Drake - If You're Reading This It's Too Late (2015)

Simply put, If You're Reading This It's Too Late was bound to be iconic. Even the dang cover is iconic, from its plainness to its chicken-scratch handwriting that looks like a suicide note from the Chick-Fil-A cow. But most of all, If You're Reading This It's Too Late validated Drake's status as rap's superstar. Only he can really get away with releasing a mixtape with a price tag (and do it twice in one year).

There's serious debate on whether or not This is a mixtape or not. If it is, it's certainly one of the most polished and well-done mixtapes I've listened to. If not, it's a worthy entry in Drake's album output. Even the wikipedia article for the project can't decide whether or not it's a mixtape.

But there's no arguing whether or not This is great music. It is. Drake's no longer the weepy boy in the corner (though that Drake made the intimate masterpiece Take Care), instead he's a confident, slightly paranoid champion. If Nothing Was the Same was a big hoorah, This is his victory lap. Drake knows he's the hottest in the world right now. He doesn't have to say so,  since this release speaks for itself.

Standout tracks are the one-two openers "Legend", "Energy", the meme-worthy "Know Yourself", and the Diddy Kong sampling "6 God". If You're Reading This It's Too Late does run a little too long, but it's consistently solid, and more often than not touches greatness.

8/10