Music+Paper

Deceiving “You are the reason that I don’t believe in finding a love that I need,” are words most often spoken from a broken woman’s heart (1). Being that Drake is a rapper, compassion is not a trait that he is thought to have. Society's view of the "heartbreaker" is hardly seen as a negative. However the role of the typical male heartbreaker is sometimes in reverse. Although men are stereotypically seen as the ones who ruin relationships, Drake’s “Deceiving” shows how a woman can be just as deceptive as a man. The typical rap song usually consists of a male reliving his night of many girls and promiscuous behavior. One can get the idea that being a one-woman man is seen as being weak and doesn’t show the power a male should have. These songs give the impression towards males that fooling around is a simple and harmless behavior and actually improves their image. This stereotype is taking a strong hold on society as men continue to use these songs as the motivation behind their actions. Being seen as the “player” is an image that most men desire, showing the power of their good looks and charm and giving them a false sense of satisfaction. However, when the woman takes on the role of the “player”, the shock and anger from the powerless man hurts him more than it would hurt a woman. While the woman usually takes on the role of the innocent and compassionate one in the relationship, Drake uses this stereotype to show how some women see affection from a man as weak. He raps about how women "huddle in a group and joke" about men being "soft" and how they think "cuddling with is cute" (58-59). It is a society's perception of this action that determines if this action is just being affectionate or feminist. Drake uses this view of men to show how a woman can manipulate him to buy her things and take care of her all the while secretly deceiving his trust. Drake tells a story in his rap of a woman who cheats on him, leaving him confused and angered at the fact that she acts in a manly manner. It is ironic that a man would be so upset at the action if it is done by a woman, yet he associates it with those of a man. Drake implies that he is trying to fulfill his duties as a man by being chivalrous in hopes for love and devotion in return. However, while he tries to give her everything she wants she still “[isn’t] satisfied with none of the things [he] bought her” (12). He also shows his true affection and love saying that he would have “white gowned her” (22). This concept of commitment is becoming less and less important these days for the male counterpart in the relationship. By wanting marriage and a life long bond, Drake shows just how his love for this woman is genuine. However, she deceives him as she cheats with another man and lies about her whereabouts. Drake raps about the fact that women are just as deceiving as men but are better at hiding it. He tells about how she lies about “going to visit family, promising [she] ain’t cheating” (55). While most men are usually caught in the act, he shows how deceptive she is as she uses a convincing lie to make her cheating not suspicious. By using a lie like visiting family, it is easy to see how her cheating could go unsuspected. Drake admits to his faults saying “and dudes do that and why these h*** stealin it, they doin the same s*** with a better job at concealing it” (63), but uses this to show how women act like men when they cheat, again showing the stereotype how cheating is mostly seen as a male action. However, he includes the fact that women are better at lying because of their stereotype as always being very committed to their partner in a relationship. Women often can cheat and go unsuspected because they are able to hide any sort of feelings from their partner. He concludes his thoughts by stating one of the key lines of the song, "women often conduct themselves just like males do" (57). Summing up the story behind the song, he again associates cheating as something most often done by the male, but realizes that women can be as ruinous to the relationship. By simply using one word, "deceiving" as the line of the hook, he expresses his loss of words for how he perceived this woman's actions. While it might have left him hurt and angry, he felt that she had deceived his trust more than anything. This song shows how society's views on gender roles in relationships are used as an excuse for wrong actions. With these stereotypes in place actions such as those from the song have almost become acceptable. Until this stops, relationships will continue to struggle.