Overview
More Life is a commercial mixtape by Canadian rapper and singer Drake. Described and marketed as a playlist, some publications have referred to it as a mixtape. It was released on March 18, 2017, through Republic Records and distributed by Cash Money Records and Young Money Entertainment. Production of More Life was handled by a variety of record producers, including 40, Frank Dukes, Boi-1da, Murda Beatz, T-Minus, Nineteen85, and Kanye West, among others. An ensemble of guest vocalists also appear, including West, Young Thug, Giggs, Skepta, Quavo, Travis Scott, 2 Chainz, Jorja Smith, Sampha, and PartyNextDoor.
The songs on the mixtape feature a broad range of genres, including R&B, dancehall, grime, trap and Afrobeats. Supported by the singles "Fake Love", "Passionfruit", "Free Smoke", "Portland", and "Glow", More Life received generally positive reviews and debuted at number one on the US Billboard 200, earning 505,000 album-equivalent units. It was Drake's seventh consecutive number one album, and also broke several streaming records. Though a mixtape, it was named one of the best albums of 2017 by several publications. By the end of 2017, the mixtape had accumulated over two million album-equivalent units in the US.
Background
Following the project's announcement, Drake described More Life as "a body of work [he's] creating to bridge the gap between [any] major releases". He further commented on the project during an interview with Complex, detailing his intention to "[create] a playlist to give you a collection of songs that become the soundtrack to your life". More Life was subject to many speculative release dates, with it initially set for December 2016. However, it was pushed back to January after Drake suffered an ankle injury on the Summer Sixteen Tour. Further dates were also rumored up until the official announcement in March 2017 of the project's release.
More Life borrows its name from a Jamaican slang phrase to wish someone well, popularized by dancehall artist Vybz Kartel, whom Drake has called one of his "biggest inspirations" for his own dancehall-inflected sound.
From Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0).