– Kazeem Kuteyi, staff

“Take Care” is an album that Drake fans have been anticipating since 2010 when MTV first speculated that he was recording his sophomore album.

While critics have argued that he is simply another actor that wants to get into the field of rap to make more money, after giving his music a chance they may be pleasantly surprised. His lyrics speak the truth, which is what separates him from other rappers like Gucci Mane, Waka Flocka Flame and 50 Cent who only glamorize sex, money and street life.

Whether or not Drake’s music speaks the truth and differs from other rappers isn’t the most important question surrounding his upcoming album though.

The main question being asked is, “Can Drake push through the difficult-to-please industry with his new album ‘Take Care’?”

Even though the album isn’t going to be officially released until Nov. 15, the hype around it has already been massive. Speaking to that, eager fans flocked to torrent sites Sunday when the album was leaked illegally on the Internet, while others waited it out, assured that the final released album will be purer, better.

Pre-released tracks such as the syrupy “Marvin’s Room” and the soulful “Dreams Money Can Buy” have been huge successes judging by the response in clubs, the number of YouTube hits and the amount of positive hype on popular music blogs. Artists Chris Brown, JoJo, Paul DeAnda and Teyana Taylor appreciate Drake’s new music so much that they each recorded their own covers of “Marvin’s Room”.

A large part of Drake’s success is his smart approach to song selection. He has a mix of radio-friendly tracks like “Over” and “Find Your Love” from his debut album that will help drive his sales, as well as lyrical tracks that show great artistry.

Drake recorded most of his upcoming album in his hometown Toronto, which may bring a focused theme to this songs, as opposed to his first studio album “Thank Me Later” which was recorded across America and Jamaica.

Rolling Stone magazine had a chance to preview “Take Care” last July, concluding that Drake is taking a “deliberate approach to the album” and that he  has a “more intricate approach to the lyrics”. Rolling Stone’s thoughts are evident in Drake’s song “The Real Her” from his new album. The song makes subtle references to his previous works such as “Houstatlantavegas” and also borrows a few lines from the song “Miss Me”.

Drake’s first album sold 447,000 copies during the first week, impressive in a digital age where downloading has become the norm. Considering his sales from “Thank Me Later”, Drake need not worry about his upcoming album since his song “Headlines” peaked at number 13 on the Billboard Hot 100 and his second single “Make Me Proud” (featuring crowd favourite Nicki Minaj) made it to number nine.

Fans will likely enjoy the upcoming album because it seems that Drake took special care making sure his songs stayed true to the topics of celebration, love, and heartbreak- which are all major themes that regularly influence Drake’s music.

The 17-song album which features artists like Lil Wayne, Andre 3000, Rihanna, Stevie Wonder, Nicki Minaj, Rick Ross and Toronto’s own The Weeknd is out next Tuesday.