Drake Sidelines 21 Savage on the Underwhelming Her Loss
Drake struggles to connect with 21 Savage as much as he does women on the duo's first full-length collab
On “Rich Flex,” the opening track of Drake and 21 Savage’s new album, Her Loss, Drake has an innocuous request. “21, can you do something for me?” It’s an ironic sentiment since Drake is the one holding 21 back throughout the project, relegating him more often than not to being a hype man for Drake’s livestreams, rather than a rapper on equal footing.
This isn’t 21’s fault. He’s proven more than capable of going toe to toe with some of the best rappers in the game, including previous collaborations with Drake. 2016’s underrated loosie “Sneakin” showed the duo had a natural chemistry, with 21’s dead-eyed violent threats combining with mafioso Drake to give the pairing a consigliere/underboss-type connection. This kinship continued on standout tracks like “Jimmy Cooks” and “Knife Talk,” two of the better mainstream rap songs of the 2020s. So in theory, this album should work, bringing out the Shaq and Kobe energy it promised. But for some reason, it feels more like that strange 2005 Lakers team where Kobe took 20 shots a game and Caron Butler scored when he could.
As a collaboration, it’s a misfire. But if you remove the notion of it being a tandem affair, it’s simply a decent Drake album—no growth, no new ideas, the same toxic king anthems he’s been peddling for years. But complaining about Drake’s content is like being surprised your Jumbo slice doesn’t hit the same when you’re sober. What did you expect?
For the most part, Her Loss gives fans exactly what they’ve come to expect and clamor for. There’s the quintessential reflective Drake flow employed on “Middle of the Ocean,” bringing back the moments when Drake rode around at “4 p.m. in Calabasas” and “5 a.m. in Toronto.” Then you have the club banger destined for licensing use whenever the NBA on ESPN hits a commercial break (“BackOutsideBoyz”). He also gives fans the manipulative gaslighting anthem disguised as a feels song (“Hours in Silence”). The ingredients are all here, but that doesn’t mean they gel.
If it had been billed solely as a Drake album, Her Loss would have been more palatable. But this is supposed to be the rebirth of Collab Drake, the same artist who brought us classics sparring with legendary rappers like Lil Wayne and Future. Instead, Drake’s efforts with 21 Savage mute the Atlanta icon’s abilities.