What's Next (Drake song)

"What's Next"
Single by Drake
from the EP Scary Hours 2
Released	March 5, 2021 (2021-03-05)
Genre	Trap
Length	2:58
Label	Republic OVO
Songwriter(s)	Aubrey Graham Jonathan Priester Maneesh Bidaye
Producer(s)	Maneesh Supah Mario
Drake singles chronology
"Talk to Me" (2021) "What's Next" (2021) "Over the Top" (2021)
Music video
"What’s Next" on YouTube

"What's Next" is a song by Canadian rapper Drake. It was released on March 5, 2021, as a single from Drake's fourth EP Scary Hours 2 , through Republic Records and OVO Sound. ^[1]

With the song's debut at the top of the US Billboard Hot 100, it became Drake's eighth US number-one single in the country. Additionally, it became his fourth song to debut atop the chart. ^[2]

Background

An earlier version of the song surfaced on the internet on February 27, 2021. ^[3] It was noted that various lines of the song resembled those of on an unreleased track with Young Thug titled "What a Time to Be a Slime". ^[4] On March 3, 2021, Drake took to his social media to announce the release of his upcoming EP Scary Hours 2 on March 5, as well as the return of OVO Sound Radio the next day. ^[5] The song was released as track one of the EP. ^[6]

In May 2021, rapper Baby Keem revealed he was originally intended to be featured on the single alongside American rapper Playboi Carti (who Drake would later work with on the track Pain 1993). ^[7] In the early morning of September 4, 2021, a day after the release of Drake's Certified Lover Boy, Drake premiered the original version of What's Next with Baby Keem on his radio show. ^[8] The original version includes all vocals from the released version, with an additional verse from Keem.

Composition

The song was described as Drake being "on his rapping shit" and "in flex mode", with a "grungy trap production" and a "triumphant-sounding instrumental". Lyrically, the rapper shows off "grandiose flexes that only he could relate to". ^{[9] [10]}

Music video

An accompanying music video was released alongside the single and was directed by Theo Skudra. The video was shot in early March 2021 in Toronto ^[11] and shows Drake dancing at different sites of the city, including the top of the CN Tower, as well as the TTC Subway, Yonge-Dundas Square (now Sankofa Square), and Ripley's Aquarium of Canada. ^{[10] [12]}

Commercial performance

The song debuted atop the US Billboard Hot 100 on the chart dated March 20, 2021, dethroning Olivia Rodrigo's "Drivers License" which ruled for eight consecutive weeks. ^[2] The remaining tracks from the Scary Hours 2 EP, "Wants and Needs" and "Lemon Pepper Freestyle", managed to debut at number two and three, respectively, thus making him the first artist in history to have three songs debut in the top 3 of the Billboard Hot 100. ^[2]

Personnel

Credits adapted from Tidal. ^[1]

• Aubrey Graham – lead vocals, songwriting
• Jonathan Priester – songwriting, production
• Maneesh Bidaye – songwriting, production, additional production
• Noah Shebib – mixing, studio personnel
• Noel Cadastre – recording, studio personnel

Charts

Weekly charts Weekly chart performance for "What's Next" Chart (2021) Peak position Australia (ARIA) [13] 7 Austria (Ö3 Austria Top 40) [14] 32 Belgium (Ultratip Bubbling Under Flanders) [15] 2 Canada (Canadian Hot 100) [16] 1 Czech Republic (Singles Digitál Top 100) [17] 72 Denmark (Tracklisten) [18] 34 France (SNEP) [19] 74 Germany (GfK) [20] 36 Global 200 ( Billboard ) [21] 1 Iceland (Tónlistinn) [22] 25 Ireland (IRMA) [23] 7 Italy (FIMI) [24] 88 Lithuania (AGATA) [25] 12 Netherlands (Single Top 100) [26] 43 New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ) [27] 12 Norway (VG-lista) [28] 27 Portugal (AFP) [29] 18 Slovakia (Singles Digitál Top 100) [30] 26 Sweden (Sverigetopplistan) [31] 47 Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade) [32] 14 UK Singles (OCC) [33] 4 UK Hip Hop/R&B (OCC) [34] 1 US Billboard Hot 100 [35] 1 US Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs ( Billboard ) [36] 1 US Pop Airplay ( Billboard ) [37] 40 US Rhythmic ( Billboard ) [38] 1

Year-end charts Year-end chart performance for "What's Next" Chart (2021) Position Canada (Canadian Hot 100) [39] 68 Global 200 (Billboard) [40] 179 US Billboard Hot 100 [41] 68 US Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs (Billboard) [42] 29 US Rhythmic (Billboard) [43] 32

Certifications

Certifications for "What's Next"

Region	Certification	Certified units/sales
Australia (ARIA) [44]	Platinum	70,000‡
Canada (Music Canada) [45]	Platinum	80,000‡
United Kingdom (BPI) [46]	Silver	200,000‡
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

Release history

List of release dates and formats for "What's Next"

Country	Date	Format	Label(s)	Ref.
United States	March 9, 2021	Rhythmic contemporary radio	OVO Republic	[47]

See also

• List of Billboard Hot 100 number ones of 2021

References

1. "What's Next / Drake". Tidal . Retrieved March 5, 2021.
2. Trust, Gary (March 15, 2021). "Drake Makes Historic Hot 100 Start at Nos. 1, 2 & 3, Led by 'What's Next'". Billboard. Retrieved March 15, 2021.
3. Araash (February 27, 2021). "New Drake Song 'What's Next' Surfaces Online". HipHopNMore. Retrieved March 5, 2021.
4. A., Aron (February 27, 2021). "Drake's Unreleased Song "What's Next" Surfaces". HotNewHipHop. Retrieved March 5, 2021.
5. Kaufman, Gil (March 4, 2021). "Drake Teases Second 'Scary Hours' Release". Billboard . Retrieved March 5, 2021.
6. Minsker, Evan (March 5, 2021). "Drake Shares 3 New Songs on Scary Hours 2 EP: Listen". Pitchfork . Retrieved March 5, 2021.
7. "Baby Keem Reveals He Was Supposed to be on "What's Next," Talks Connecting with Drake". Complex Networks .
8. YouTube, a Google company. YouTube . Archived from the original on 2021-09-05.
9. Coleman II, C. Vernon (March 5, 2021). "Drake 'What's Next' Lyrics". XXL . Retrieved March 5, 2021.
10. Duong, Paul "Big Homie" (March 5, 2021). "Drake "What's Next"". Rap Radar . Retrieved March 5, 2021.
11. Caraan, Sophie (March 3, 2021). "Drake Reportedly Seen Filming New Music Video in Toronto". Hypebeast. Retrieved March 5, 2021.
12. Navjosh (March 5, 2021). "Drake Shares 'What's Next' Music Video: Watch". HipHopNMore. Retrieved March 5, 2021.
13. "Drake – What's Next". ARIA Top 50 Singles. Retrieved March 13, 2021.
14. "Drake – What's Next" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40. Retrieved March 17, 2021.
15. "Drake – What's Next" (in Dutch). Ultratip. Retrieved March 27, 2021.
16. "Drake Chart History (Canadian Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved March 16, 2021.
17. "ČNS IFPI" (in Czech). Hitparáda – Digital Top 100 Oficiální. IFPI Czech Republic. Note: Select 10. týden 2021 in the date selector. Retrieved March 15, 2021.
18. "Track Top-40 Uge 10, 2021" (in Danish). Hitlisten . Retrieved March 17, 2021.
19. "Top Singles (Week 9, 2021)". SNEP . Retrieved 27 February 2021.
20. "Drake – What's Next" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts. Retrieved March 12, 2021.
21. "Drake Chart History (Global 200)". Billboard. Retrieved March 16, 2021.
22. "Tónlistinn – Lög" [The Music – Songs] (in Icelandic). Plötutíðindi. Archived from the original on March 22, 2021. Retrieved July 4, 2021.
23. "Official Irish Singles Chart Top 50". Official Charts Company. Retrieved March 12, 2021.
24. "Top Singoli – Classifica settimanale WK 10" (in Italian). Federazione Industria Musicale Italiana . Retrieved March 13, 2021.
25. "2021 10-os SAVAITĖS (kovo 5-11 d.) SINGLŲ TOP100" (in Lithuanian). AGATA. 12 March 2021. Retrieved 27 March 2021.
26. "Drake – What's Next" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved March 12, 2021.
27. "NZ Top 40 Singles Chart". Recorded Music NZ. March 15, 2021. Retrieved March 13, 2021.
28. "Singel 2021-W10". VG-lista . Retrieved March 12, 2021.
29. "Drake – What's Next". AFP Top 100 Singles. Retrieved March 19, 2021.
30. "ČNS IFPI". IFPI ČR. Note: Select SK SINGLES DIGITAL TOP 100 and insert 202110 into search. Retrieved March 15, 2021.
31. "Veckolista Singlar, vecka 10". Sverigetopplistan . Retrieved March 13, 2021.
32. "Drake – What's Next". Swiss Singles Chart. Retrieved March 14, 2021.
33. "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved March 13, 2021.
34. "Official Hip Hop and R&B Singles Chart Top 40". Official Charts Company. Retrieved March 13, 2021.
35. "Drake Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved March 15, 2021.
36. "Drake Chart History (Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved March 16, 2021.
37. "Drake Chart History (Pop Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved March 30, 2021.
38. "Drake Chart History (Rhythmic)". Billboard. Retrieved April 20, 2021.
39. "Canadian Hot 100 - Year End 2021". Billboard. Retrieved December 2, 2021.
40. "Global 200 – Year-End 2021". Billboard. Retrieved December 2, 2021.
41. "Hot 100 Songs – Year-End 2021". Billboard . Retrieved December 2, 2021.
42. "Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs – Year-End 2021". Billboard. Retrieved December 2, 2021.
43. "Rhythmic Songs – Year-End 2021". Billboard. Retrieved December 2, 2021.
44. "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 2024 Singles" (PDF). Australian Recording Industry Association . Retrieved June 22, 2024.
45. "Canadian single certifications – Drake – What's Next". Music Canada . Retrieved March 31, 2021.
46. "British single certifications – Drake – What's Next". British Phonographic Industry . Retrieved July 25, 2022.
47. "Top 40-Rhythmic Future Releases". All Access. Archived from the original on March 10, 2021.