Maps of Music

Nothing Was the Same (2013)

Where the lyrics of Nothing Was the Same take you, and where it was really made.

The release date was pushed back one week, from September 17 to September 24, 2013, after Drake had announced the earlier date.

Key places

Jungle City Studios, New York City (2013)

Recording site Jungle City Studios — Jungle City Studios is listed as a recording location for the album. Work on the record ran from 2012 through 2013. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Metalworks Studios, Mississauga (2013)

Recording site Metalworks Studios — Metalworks Studios in Mississauga is listed as a recording location for the album. The album was recorded during its 2012 to 2013 production period. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Tree Sound Studios, Atlanta (2013)

Recording site Tree Studios — Tree Sound Studios in Atlanta is listed as a recording location for the album. The album was produced across 2012 and 2013. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Noble Street Studios, Toronto (2013)

Recording site Noble Street Studios — Noble Street Studios in Toronto is listed as a recording location for the album. Recording took place during the album's 2012 to 2013 work period. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Marvin's Room, Los Angeles (2013)

Recording site Motown Recording Studios — Drake said he was recording in Marvin Gaye's old studio called Marvin's Room. The point is set at Los Angeles city-center level, not at the building. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Album story

Overview

• Nothing Was the Same: third studio album by Canadian rapper Drake
• Released September 24, 2013 through OVO Sound, Young Money Entertainment, Cash Money Records and Republic Records
• Drake served as executive producer and enlisted guest artists
• Guests: 2 Chainz, Big Sean, Majid Jordan, Jay-Z, Jhené Aiko and Sampha
• Production mainly by 40 and other OVO Sound producers, including Boi-1da, Mike Zombie, Nineteen85 and Detail
• Seven singles, with Wu-Tang Forever released before the album as a promotional single
• Started from the Bottom and Hold On, We're Going Home both reached the US Billboard Hot 100 top 10

Background

• March 2012: while touring the UK for Take Care, Drake announced in an interview that he had begun work on the album
• Drake said the album would have a different style and tempo than Take Care
• Source attributes the change to a different mindset and his move to the Los Angeles area in Hidden Hills, where he is Kanye West's neighbor
• Drake named Marvin Gaye's 1978 double album Here, My Dear as a major influence on his move toward ballads
• Title announced February 10, 2013, the night he won a Grammy for Best Rap Album
• Drake toured with Future, Miguel and PartyNextDoor on the Would You Like a Tour? tour, October through December 2013

Recording

• Work began in 2012 and continued through 2013
• March 2012: Drake was reportedly in the studio with 2 Chainz and 40
• June 15, 2013: Drake confirmed the final recording process was complete
• September 3, 2013: Drake confirmed the album had been mixed and mastered
• Drake said he recorded in Gaye's old studio Marvin's Room

Cover

• Cover artwork is an oil painting by Kadir Nelson, revealed August 21, 2013
• Two versions show Drake's profile as a child and as an adult

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Tracklist

Sources: musicbrainz.org

Artist

Career

• Aubrey Drake Graham, born October 24, 1986 in Toronto, Ontario, is a Canadian rapper, singer and actor.
• Gained recognition as Jimmy Brooks in the CTV teen drama Degrassi: The Next Generation (2001–2008).
• Independently released mixtapes Room for Improvement (2006), Comeback Season (2007) and So Far Gone (2009) before signing with Young Money Entertainment in 2009.
• Debut album Thank Me Later (2010) debuted atop the Billboard 200; followed by Take Care (2011), Nothing Was the Same (2013), Views (2016), Scorpion (2018), Certified Lover Boy (2021) and Iceman (2026).
• Views led the Billboard 200 for 13 weeks; "One Dance" became the first song to surpass 1 billion streams on Spotify.
• Among the world's best-selling artists with over 170 million units sold; the highest-certified digital singles artist in the United States.
• Accolades include 5 Grammy Awards, 6 American Music Awards, 41 Billboard Music Awards, 2 Brit Awards and 3 Juno Awards.
• Founded OVO Sound, DreamCrew and the fragrance house Better World; became global ambassador of the Toronto Raptors in 2013.
• Known for feuds with Kanye West and Kendrick Lamar; the 2024 feud with Lamar is reported to have damaged his public image.

Reception

At release

• Received generally positive reviews
• Named one of the best albums of 2013 by multiple publications
• Entertainment Weekly's Nick Catucci described it as a hyperrealistic portrait of Aubrey Drake Graham rather than a coronation ceremony
• USA Today's Elysa Gardner noted Drake continues to juggle bravado with brooding
• Rolling Stone's Simon Vozick-Levinson wrote that Drake's confessions start to sound like sneaky boasts
• Pitchfork's Jayson Greene praised it as Drake and 40's most audacious experiment yet in pushing their sound inward
• AllMusic's Tim Sendra wrote it does not show large growth, but small sound changes make it worthwhile
• The A.V. Club's Evan Rytlewski said the album sometimes revisits Take Care's sonic landscapes rather than carving out new ones

Reappraisal

• Metacritic: average score 79 from 33 reviews
• AnyDecentMusic?: 7.5 out of 10, based on critical consensus
• XXL named it the best album of 2013
• Complex named it the second best album of 2013
• Entertainment Weekly named it the second best album of 2013
• Rolling Stone ranked it 14th on its 50 best albums of 2013 list

Records

• Debuted at number one on the US Billboard 200 with 658,000 first-week copies
• 1,344,000 copies sold in the US in 2013, seventh best-selling album of the year
• Certified six times platinum by the RIAA on October 25, 2023
• Debuted at number two on the UK Albums Chart with 61,000 first-week copies
• Debuted at number one in Canada and Denmark
• Nominated for Best Rap Album at the 2014 Grammy Awards

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Trivia

• The release was pushed back one week, from September 17 to September 24, 2013, announced on August 21, 2013.
• The cover artwork was painted by Kadir Nelson, the designer behind Michael Jackson's posthumous album Michael.
• The cover artwork was compared to Nas' Illmatic, The Notorious B.I.G.'s Ready to Die and Lil Wayne's Tha Carter III.
• Drake said in a 2014 Vibe interview that the deluxe edition was meant to be in reverse order, but an iTunes issue prevented it.
• Both cover versions were sold side by side in stores so consumers could choose.

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Maps of Ages ↗ (mapsofages.com)

Privacy · Contact