 In an interview for Complex , Drake stated that his debut album will be " a solid hip hop album " and musically distinct from his So Far Gone mixtape , which received negative comparisons to Kanye West 's 808s & Heartbreak ( 2008 ) . He expressed a desire to work with André 3000 , Kid Cudi , and Sade for the album . In an interview for MTV , Drake cited Nas and André 3000 as influences for parts of Thank Me Later , stating " Nas was somebody that I used to listen to his raps and never understood how he did it . I always wanted to understand how he painted those pictures and his bar structure . I went back and really studied Nas and André 3000 and then came back with this album " . In comparing the album to his previous work , he stated " It 's gonna be bigger , it 's gonna sound happier . More victorious , ' cause that 's where I 'm at in my life " . He told Entertainment Weekly that , " I didn 't make this album for commercial purposes . A lot of the verses are extremely long . I just made it to share with people . I hope they can enjoy " . 
