• Record Label: Island
  • Release Date: Sep 24, 2013
Metascore
79

Generally favorable reviews - based on 33 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 31 out of 33
  2. Negative: 1 out of 33
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  1. 100
    This lush, un-hurried album reveals a surer character, rebuking other rappers who talk smack "just to get a reaction" and even relatives diminished by easy money and proximity to fame.
  2. Nothing Was The Same is the best Drake album yet.
  3. Sep 30, 2013
    90
    In the end, what really matters is that the superior Nothing Was The Same brings back the excitement of So Far Gone.
  4. Sep 27, 2013
    90
    None of [the guest vocals] disrupt Drake’s effortless triumph over mainstream rap excess.
  5. Sep 25, 2013
    90
    Nothing Was the Same wrestles Drake’s successes with his ever-lingering insecurities, and like some of the best music, we can see ourselves in these songs. It’s an exhilarating change of pace for the genre.
  6. Sep 23, 2013
    88
    Drake’s increasing mastery of not just rhyme, but tone and inflection is readily apparent.
  7. Sep 23, 2013
    86
    Nothing Was the Same is Drake and 40's most audacious experiment yet in how far inward they can push their sound; a lot of the album sounds like a black hole of all 40's previous productions being sucked into the center. Song-to-song transitions, which have always been melty and blurry, are more notional than ever.
  8. 85
    Nothing Was the Same is different because Drake has stopped worrying so much about who he’s become and figured out who he is.
  9. Sep 24, 2013
    83
    Nothing Was the Same is ugly, yes, but cathartic.
  10. Sep 24, 2013
    83
    If Nothing Was The Same doesn’t resonate quite as consistently as Take Care, it’s because Drake and his in-house collaborator Noah “40” Shebib sometimes seem content to revisit that album’s sonic landscapes instead of carving out new ones.
  11. 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]
  12. Oct 14, 2013
    80
    There are certainly faults here to be rectified, but this album represents yet another very good entry in his discography, not spectacular but representative of what will likely be among the best 5 hip-hop albums of 2013 along with Brown and Sweatshirt's releases.
  13. Sep 27, 2013
    80
    Desolation becomes part of the landscape, the canvas on which Drake puts his words front and center. Guests appear on occasion (Jay Z drops by on “Pound Cake/Paris Morton Music 2”), but no one draws focus quite like Drake.
  14. Sep 26, 2013
    80
    There's nothing overly complex or profound here, but try to resist the charm.
  15. Sep 24, 2013
    80
    He makes up for the lack of addictive anthems and playfulness with his impressionable stream of sentiments--our kryptonite, his superpower.
  16. Sep 24, 2013
    80
    The album isn't perfect, but it draws energy from that imperfection, further establishing a persona driven by Drake's still-developing conflict between assurance and hesitation.
  17. Sep 23, 2013
    80
    Nothing Was The Same showcases new skills--trimming the unnecessary songs, and focusing on narrative details the way he does on “From Time”--that will strengthen Drake’s arsenal and help him continue to cement his status as a pop-rap heavyweight for years to come.
  18. Sep 23, 2013
    80
    With the themes, moods and issues displayed here, Drizzy has shared another moment of his life, and now the only thing left to prove is if his crossover powers can last him a decade from now.
  19. Sep 20, 2013
    80
    Nothing Was The Same offers the listener a lot of what they’ve come to love (or loathe, indeed) about its maker, with the occasional flash of something a little more daring than might’ve been anticipated.
  20. Sep 20, 2013
    80
    These are the songs that don’t initially blow you away, but you find yourself coming back to months later.
  21. Sep 19, 2013
    80
    This isn’t Drake at his most exposed.... Production-wise, however, it’s his most mature, and frankly, most beautiful.
  22. Sep 19, 2013
    80
    The more melodic his flow, the slicker he sounds, allowing him to get away with some truly corny lines.
  23. Sep 24, 2013
    75
    At times jagged and sharp, sure. But mostly the work of someone who rides the waves without much interest in making them.
  24. 75
    Nothing Was the Same is filled with beats that are a joy to listen to and Drake often has worthwhile things to contribute. But, more and more, his confidence is getting the best of him.
  25. Sep 19, 2013
    72
    Drake's pop music con job is just too well executed despite all its obvious flaws to not be enjoyed.
  26. The Wire
    Dec 11, 2013
    70
    Drake has certainly mastered the art of making Drake records. [Nov 2013, p.66]
  27. Oct 3, 2013
    70
    Nothing Was the Same doesn’t capitalize on Drake’s bipolar desires quite as well as Take Care did despite the condensation of everything into more digestible parts.
  28. Oct 1, 2013
    70
    Nothing Was the Same is a good album, occasionally great, but sometimes you end up yearning for more of those epic Drake SONGS, of which there aren't nearly enough.
  29. Sep 26, 2013
    70
    While Nothing Was The Same won’t do anything to win over Drake’s detractors, doing pretty much nothing new for the rapper except bringing in more drill-style hi-hats and scaling back the obsession with 808s.
  30. Sep 23, 2013
    70
    Nothing Was the Same doesn't show large amounts of growth, but the small changes to the sound and the slightly wider net his lyrics cast make it worthwhile.
  31. Sep 19, 2013
    70
    A steely affair that finds Drake and longtime producer Noah "40" Shebib pulling their sound and worldview further inward to increasingly murky results.
User Score
7.7

Generally favorable reviews- based on 558 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Negative: 57 out of 558
  1. 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 andPeople 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.
    Full Review »
  2. Sep 25, 2013
    1
    Too much autotune and singing. Album is average at best, drake will never reach Kendrick's level. It's a disgrace to call this rap, its tooToo much autotune and singing. Album is average at best, drake will never reach Kendrick's level. It's a disgrace to call this rap, its too soft. Go back to your wheelchair and try again Full Review »
  3. 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 alotDrake 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. Full Review »