Comments on: I Just Wanna Be Successful: Why Drake Needs to Read Andy Stanley

By: Mahagonie

Mahagonie — Fri, 11 Sep 2009 14:37:04 +0000

So Drake, I like some of your Music because your rapping is so clear. Take all that talent that God has blessed you with, and bless another through your music. Too many of our youths are being thrown to the wasteside and are out for destruction. You may be the one that can save them. They will listen to you through your music. PEACE and LOVE.

By: Mahagonie

Mahagonie — Fri, 11 Sep 2009 14:35:01 +0000

Sure we all want money, but look at some billionaires, they are not happy. They run from women to women, and at the end, someone close to them, kills them. What about all the deceases in the world that is rapidly spreading. There are deceases out here now days that do not have any cures for them.

By: Mahagonie

Mahagonie — Fri, 11 Sep 2009 14:33:15 +0000

Thanks to the writer who is making a good point. In today's society, our young African American students are growing up thinking, to be successful is having money, cars, clothes, and the h#$@ (I suppose) are what make a person. Having happiness, peace and love for one another is success and stop killing one another.

By: Michael In Exile

Michael In Exile — Mon, 24 Aug 2009 02:18:40 +0000

…Anyone with any amount of discernment can see that there is nothing introspective or thoughtful about Drake or MOST other mainstream artists of any genre these days. Im not just trying to hate on the man, I just see what these kind of songs do to the young people that hear them. Trust me a majority are not saying, oh well he said I suppose…wow, I dont want these worldly things…no, their phone rings and they sing: "Cars and clothes, money hoes hoes", thats as far as the thought process goes. That is unless a responsible strong brother or sister points out the deception of these cultural terrorist like Universal Records, Interscope and other wealthy tyrants that are draining people of their ability to see Truth.

I think the best definition comes from God himself through the Apostle describing a successful life, "As unknown, and yet well known; as dying, and, behold, we live; as chastened, and not killed; AS SORROWFUL, YET ALWAY REJOICING; AS POOR, YET MAKING MANY RICH; AS HAVING NOTHING, AND YET POSSESSING ALL THINGS." Amen

By: Michael In Exile

Michael In Exile — Mon, 24 Aug 2009 02:18:13 +0000

To all the people rationalizing and analyzing, you may not have heard some other masterpieces of Drake's like; I jut wanna [expletive] every girl in the world, Money to Blow, Video Girl, Best I ever Had (you can guess what he's referring to), and the beautiful ode to murder; Killa. This boy is the same as every othe lost man and women outside of Christ. From the time I was weened from a bottle I had hiphop flowing in my ears, but once The LORD gave me a clean heart and renewed a right Spirit within me, I knew I could no longer grieve my Immanuel with this foolishness. Honestly I resisted giving up my music and still to this day find myself nodding to some new trax that are pleasing to my ears…but it aint right. CONT

By: emanuel

emanuel — Sun, 16 Aug 2009 19:56:48 +0000

All you need to lighten up!!! What drake is saying is he sees all the
bs the industry puts on supposedly being
Successful! And he just wants to showcase his talent without having to live up to that bs! You have to be in tune
With rap and not just look in from the sideline judging. Let me judge every god fearing person
By the acts of christians killing muslims, muslims killing christians, muslims enslaving people, catholic priest molesting
Children, ect……….. Hum! Oh ok now I remember not all religious people do those things!!!
Well not all rappers do either! Success is how you define it! And christ although I love him is not the only way to GOD!

By: Vellie Johnson

Vellie Johnson — Sun, 16 Aug 2009 19:21:26 +0000

Ok, I would have to disagree with you on this song. If you realize the chorus is sang by two different people, both Trey Songz and Drake. The first part seems like that is what every young rapper and many youth want when they get the spotlight usually, pay close attention to the words "I suppose". Then it seems like the last part, sang by Drake, tells a side of a young man who is just wanting to be successful in spite of the all the other stuff. Seems like he is pleading with everyone else that he wants to be successful and society wants him to want whatever else. Pay attention to everything else and critically analyze the song for more than just words, find the hidden meaning.

Not everyone is to agree and I know that is a way that people analyze things and interpret meanings. But this is where I stand.

By: Missifyjd

Missifyjd — Mon, 10 Aug 2009 13:37:11 +0000

I, too, felt sad when I heard this song, Pastor. In fact, it played this morning as I was shuffling through radio stations, and while the beat was "hot," subliminally it had a very dark undertone—like a drone (I kinda have a "sixth sense" to notes behind the music). My mind wandered to the death of Michael Jackson, and how one of his closest friends on CNN stated that MJ lived in a perpetual state of incompleteness–as if he never had history-breaking success. Here is the "King of Pop" feeling unfulfilled–while Drake sings about reaching that level! Both roads lead to the same dreary end–absolutely nothing. What good is it for a man to gain the whole world AND LOSE HIS SOUL? I actually pray that youth listen to the darkness of the song–and here the confusion this song presents…that "successful" is relative. And that the only way to have constant success is not through works and deeds, but through our Savior, Jesus Christ. The devil counterfeits everything..yet he cannot imitate wholeness. Thank you for this post. God Bless.

By: LoudProtestant

LoudProtestant — Mon, 10 Aug 2009 02:19:59 +0000

Awesome post. I've been thinking a lot about this song since I heard it. I even went as far as to re-write the chorus because I, like you, and many others feel that Drake has it all wrong. My rewrite said, "I seek the kingdom not the money and the cars, cars and the clothes, the h*#$. I just wanna seek, I just wanna seek His kingdom." I told some people this, young people who I go to church with, and they practically laughed me out of the room. But I was as serious as a heart attack because I felt like he is giving people the wrong formula to success. And even if he is talking about the industry's definition of success and not wanting it, he is actually buying into himself. I think we get fooled into thinking these rappers are being deep and conscious just because their lyrics seem antithetical to the industry but it's not the lyrics we need to follow, it's their lives. It's similar to how we as Christians may know the Bible front to back, but if we don't have a life that is a reflection of the word inside of us, it doesn't matter.

By: Jai

Jai — Sat, 08 Aug 2009 16:24:36 +0000

I'm not sure how much research you did on the song but Trey Songz actually wrote this hook and he has explained it quite a bit in the past. He and Drake have said a couple times that this isn't what they believe true sucess is but rather what the hip-hop industry has made young peole believe it is. Trey has even stated that by throwing the "i suppose" at the end of the line he was highlighting that as young men him and Drake really are unsure of what success is. As in, I want the money, the cars etc,well I suppose that's what I want because that's how success has been defined. I just figured I'd throw that out there. Interesting piece though.