criticized the continued navel gazing
• Andy Gill in The Independent was more critical and panned the album as utterly wearying and unpersuasive
• Alexis Petridis in The Guardian wrote a largely positive review and called it compelling evidence that this is the defining pop artist of the moment
• Kitty Empire in The Observer found the lyrical and production detail pin-sharp
• Andy Cowan in Mojo said the overly introspective themes were redeemed by Drake's nimble flow and sense of humor
• NME's Nick Levine said Drake's signature downbeat introspection remains gripping
• Mikael Wood in the Los Angeles Times wrote that the record features a number of deeply beautiful tracks

Reappraisal

• Metacritic: 69 out of 100, based on 31 reviews, indicating generally favorable reviews
• AnyDecentMusic?: 6.7 out of 10, based on its assessment of the critical consensus

Records

• Debuted at number one on the US Billboard 200 with 1.04 million album-equivalent units in its first week, including 852,000 pure sales
• First week streams exceeded 245 million, a then-record
• Spent 13 non-consecutive weeks at number one on the Billboard 200
• Debuted at number one on the UK Albums Chart with 78,000 sales, Drake's first UK number one
• Drake held 20 songs on the Billboard Hot 100 in the debut week, a record
• Certified Diamond by the RIAA and six times platinum by Music Canada
• Sold over seven million certified units worldwide
• Canada: 110,000 album-equivalent units sold
• 2016 total of 4.14 million album-equivalent units, second best-selling album of 2016 in pure sales
• Won Top Billboard 200 Album and Top Rap Album at the 2017 Billboard Music Awards

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Trivia

• The single Summer Sixteen premiered on OVO Sound Radio on January 30, 2016, and sold 215,000 copies in its first week, the highest debut sales of Drake's career at the time.
• Hotline Bling, the lead single, was released on July 31, 2015, but was included only as a bonus track on the physical album.
• Drake and his team released the cover art via Twitter on April 24, 2016, and the CN Tower's Twitter account later confirmed the image was photoshopped.
• Three of the five singles were primarily dancehall songs: One Dance, Controlla, and Too Good.
• Drake's SNL hosting on May 14, 2016 included performances of One Dance and Hype.

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

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