Nothing Was the Same
by Drake
  • Record Label: Island
  • Release Date: Sep 24, 2013
User Score
7.7

Generally favorable reviews- based on 558 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 444 out of 558
  2. Mixed: 57 out of 558
  3. Negative: 57 out of 558
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  1. clem666
    Jun 20, 2021
    8
    The very first Drake album I listened to in its entirety and as a whole back in the days. So undeniably this review doesn't even pretend to be objective. Feels so nostalgic now. Today it still remains my favorite one of his entire discography because it contains some songs that clearly made me grow and dream.

    Unfortunately considering 'Nothing Was the Same' as a whole project requires    The very first Drake album I listened to in its entirety and as a whole back in the days. So undeniably this review doesn't even pretend to be objective. Feels so nostalgic now. Today it still remains my favorite one of his entire discography because it contains some songs that clearly made me grow and dream.

    Unfortunately considering 'Nothing Was the Same' as a whole project requires to consider all tracks, and sadly some are far from being even decent. While braggadocious tracks as 'Worst Behaviour', 'The Language' and 'Started from the Bottom' were here as single leaders and to showcase the album, the rest feels and sounds miles away from the overall mentality of the record. 'Tuscan Leather', 'Furthest Thing', 'Too Much' and 'From Time' appear to be the most beautiful and deepest songs of the album. Drake sounds more confident than ever, he sounds clear, even wise sometimes despite his numerous childish and adolescent phases making him validate muddy and wobbly lyrics.

    The production is amazing: it is spacious, eclectic, surprising and deep. The featured artists' performances (Sampha, Jhené Aiko, Majid Jordan, Jay-Z) are particularly noticable and create an agreeable mix with Drake's team work. When he takes his time to deliver decent lyrics it suddenly becomes more compelling than ever. If you manage to get over Drake's sabotage of some laughable tracks and give this project its chance there is much to bet that you will feel the incredible vibe 'Nothing Was the Same' has to offer. According to me Drake had the opportunity to reach the 10 out of 10 without all these (surprisingly popular) fillers. I want this 9/10 to reflect how creative and authentic this artist can be if he just follows the right path and reasonable advice around him.    … Expand
  2. adhamhany
    Oct 3, 2013
    7
    Good album. Some tracks in there are really great But overall, it doesn't rise to the same level of his previous work. His flow is still as nearly impeccable as it was, and his singing is good well. It's just that in terms of lyrics and beats, it felt like more of the same.
  3. fifi3
    Jan 16, 2020
    7
    This is an album of magnificent high points and some brutal low points. The former outweighs the latter, though, as Drake has a timeless collection of songs in here such as Tuscan Leather, Furthest Thing and Too Much. It's soulful, eclectic and versatile, and really good music; even if it falls apart towards the back end.
  4. Mab_987
    Dec 16, 2013
    6
    I'm generally new to Drake, but since "Started from the Bottom" & "Hold On, We're Going Home" gave me completely different impressions I figured I'd check this out as a full-length introduction. I definitely like it more than I don't, even if I'll have more to say on the negative side of things. The album starts with 2 great songs that capture the best of both sides of Drake'sI'm generally new to Drake, but since "Started from the Bottom" & "Hold On, We're Going Home" gave me completely different impressions I figured I'd check this out as a full-length introduction. I definitely like it more than I don't, even if I'll have more to say on the negative side of things. The album starts with 2 great songs that capture the best of both sides of Drake's songwriting. “Tuscan Leather” has a very interesting instrumental, taking one vocal sample & manipulating it into 3 differently-paced & equally well-arranged beats, one for each verse of the chorusless track. Lyrically it's basically brag-rap, but the kind of brag-rap I can get behind, more than anything because it sounds authentic in a way. He takes the time to feel rightfully confident about his success, while never getting overly obnoxious or idiotic about it. Is it complicated or clever all the way through? Not exactly. But I think it does what it set out to do pretty well. Same could be said about closing track “Pound Cake Paris Morton Music 2”, which has a decent verse from Jay-Z & another great vocal sample-driven beat. Meanwhile tracks like “Furthest Thing”, “From Time” & “Too Much” lament the effect these successes have on personal relationships & the conflict presented between loved ones & fame in a really clear & effective way over comparatively much more downbeat & solemn instrumentals driven by atmospheric synths. And while “Hold On, We're Going Home” has a few lovey-dovey cliches & can be a bit repetitive, but I still can't help but love it as a well-written smooth R&B-laced pop song. Either way, it's clear that Drake does have the talent to make songs with moods this different work cohesively together.

    Unfortunately I feel like he can't really carry either of those personalities over the duration of a whole hour-long album, since after a while both tend to get stale. On the braggadocios side of things, for me “Worst Behavior”, “The Language” & “All Me” (feat. the always insufferable 2Chainz & Big Sean) are all major low points, filled with lazy about wealth delivered with a delivery that sound like he's not even trying to have any real flow or cadence. Then there's “Started from the Bottom”. Look, if you've seen any kind of criticism of this song then you've heard the arguments that he grew up an actor on a very popular show & lived in an upper-middle class neighborhood with a very stable home life, which is far from “the bottom”. Also that his ideas of “struggle” are traffic & the occasional argument with your parents. But I read an interview where he said that his real troubles were with getting into the rap game transitioning from TV. Which really makes this song more of a wasted opportunity than anything else. I would've found a song where he details the problems he faced making this transition in the beginning of his music career very interesting if he put enough good thought & imagery in there. Instead he made a short, lazy throwaway single that didn't exactly help convince hip hop fans that he's worth listening to. But on the other side of things you have these monotonous breakup songs that just drag the album down for me & paint Drake as a whiny prick who just won't let go of the past. One more track I'll mention is “305 to My City”, a bizarrely pointless love song to a stripper that's pretty much inconsequential & has a chorus that really grates on me.

    The other problem I have is Drake's vocals. I get that he wants to blur the lines between rapper & singer, and he's definitely capable in both areas on a technical level, but would it kill this guy to emote once in a while?! Around 70% of the time, he's in this flat monotone that's somewhere between the 2 vocal styles that just comes off awkward to me. No matter how emotional his lyrical content might get, I can never feel him expressing it vocally. And it's not like the rapper/singer vocalist hasn't been done well before. It's just that Drake seems to be unable to decide what to do on a given song, and instead settles for a boring medium that does neither vocal style justice & only drags the song down because of it. Heck, the few moments where he dedicates a song or verse to one of these styles, like “Tuscan Leather” or “Hold On, We're Going Home”, are easily 2 of the moments on this album I found most entertaining sound-wise. Overall, I didn't dislike this album as much as I was fearing, but I didn't like it as much as I was hoping. It's a decent outing, if quite a mixed bag. While I'm not a fan of Drake quite yet, I can definitely see potential in his abilities to make an album that's great top to bottom.

    Top 5 tracks: Furthest Thing, Hold On We're Going Home, Tuscan Leather, Too Much, From Time
    Score: 64/100
    (For a longer & more detailed review, look up the Facebook page "That Non-Elitist Music Fan".)    … Expand
  5. Hendo250
    Apr 6, 2021
    7
    this album is a 7 this album is a 7 this album is a 7 this album is a 7 this album is a 7
  6. FruitJuice
    Jul 17, 2017
    7
    good album............................................................................................................................................................
  7. Spangle
    Sep 24, 2013
    6
    Possibly Drake's best album, after a few run throughs I am still left thinking that Drake has yet to put together his talent into an really top-notch album. There are moments, namely on "Tuscan Leather", "Furthest Thing", and "All Me", where I think that Drake may have finally reached his potential, but then tracks like "Own It" and "Worst Behavior" convince me otherwise. Overall, tooPossibly Drake's best album, after a few run throughs I am still left thinking that Drake has yet to put together his talent into an really top-notch album. There are moments, namely on "Tuscan Leather", "Furthest Thing", and "All Me", where I think that Drake may have finally reached his potential, but then tracks like "Own It" and "Worst Behavior" convince me otherwise. Overall, too inconsistent to be more than average, but really close to breaking through with his first win in my books.… Expand
  8. geedup
    Sep 24, 2013
    4
    Drake isn't rap. It maybe a form of hip hop-certainly a part I can do without. I can positively say he speaks real and is different from alot of things out there. I liked maybe 2 tracks at most. But less than half the tracks on the Cd actually have him rapping. The rest are attempts at singing or something like that. If I want singing I can find much more talented artists to listen to.
  9. ChiIIaoi
    Jul 19, 2023
    5
    Review só pra lembrar a nota que eu dei pro album:
    album ok, agora só escrever pra passar dos 75 caracteres.
  10. Jiano74
    Jan 29, 2016
    0
    Well Drake does it again, fails drastically. This album is pathetic I thought this guy was a rapper what a poor excuse for rapper this album is a true joke and one that should be missed.
  11. Connorcox1997
    Mar 6, 2019
    10
    For the haters who think Drake is lame, shame on you. Back in 2013 Drake's third Album, Nothing Was the Same is a great album. Drake continues to improve his bars and his flow even better. The Beats are straight up on fire, and the production is dope. I love the songs from the album. There are dope songs on the album that I enjoyed, like "Started from the Bottom," "Wu-Tang Forever," "TheFor the haters who think Drake is lame, shame on you. Back in 2013 Drake's third Album, Nothing Was the Same is a great album. Drake continues to improve his bars and his flow even better. The Beats are straight up on fire, and the production is dope. I love the songs from the album. There are dope songs on the album that I enjoyed, like "Started from the Bottom," "Wu-Tang Forever," "The Language," and his most popular song 'All Me ft 2 Chainz and Big Sean. And his sad songs like "From Time ft Jhene Aiko," and the last song on the album "Pound Cake / Paris Morton Music 2 ft Jay Z." But my favorite song on the album and my favorite from Drake has got to be "Hold On, We're Going Home ft Majid Jordan" I like the beat on the song, it definitely sounds catchy, and it remains as one of Drake's best songs of his career. Nothing Was the Same is a great album, and like his last album, this album is a must listen. I Highly recommend it. 10/10… Expand
  12. Skydog
    Sep 27, 2013
    1
    People on here claiming that if you don't like Drake, you don't know music are the prime example of why the music industry f*cking sucks and has since '95.
    This album was terrible, i even gave it a chance (I haven't listened to rap in years)
    You cannot tell this is a "Classic" album, it doesn't take more than one guy to make beats and talk fast over them.
  13. lisiak
    Jan 6, 2016
    7
    'Nothing Was the Same' is nice album by Drake. Drizzy why didn't you get '5am in Toronto' here?! Favourite tracks; 'Worst Behavior', 'Stared from the buttom'. 7/10
  14. blogfirstlast
    Sep 25, 2013
    5
    I think Drake lost the best rapper in Young Money once Ace Hood came in. Although this album is not bad, it's extremely forgettable and it seems like if this wasn't Drakes album, it wouldn't sell more than 10,000 copies. Song after song you get Drake singing with a touch of rap. Even though there is less singing than on his previous albums, he needs to cut back on singing a lot more. TheI think Drake lost the best rapper in Young Money once Ace Hood came in. Although this album is not bad, it's extremely forgettable and it seems like if this wasn't Drakes album, it wouldn't sell more than 10,000 copies. Song after song you get Drake singing with a touch of rap. Even though there is less singing than on his previous albums, he needs to cut back on singing a lot more. The beats were horrendous. They were these weird cloudy beats followed by some trap and bad trap at that. Also Drakes lyric game was pretty off on this. The only thing saving this album were the songs that didn't have a ton of singing and the beats that weren't to cloudy. This album is Born Sinner without the lyricism and although Drake has his moments on this thing, it's not enough to save it.… Expand
  15. freshie
    Jan 9, 2018
    10
    Drake's Magnum Opus. Drake shines at full strength on Nothing was the Same.
  16. DrewBrauer
    Oct 14, 2013
    7
    Drake for some people has been called a rapper who's not a rapper for certain reasons. Here on "Nothing Was the Same" he's out to prove that he can work with some of the biggest names in the Hip-Hop industry. And while Drake's latest release has some interesting styles, overall I was disappointed and was expecting more, but fans of Drake will no doubt enjoy "Nothing Was the Same". TheDrake for some people has been called a rapper who's not a rapper for certain reasons. Here on "Nothing Was the Same" he's out to prove that he can work with some of the biggest names in the Hip-Hop industry. And while Drake's latest release has some interesting styles, overall I was disappointed and was expecting more, but fans of Drake will no doubt enjoy "Nothing Was the Same". The problem is the overall story, it feels like it's going nowhere, and feels very repetitive towards the middle of the album. The storytelling just seems lost, and Drake doesn't really know what kind of story he wants to tell here, is it an inside look on fame and fortune, or just an album to prove that Drake can rap, it's unclear. Also the album is too long at about sixteen songs it feels like almost every song is a minute or so too long. There are good things here, Drake shines on his slow moving ballads "Hold On, We're Going Home" and "From Time", that show Drake's true colors. The guest appearances are also noteworthy, which include Jay-Z, Jhene Aiko, and Detail, as they land a hand on a couple of songs. And the rhymes, beats, and sounds all sound top-rate (if again repetitive). I was let down by this album and was expecting more, but as a Rap album, it's a solid release for fans of Drake.… Expand
  17. swagkonyjohnson
    Feb 24, 2015
    8
    Overall I enjoyed listening to this album. It's not quite at the same level lyrically as Take Care but the beats and production of this album are his best; he keeps featured artists to a minimum and doesn't feature any Young Money artists, which I enjoyed; he adopts a style and flow that shows that he is slowly drifting away from Lil Wayne and "Young Money-type" music
  18. camilosanchez16
    Dec 17, 2014
    8
    Sin duda es de las pequeñas piezas que se destacan del 2013, con un rap limpio y una propuesta interesante para lo que puede deparar en el mundo del hip hop del futuro.
  19. Bringman
    Jan 5, 2016
    0
    This album is one of the worst ever made in the last years, all the songs are bad, isn't a rap album, it's full of trap/pop-rap sh*t, if one day Drake will decide to do good music he need to leave this type of music, because works like "Nothing Was the Same" can't be good in any type of way. I can't find a positive side in any song, maybe the worst on the album it's "Started From TheThis album is one of the worst ever made in the last years, all the songs are bad, isn't a rap album, it's full of trap/pop-rap sh*t, if one day Drake will decide to do good music he need to leave this type of music, because works like "Nothing Was the Same" can't be good in any type of way. I can't find a positive side in any song, maybe the worst on the album it's "Started From The Bottom", that represents the album in all his crap… Expand
  20. N10
    Nov 4, 2013
    6
    With his sophomore LP "Take Care" and songs leading up to this point, my anticipation for "Nothing Was The Same" was high but what this album suffers from is Drake's rapping abilities. Lyrically I found it weak and he tackles topics corny and boring. At times it get cringe worthy.
    His flow is good for the most part and he has his really bright moments but to often raps like "F*ck going    With his sophomore LP "Take Care" and songs leading up to this point, my anticipation for "Nothing Was The Same" was high but what this album suffers from is Drake's rapping abilities. Lyrically I found it weak and he tackles topics corny and boring. At times it get cringe worthy.
    His flow is good for the most part and he has his really bright moments but to often raps like "F*ck going platinum I looked at my wrist and it's already platinum.. ni**as talk more than b***hes these days just let that sh*t sink in.. I remember when my schedule was as flexible as she is".. man I don't know what this dude is trying to accomplish with it, I can't almost even see why people are so behind Drake on this album. With plenty mediocre verses/lines appearing on this LP I don't see how people can claim this and Drake to be great and interesting lyrically, as I once found him to be. Though he's maybe not know a top 10 rapper, as a mainstream artist he was definitely bringing something new to the game, and topping 90% of them.
    But, rhymes after rhymes, he struggles with lines, Drizzy got my trippin' to his thing, what happend to the great 2011 writes, the direction was good, but the raps was just not a do.
    Sure his a good rapper, and a much better collect for the mainstream scene, he's built and sharpened up his own lane to. Don't get me wrong, I loved "So Far Gone", "Take Care" and tracks like Tuscan Lether, From Time, Hold On We're Going Home, Too Much, and I actually enjoyed Worst Behavior a lot, it was fun and energetic. Even though his last verse on Worst Behavior started of with some Mase raps he had tight delivery to it, and the switch up on the track Furthest Thing, that's the Drake that I love, great verse on it.
    To be honest the singer-songwriter Drake was 10 steps ahead of the rapper on "Nothing Was The Same", his melodies and hooks are catchy, his singing is laidback, to top it off, the more he sang, the more I felt for this album. The R&B side was loved, he could have skipped some rapping and do more singing in my opinion.
    Aside from Drake, the production was absolutely amazing. If you just listen to 40 and all the hot producers work to it's beats and Drake's crooning and hooks then it's a great experience. However, that's not me, lyrics and delivery comes first, still a fan, but this was just not it except from some beautiful tunes and it's fantastic production. Drake needs the criticism, too many of y'all seems to be going crazy about this, but hey, Drake's raps are sneaky even though I found spots to be trashy he's not throwing them at your face when he got such a phenomenal production backing it.
    And thanks to that, the album dosen't fall under a six on the scale.
    One of 2013 most dissapointing and overrated album to be released, if not THE!    … Expand
  21. r0tan0rtan
    Mar 18, 2015
    5
    BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOORRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRING.

    REMEMBER?!!! WORST BEHAVIOUR!!!!!!! REMEMBER!!!!!????????

    Hold On We're Going Home is really **** good though
  22. PRTYNTGRVS
    Oct 23, 2013
    7
    Drake shows that he can be a very respectable musician; however, there are tracks on this project that prevent the album from being fantastic. Other than Drake's still-persistent reliance on unrealistic love affairs (for the regular people, at least) in songs like "305 To My City," he still has songs about brag gin. Not as much, but he still does it. On "Paris Morton Music," he talks aboutDrake shows that he can be a very respectable musician; however, there are tracks on this project that prevent the album from being fantastic. Other than Drake's still-persistent reliance on unrealistic love affairs (for the regular people, at least) in songs like "305 To My City," he still has songs about brag gin. Not as much, but he still does it. On "Paris Morton Music," he talks about cars and the usual profligate imagery, and the nail in the coffin isn't even Drake...it's Jay-Z. Nobody wants to hear about how rich Jay-Z is anymore, nor do they care about how he says he's wealthy. This plagues his music still, and I'm done with that.

    The Pros outweigh the Cons on this project though, and it just goes to show that Drake can do it. He can be diverse, have good flow, and be interesting. He did on this project...but does he want to do it? I think he does, and he dabbles in the water of reality and honesty on this one. Not bad, Aubrey, not bad at all.

    Follow @PRTYNTGRVS for more music reviews    … Expand
  23. djdenzel777
    Apr 13, 2017
    10
    A very cohesive project that offers a bit of everything. The music is fantastic and interesting. The lyricism is great. The production is top-notch. A must listen to project.
  24. homer4president
    Mar 11, 2015
    8
    Drake has changed the game of hip hop - love him or hate him, he is here forever. The only downside of this album is that the production is just a little weak. Other than that, it is a very good album.
  25. JamieVic
    Jan 10, 2014
    6
    Nothing Was The Same I thought was a fairly decent album. Songs like Pound Cake and The Language made me feel like I was listening to some old school hiphop which I very much enjoyed. Tuscan Leather opened the album brilliantly. I thought the production of it was excellent with the change of beats between hiphop and orchestrated sound. All Me and Worst Behaviour were songs that I believedNothing Was The Same I thought was a fairly decent album. Songs like Pound Cake and The Language made me feel like I was listening to some old school hiphop which I very much enjoyed. Tuscan Leather opened the album brilliantly. I thought the production of it was excellent with the change of beats between hiphop and orchestrated sound. All Me and Worst Behaviour were songs that I believed Drake put a lot of energy into which made me enjoy them. The effort really payed off. However, the downside of the album is half of it reminded me of his previous LP Take Care which made it seem too repetitive. Songs like Furtherest Thing and Own It were standouts to the claim. Wu-Tang Forever made me scratch my head. I realized that a Wu-Tang Clan sample was put into the production of the track but it just wasn't enough for me to think it was paying homage to one of the best hiphop groups of all time. Nothing Was The Same was generally overhyped and I hope Drake does try to do something new with his next project.… Expand
  26. thesupremekai
    Sep 10, 2014
    1
    Drake is the Vanilla Ice of our generation. He can't rap or sing. This album represents everything that is wrong with modern hip hop. Drake's earlier albums were okay but this album is the worst thing he has put out to date. Drake has gotten worse with each album. It may be time for him to retire from music.
  27. Punfisito
    Oct 26, 2022
    9
    El mejor disco de Drake, canciones muy variadas, sonido muy original y un proyecto muy creativo.
  28. erujabidi
    Apr 8, 2020
    10
    this album is extremely underrated on here. if not take care, this is easily drakes most impressive project with some of his largest hits and i love this project forever
  29. emlugo123
    Mar 10, 2015
    8
    Great album! Drake brings back the passion from when he first started. Tracks are banging! Other rappers should take note on how an album should sound.
  30. BetterOffDead_
    May 15, 2014
    4
    This album was a disappointment, I heard a few songs on the radio before the relies and they sounded alright but when u listen to the album much different... This album feels rushed meaning less lyrics drakes going over the same topics song after songs, this album get boring and a joke, for example the song worst behavior is terrible, this album was a big let down. Again if your into mainThis album was a disappointment, I heard a few songs on the radio before the relies and they sounded alright but when u listen to the album much different... This album feels rushed meaning less lyrics drakes going over the same topics song after songs, this album get boring and a joke, for example the song worst behavior is terrible, this album was a big let down. Again if your into main stream rap you'll probably like it..3.9/10… Expand
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Awards & Rankings

15
#15 Most Discussed Album of 2013
32
#32 Most Shared Album of 2013

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
79

Generally favorable reviews - based on 33 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 31 out of 33
  2. Mixed: 1 out of 33
  3. Negative: 1 out of 33
  1. The Wire
    Dec 11, 2013
    70
    Drake has certainly mastered the art of making Drake records. [Nov 2013, p.66]
  2. The Source
    Nov 26, 2013
    80
    Nothing Was The Same is straight to the point, and in just over an hour, Drake closes the book on Take Care, yet opens the chapter to a brighter future. [Nov 2013, p.89]
  3. New Musical Express (NME)
    Oct 14, 2013
    50
    Drizzy’s candid lyrics about battered egos and insecure relationships were refreshing early on in his career, but the persona is wearing thin as he recalls how rich his melancholy has made.
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