The internet went wild when Toronto rapper Drake began showing love to Ella Langley. After making a cameo in her comments section on Instagram and being spotted at one of her shows during her most recent tour, there were clear signs that Drizzy was interested in the country music megastar, at least as a fan at first.
Then came the FOMO livestream. As rumors began to spread that Drake and Ella might be working together on a song or project, fans were caught off guard when the ICEMAN himself started singing the lyrics to “Choosin’ Texas” during the broadcast. This song has remained at #1 on the Billboard Top 100 longer than any song in recorded history.
Except he wasn’t singing Ella’s version. It’s his own.
The remix appears on the recently released Habibi (FOMO) deluxe album as “Solar Eclipse,” a song he collaborated on with Don Toliver. In it, Drake adds a heavy dose of R&B to Langley’s iconic chorus, slowing things down with a very lush, pulsing beat in the background to make it feel as least country as possible and fit the vibe of the original Habibi project.
The cross-genre appeal of this song was significant enough to make a big impact on fans of both country and hip-hop. Hearing Drake’s vocals sing the chorus we’ve all heard at least a million times on country radio seemed like a viral moment for TikTok rather than something that would make it to DSPs, but it eventually did.
And it’s not good. The thing everyone seems to be forgetting about “Solar Eclipse” is its sole purpose: novelty. Drake singing an Ella Langley song is fascinating, hilarious, and corny all at once. It reveals itself to be nothing more than a gimmick the second he says “drinking ‘nac all by myself,” with enough emphasis on its differentiation from the original track to make you say “oh god, what has he done?”
Drake hasn’t done anything remarkable with this song, nor has he made “Solar Eclipse” something worth taking seriously. It makes for a compelling headline ahead of its release, then once again after it’s out, and likely won’t have the impact it’s had now that it’s something you can go and listen to. Novell songs like this thrive on elusiveness, like an artist’s live cover of someone else’s song that they never cut in the studio.
Knowing a Drake version of “Choosin’ Texas” existed made “Solar Eclipse” one of his most peculiar releases in a long time, and it was fun while it lasted. But between its underwhelming energy and inability to stand apart from its source material in any meaningful way, this take on the biggest song in the world – by one of the biggest artists in the world – feels like a viral moment begging to gallop into a Texan sunset.
Enjoy it once while it’s still fun, and before you realize this song is pointless beyond cultural convergence.
