Unlike the melodic pop-rap of Nothing Was the Same , this project leaned into the "6ix" aesthetic—a cold, paranoid, and late-night Toronto sound.

This project marked the transition from "Drake the R&B Crooner" to "Drake the Rap Heavyweight." It was aggressive, paranoid, and technically sharp. It also sparked one of the biggest controversies in rap history regarding the involvement of Quentin Miller, which only added to the project's gritty, "street-mixtape" lore.

2015 was the peak of the transition between piracy and streaming. While Spotify and Apple Music were rising, many listeners still preferred owning the files. They wanted the folder on their desktop, the album art, and the ability to drag and drop the songs onto an iPhone or MP3 player. Searching for a ZIP file was the standard protocol for acquiring music immediately without navigating the walled gardens of streaming apps.

It was one of the first major projects to dominate through streaming numbers. Grammy Nominated: It earned a nod for Best Rap Album.