Drake stopped by Much Music post OVO fest to wax poetic about the festival, the city, and the upcoming Aaliyah album that he’s executive producing. I know that this whole discussion is ancient news in internet years, but I want to add my 2 cents into the mix. I’ve seen way too many posts on the internet about how “Drake shouldn’t be producing beats for Aaliyah. ” Firstly, to everyone who thinks “executive producing” necessarily means making beats, you are completely wrong. For example, much to the chagrin of every person who lives in Detroit/has a soul, Charles Hamilton once listed legendary, deceased producer J. Dilla as an executive producer on his project.  This is, of course, despite the fact that J. Dilla had no involvement in the project, having had passed away a couple years before Charles Hamilton became a relevant human being. Similarly, Jay-Z was listed as an executive producer on Fort Minor’s (Mike Shinoda from Linkin Park) début rap album. Do you really think Jay sat in the studio and made beats for Mike Shinoda? Of course not. This is not to say that Drake won’t help out with the music. Of course he will. It’s an indisputable fact that the dude has an uncanny ear for R&B music. If you doubt it, listen to the song he co-wrote with Melanie Fiona earlier this year called “I Been That Girl.” Having spoken to people who work in the studio with Drake, I’ve been informed that he is a very hands on artist. He is very specific about the beats he likes and often gives producers input to make songs better. It’s worked well for his music, why not for Aaliyah’s? Often times, executive producing an album means getting the right people together to work on it. Every single one of DJ Khaled’s songs is based on this premise. Drake has the connections to do this. He’s worked with Timbaland before on the song “Say Something” and evidently knows him personally. I can’t be the only one excited about the prospect of songs co-produced by Timbaland and “40.” Seriously, has anyone HEARD the music “40″ has been making recently? He’s on another level right now. In fact, the production on Jojo’s “40″ helmed single Demonstrate would be absolutely perfect for an Aaliyah song. It’s almost as if the whole world has forgotten how dope Drake’s Aaliyah sampling song Unforgettable was.