The 25 Best Drake Verses

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Album: Ashes to Ashes

Producer: 2 Tall Beats

Label: Maybach Music Group

Of all the bro'd out tough guy Drake verses wherein he hops on a harder rapper's song to get a few off-brand mean mugs out of his system—"Us," "Shit," "R.I.C.O." (lmao)—"Made Men" is the one you probably forgot about. And it's also the best. The centerpiece is the gleefully crude Rihanna boast, but really, "Riding round the city, plastic cup of Henny/find a nigga like me, truth be told, I don't know many...."What an aspirational stunt, man. 

What a Time to Be Alive is cool and all, but this is just Exhibit B in a very long list of evidence that explains why Rozay and Drake was the original joint mixtape we were clamoring for. If there's one tragedy caused by the Meek beef it's that it may have deaded this. —Frazier Tharpe

Album: Take Care

Producer: Noah “40” Shebib

Label: Aspire, Young Money, Cash Money, Republic

Sad, drunk, emo Drake is arguably the best Drake, thus making “Marvins Room” one of his best songs. The song is a slow, alcohol-fueled thump about drunk dialing an ex who has a new dude—complete with a real drunk dial!. His worst behavior (get it?) is all of our impulses after too much rosé, delirious over that one ex, which inevitably snowballs into picking up the phone. Drake’s best verses aren’t when he’s filled to the brim with braggadocio or cat fighting with Meek Mill—they’re when he’s vulnerable.

Here he admits to the darker, sadder limits of his fame—making monsters of the women he’s “sponsoring” by paying for flights and hotels, fucking all the time and drinking even more. He’s in that headspace where he’s only reflecting on what he could have had—the women—one in particular—who’s on the other line. No wonder, much like Hannah Horvath’s boyfriend on this season of Girls, he’s addicted to naked pictures of what he almost had. It’s all he’s got left. Well, other than copious amounts of money, but that’s another verse, another song, and he still doesn't have her. —Kerensa Cadenas

Album: If You're Reading This It's Too Late

Producer: Boi-1da, Frank Dukes

Label: OVO Sound, Young Money, Cash Money, Republic

"I gotta keep watching for oppos cause anything's possible, yeah/There's no code of ethics out here anyone will take shots at you, yeah." Drizzy spit this prophecy five months before Meek Mill dove out of a window and lit his career on fire. The first half of "No Tellin'" is fine, but that beat change? Aubrey takes it to church. The hook becomes a gospel refrain—you can practically see 6 God levitating to the heavens as he warns that he's at a higher place with the hardest flex of 2015. —Frazier Tharpe

Album: So Far Gone

Producer: Kanye West

Label: N/A

Long before Drake was toppling his peers at the top of rap game, Drake was heeding warnings from his DJ, Future the Prince. The message: you'd better kill if you have the moxie to take on a Kanye West beat. This wasn't Aubrey's first stab at a 'Ye instrumental—that goes to the "Barry Bonds" freestyle from his second mixtape, Comeback Season—but his hijacking of "Say You Will" came with more eyes on him than ever before. So Far Gone would become one of the most important mixtapes of the era and cement the movement of post-808s rappers.

On "Say What's Real," Drake builds a foundation of emotional vulnerability and career-minded bravado, somehow without a trace of cognitive dissonance. He opens with a declaration of loneliness and closes with a declaration of greatness, filling in the core of the hookless song with "I can't believe I'm here" moments, mixed reactions to the consequences of success, and plots to take it all further—his own version of keeping it real. After ruminating on Future's warning he raps, "I think this got the 'Making of a Legend' feel." Boasts like these come from even the most struggle of SoundCloud rappers today, but he backed it up with the rest of his career. —Ian Servantes

Album: If You're Reading This It's Too Late

Producer: Boi-1da, Frank Dukes, Sevn Thomas

Label: OVO Sound, Young Money, Cash Money, Republic

Slick talk Drake should be everybody's favorite Drake. He went platinum and made the rap world stop off a mixtape-album. If you're going to claim king, you need to let the game know that you can burn a track. On "6PM in New York," he doesn't call anybody by name, but the subliminals are there. Tyga, Kendrick, Kanye, and Push all catch strays. The "You need to act your age and not your girl's age" line is especially clever and vicious​.

"My career is like a 'how to' manual" is my favorite bar, because it's true; even a Drake denier such as myself can admit that. His sound has been the most popular for years now. "6PM in New York" is no hook, straight bars. Rap is a sport, especially if you're gunning for that No. 1 spot in the hearts and minds of the public. Drizzy planted the flag with this track and is in an arms race with Cornrow Kenny. The future is bright. —Angel Diaz

Album: What a Time to Be Alive

Producer: Noah “40” Shebib

Label: A1, Epic, OVO Sound, Freebandz, Young Money, Cash Money, Republic

The lone Drake solo song on What a Time to Be Alive is a strong message to the game. Drake has fresh shots at Meek Mill and some hilarious stunting. If "PARTY just dipped off in a white Porsche, and I just came from dinner where I ate some well-done seared scallops that were to die for" isn't peak squad goals, what is?

Throughout the lengthy verse, Drake reminds listeners that his circle is smaller than ever now—likely a result of the Meek beef—but maintains that he and his crew are stronger than ever. Elite flexing mixed with plenty of memorable lines and we arrive at yet another stellar Drake moment. —Zach Frydenlund

Album: Excuse My French

Producer: Lee on the Beats​

Label: Bad Boy, Interscope

In 2012, Drake was running the game solely off of work on other people's songs. No album out, yet he was still the most talked about rapper in the game, and for good reason: he was killing things. This was never more apparent than on French Montana's banger, "Pop That," where Drake effortlessly floated over the booming, summertime hit. From the jump, Drake makes it known that he's currently single, faded at the moment, and about making that paper. Combine the ultra stunt lyrics with an insanely catchy flow and Drake had yet another winner on his hands. —Zach Frydenlund

Album: Nothing Was the Same

Producer: Noah “40” Shebib

Label: Aspire, Young Money, Cash Money, Republic

When the tracklist for VIEWS materialized on Wednesday, arguments broke out on Twitter about what makes for a classic album, what the distinction has to do with the expression of meaningful ideas and the test of time. The second verse of “Tuscan Leather” is all about talk—who is doing it behind Drake’s back, who he’s not talking to, who he’s tired of hearing from (and about). He’s remorseful for neglecting his friendship with Nicki Minaj: “That’s why I need her in my life, to check me when I’m tripping.” (Is unchecked Drake the sound of If You’re Reading This It’s Too Late?) He’s grading the output of his (lesser) peers: “You get an E for effort.” He’s seen the comments and he’s voting fuck you. 

Presumably he hears about the Twitter talk—these “classic” convos aren’t a new phenomenon, aren’t specific to VIEWS—and I’d bet it’s what aggravates him the most: “I’m tired of hearin' about who you’re checking for now/Just give it time, we’ll see who’s still around a decade from now.” The time spent talking about how tired he is of talking is essentially Drake. —Ross Scarano

Album: Take Care

Producer: Illangelo, Noah “40” Shebib, The Weeknd

Label: Aspire, Young Money, Cash Money, Republic

"Crew Love" gets a lot of heat for basically being a Weeknd song—an argument I've always disagreed with. How can anyone say Drake didn't successfully make it his own when his verse contains Take Care's thesis statement? Drake, at his most Drake, is self-examination mixed with a sometimes unhealthy amount of what-if pondering. The tension in his music lies in the reconciliation between the two, if there is one at all. "Seeing my family have it all replaced the desire for diplomas on the wall," he raps. Take Care is his gloomiest album and yet despite coming so early in the tracklist, "Really I think I like what I'm becoming" teases the ascension from moody musing to a head in the clouds attitude. —Frazier Tharpe

Album: PARTYNEXTDOOR

Producer: PARTYNEXTDOOR

Label: OVO Sound, Warner Bros.

Long before PARTYNEXTDOOR was writing No. 1 hits for Rihanna, he was a mystery artist trying to make a name as Drake's first signee to OVO Sound. "Over Here" was the first first ever collaboration between the two artists, and it happens to feature one of the best Aubrey Graham verses ever. From the jump, Drake runs through through his Toronto roots, reminding listeners that he has an Ethiopian goddess waiting for him as he drives his Bugatti through the projects. From there, he's warning the game of what he's coming with and reflection on how far his crew came to get to this point.

The supreme confidence is showcased on lines like, "I'm screaming OVO on the whole way out, though/ I'm back boy for real, I'm that boy for real/I got hits, nigga, you just a bat boy for real." You can't say he's lying, either. The shit talking from Drake is really on another level here, as he not only raps, "Nothing was the same, including y'all careers," but finishes with, "Bunch of young rich niggas, turn around if you're jealous." Perfect. —Zach Frydenlund

Album: Take Care

Producer: T-Minus

Label: Aspire, Young Money, Cash Money, Republic

After a quick simile casually mentioning an iconic country singer, Drake sets an ex apart from the rest: the one who goes to Georgia State. He delivers those first two bars slowly and then accelerates, packing a quintessential cliché Drake tale—the distanced ex whom he still romanticizes—into a double-timed verse as intriguing and technically impressive as he's ever made. He doesn't waste a single syllable detailing their date, where they took the sushi to go and told the staff don't even plate it, and jumping years ahead to when their capital-r Relationship is in the past, as well as his life sans fame. But the time elapsed doesn't stop them from talking from time to time, even though the only real emotion comes out when Drake is wasted. Here is Drake, simultaneously the everyman who uses alcohol as a crutch for emotional admissions, the lyricist capable of having you grasp for breath as you try to rap along, and the dude who has albums to drop and women to call. Is there a better Drake for us to enjoy? I don't think so. —Ian Servantes

Album: Nothing Was the Same

Producer: Noah “40” Shebib

Label: OVO Sound, Aspire, Young Money, Cash Money, Republic

One of Drake’s knottiest verses, in terms of flow and occasional enjambment, the machine gun raps of “Wu-Tang Forever” go from strong to exceptional via one image: the club. There’s no celebration here; in fact everything fades from the picture except for Drake and his target. It’s like the opening of Michael Mann’s Miami Vice with the volume on mute, so that the focus shifts from the sprawl of partying bodies to the pursuit and appraisal of a single threat. “I just like the rush when you see your enemy/Somewhere in the club and you realize/He just not in a position to reciprocate your energy.” Probably wearing a black T-shirt and black Armani blazer, Drake spots the source of his paranoia only to see it’s nothing, it’s no one. “You ain’t ever worried because he not who cause he’s not who he pretends to be.” Given his obsession with those who would plot against the kid, this realization is a relief that both MC and listener can bask in. It’s yours, too. —Ross Scarano

Album: Nothing Was the Same

Producer: Nineteen85, Sampha

Label: OVO Sound, Aspire, Young Money, Cash Money, Republic

Drake introduced the world to "Too Much" during a live performance on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon before Nothing Was the Same came out. The raw emotion of the performance blew fans away and enhanced the very personal subject matter of the song—especially the second verse where, he opens up about his family members and their struggles. From the line, "Money got my whole family moving backwards," to "Hate the fact my mom cooped up in her apartment, telling herself that she's too sick to get dressed up and go do shit," Drake is as vulnerable as ever. The combination of elite rapping and realness is something that has been a staple of Drake's career, and he certainly perfected it during this verse. —Zach Frydenlund

Album: Take Care

Producer: Chase N. Cashe

Label: Aspire, Young Money, Cash Money, Republic

Forget all the pettier moments in his catalog and just live in this song—there’s something legitimately sweet about Drake dividing up the periods of his life according to his great loves, right? Of course, that’s not what makes the second verse of “Look What You’ve Done” so special. There’s an unusual economy and moving callousness in his language, in particular when he summarizes his single-parent household: “boo-hoo, sad story, Black American dad story.” The brevity and onomatopoeia suggest defensive posturing, a reluctance to dwell on the painful thing, and also a refusal to let the father’s absence define the life of the child. It’s also a way of speeding up the story to get to the good part: his uncle’s generosity and love. The man enlarged Drake’s world, but the unfair shortcomings of the world never disappear. His uncle lends him the Lexus, and now Drake’s “a young kid...hoping [he] don’t get arrested.” The Static Major sample, like all the other details, keep the song bittersweet, a reminder to show your gratitude while there’s still time. —Ross Scarano

Album: N/A

Producer: Noah “40” Shebib

Label: N/A

Drake post-Thank Me Later and pre-Take Care was a force to be reckoned with. Not only did he play a major role on DJ Khaled's hit single, "I'm on One," but he also bested Rick Ross on his own shit and dropped "Dreams Money Can Buy," a beautiful, smooth track that described his quick ascension through the rap ranks. The first verse was particularly telling of Drizzy's plan to continue his climb up the ladder—"I want art money" is a nod toward Hov if we've ever heard one. "Everybody yelled, 'Surprise!' I wasn't surprised/That's only 'cause I been waiting on it," he raps of his success, and it's clear Drake won't be satisfied until he's at the top. Even back then, he was watching the throne. —Edwin Ortiz

Album: Nothing Was the Same

Producer: DJ Dahi

Label: OVO Sound, Aspire, Young Money, Cash Money, Republic

If Nothing Was the Same is Drake's Bar Mitzvah, "Worst Behavior" is the centerpiece. Aubrey's done keeping it cute. No more bashful bars about being the guy right now and uncomfortable with it. He turns Ma$e's jiggy bars into a sauced up taunt. It sounds more like "Who's hot? *You're not." He then proceeds to black out one one of his most technically impressive verses to date, with one casually insane boast after another. Like, say, chill tennis one-on-ones with Serena at his resort-ass estate. The stunting is forever immortalized. —Frazier Tharpe

Album: Take Care

Producer: Just Blaze

Label: Aspire, Young Money, Cash Money, Republic

Two years after bodying a Just Blaze beat earmarked for a legend, Drake delivered a proper collaboration with the veteran producer with “Lord Knows.” The anthem features one lengthy verse from the Toronto native that highlights his boastful nature (“Places they say they've been, we actually going for real”), insecurities (“I don't trust these hoes at all”), and an aspirational perspective that has become synonymous with his brand. “I'm a descendent of either Marley or Hendrix,” he raps without thinking twice, his uninterrupted stream of self-assured rhymes gaining steam with each and every punchline. Take Care was laced with #moodmusic from the OVO star; "Lord Knows" was a reminder he could still go in when he wanted to. —Edwin Ortiz

Album: N/A

Producer: Zaytoven

Label: Migos Music

No disrespect to his stellar 2015, but has the Drake buzz ever been hotter than the summer of '13? When news broke that he'd laid a verse to a bubbling banger for an up-and-coming trio by the name of Migos, anticipation hit a fever pitch. It's hard to remember in these days of damn near over-saturation, but the Boy had been largely radio silent at the time. So quiet we were like, wtf is he planning? Then it dropped, and he glided over a beat so far out of his wheelhouse so effortlessly, he didn't need his own single to take the summer. 2013 was the year dedicated to proving Drake as the foremost new class graduate headed to hall-of-fame status. We should've known we were in for a great album after he took the victory lap in advance. —Frazier Tharpe

Album: Take Care

Producer: Doc McKinney, The Weeknd

Label: Aspire, Young Money, Cash Money, Republic

The biggest complaint about Drake's Take Care is the length. And it's true—the album is a long journey—but nestled at the very end is "The Ride," simply one of the best songs in his catalog. With emotions pouring out, Drizzy's third verse on the song is truly elite, weaving in and out of his typical realness while laying down punchlines that still ring true today: "Still scorching as if I didn't notice/ You niggas getting older, I see no threat in Yoda."

Of course, the end of the verse is what everyone remembers and serves as the bar going forward with his career, especially on the eve of VIEWS. "My junior and senior will only get meaner, take care, nigga." Well, we're about to find out. —​Zach Frydenlund

Album: N/A

Producer: Noah “40” Shebib

Label: N/A

“Having lunch and debating Ferrari prices, 23 and going through a midlife crisis.” Drake doesn't hide anything on his stellar “Paris Morton Music” verse, where he's as candid as ever, both about life and his success an artist. There's no secret that he's most comfortable when he's rapping vulnerable and open, but it hits another level on “Paris Morton Music.” Lines like, “To be far from hood, but to understand the streets/I never threw away that paper with my Grammy speech,” exemplify exactly who Drake is and why he's been able to reach this level of greatness. Drake has always relied on being relatable in his music, but on “Paris Morton Music,” he balances those insecurities with a supreme confidence that only expanded later in his career. —Zach Frydenlund

Album: N/A

Producer: The Fam, Boi-1da

Label: N/A

Skating across a Lauryn Hill sample like he’s auditioning for tea at her home, Drake sounds cool and cocky on “Draft Day,” the most casually arrogant display of rapping ability he’s ever recorded. In the first few lines he alludes to conversations with god and in but one of many #peakDrake moments, dubs himself the heavenly father’s “darkest angel, probably.” (He’s not willing to commit to the part—there could be someone with a slightly colder heart.) From there, he’s blowing his horn in every direction: Jay Z, Kanye West—even Chance the Rapper, for no good reason, gets oh so rudely glanced at. He revisits and modifies the central boast of “Headlines,” the one about catching a body:

Know some Somalis that say we got it Wallahi

Get us donuts and coffee, we'll wait for him in the lobby

And I gotta tell him chill, Sprite got me on payroll

Let that man live, they say "Okay, if you say so"

What was once an earnestly offered threat is now a slick joke about endorsements, and anyway, bodies can be laid to rest in the booth and there’s so much more shellfish to try. —Ross Scarano

Album: N/A

Producer: Daxz

Label: Cash Money

While Drake has been in his fair share of conflicts with other rappers—Common, Pusha T, Kendrick Lamar—no beef has been bigger than his battle with Meek Mill. The situation was a real threat to Drake's career, with Meek calling him out for using a ghostwriter. Initially it was unclear how Drake would respond, but when he did, it was with a heavy punch. "Charged Up" arrived first, but "Back to Back" was the knockout.

Drake brings out a full-blown arsenal in the first verse, with stinging punchlines and a devastating flow that helped turn the diss song into a full blow hit. Like, he really rapped "This ain't what she meant when she told you to open up more" on a song that was nominated for a Grammy. —Zach Frydenlund

Album: Rich Forever

Producer: The Beat Bully

Label: Maybach Music Group, Def Jam

Who could've predicted Drake would flame a vet like Common in just a few bars? In between simping over an ex or dry-snitching on a dude to get the drawls, Drizzy can surprise you at times. Rap needs more slick talk like this, especially from one of the game's more prominent artists. The genre will forever be a sport and like the NBA (for better or worse), it's gotten a little too friendly. More listeners would take him more seriously as a viable candidate for rap's empty throne if he rapped like this more often. When he opened up "Stay Schemin'" with "It bothers me when the gods get to actin' like the broads," I clutched my chest. Like, "Oh, he 'bout that action, huh?" He may be more R&B than he is real rap, but if you come at him, he handles himself—for the most part. Drake's proven that over time, even I can't front. —Angel Diaz

Album: N/A

Producer: Boi-1da, Vinylz, Nikhil Seetharam

Label: N/A

You underestimated greatly, and Aubrey is fucking fed up. Don't think he can hold his own with rap's best? You didn't think he deserved to be the poster boy for the new generation? He'll prove you wrong later on the album, but not before making you sweat the entire summer after dropping one hell of an appetizer. Forget IYRTITL—*this* is Drake at his most villainous, with bars that even made rappers who consider him fam do a double-take. "Drake featuring Drake?" Low-key a more potent dosage of Regina George-level friendly disrespect than "Control." Early 2013 found Drizzy at the dawn of a new phase. Fitting that he released the mood music during the wee hours of the morning.— Frazier Tharpe

Album: More Life

Producer: Boi-1da, Allen Ritter, Noah "40" Shebib

Label: OVO Sound, Young Money, Cash Money, Republic

The final track on More Life, “Do Not Disturb” is Drake at his most contemplative. Throughout the song, Drizzy vacillates between reflecting on how far he's come and aspiring to reach the next stage of his already massive career. The reigning theme of the track, though, is his fear of his life spinning out of his control: “Scary whenever I close my eyes at night/Wakin’ up to public statements about my private life.” Fast-forward a couple of years and Drake is now dealing with the aftermath of Pusha-T’s exposure of his previously hidden child. Looking back, it’s easy to see why Drizzy was so wound up. —Kiana Fitzgerald

Album: N/A

Producer: Noah "40" Shebib, Kanye West

Label: Young Money, Cash Money, Motown

“Two Birds, One Stone” was a moment of foreshadowing. In the 2016 cut that came out a few months in advance of More Life, Drake douses an already growing fire of a feud between October's Very Own and G.O.O.D. Music with a splash of kerosene. In addition to taking shots at Kid Cudi’s mental heath (“You were the man on the moon/Now you just go through your phases”), Drake also called Pusha-T’s street credibility into question, in dramatic fashion: “But really it's you with all the drug dealer stories/That's gotta stop, though/You made a couple chops and now you think you Chapo.” This verse, combined with continual poking and prodding spread across several years, culminated in Pusha-T’s world-stopping “Story of Adidon” diss, aimed squarely at Drake exactly one month before his much-hyped 2018 album Scorpion dropped. —Kiana Fitzgerald

Album: Daniel Son; Necklace Don

Producer: Buddah Bless

Label: N/A

Drake’s verse on “Big Amount” is an effortless minute-long flex featuring a reference to his Calabasas status, a Michael Jackson shout-out, and a reminder that he runs the charts (“Got hits and I ain't even put 'em out/Lit and you can't even put it out/Got the Billboard melodies/Rap is somethin' I do on the side”). So what if he lied about never pulling up to a Marriott or a Westin? His energy made us believe otherwise. Drake also took some time to show J. Prince love; little did he know that connection would take on a narrative of its own in the Pusha-T feud. —Edwin Ortiz

Album: N/A

Producer: Boi 1da, Jahaan Sweet

Label: N/A

"I'm in shock. The nerve. The audacity." From those opening words, and the exhausted sigh that followed, listeners knew Drake's response to Pusha-T's shots on "Infrared" was going to be something big. Interestingly, the most vicious disses were aimed not at Pusha, but instead at Drake's idol-turned-rival Kanye West. As it turned out, one of the song's best moments—Drizzy's blink-and-you'll-miss-it pun on "ring" that named Pusha's fiancé—was the very thing that inspired King Push to deliver his knockout blow on "The Story of Adidon." —Shawn Setaro

Album: N/A

Producer: Vinylz, Frank Dukes, Alan Ritter

Label: N/A

“4PM in Calabasas”—yes, the entire freestyle—is one of Drake’s best verses, if for no reason than it showcases what can happen when The Boi gets in his bag. The disrespect levels are at an all-time high, as he takes nonstop shots at Diddy using Puff’s own vocal style, patterns, and ad libs. Over a beat that sounds like a Bad Boy track from the early ’00s, Drake has the nerve to lift and weaponize iconic lines from Puff’s own catalog, with darts like, “Take that, take that, no love in they heart so they fake that/DiCaprio level the way they play that.” A master at the aural subtweet, Drake had no time for it here; “4PM” was full of direct shots and nobody was safe. —Dria Roland