Drake, Nas & Big Boi To Invade May W/ New Albums

Rappers Drake, Nas and Big Boi will reportedly drop their long-awaited new albums during the month of May.

According to reports, Drizzy will also open up about his alleged romance with R&B singer Rihanna last year on his Thank Me Later debut.

Drake's LP is a reflection of how the upstart Toronto MC has become hip-hop's new leading man. "I tried to capture every great moment I've had in the last year," he says. "It's triumphant." To wit: He raps about a presumed love affair with Rihanna and his friendship with mentor Lil Wayne on "Fireworks." Drake mostly eschewed big names in favor of home-town producers (Boi-1da, Noah "40" Shebib) and a collaboration with New York indie rockers Francis and the Lights. "It's gonna be interesting," he says. "I hope it's pleasing to the ear."

Both Boi's Sir Lucious Leftfoot and Nas' joint Damian Marley effort, Distant Relatives, will also take on May.

Old rhyme partner André 3000 cameos on "Lookin 4 Ya"; the ominous, R&B-tinged "Hustle Blood" features Jamie Foxx; and "Shine Blockas," a booming, soulful jam with Gucci Mane, is already an underground hit. The release has been repeatedly delayed as Big Boi negotiates with his record label, but that's given him time to live with the music. "If I can listen to it every day for years," he says, "I know fans will wear it out when they get it." ... This time, Nas and Damian focused on a common theme: Africa. "We always thought we'd give something back to Africa," says Marley, who will donate proceeds from the disc to various charities. Highlight: the funky, horn-driven "As We Enter," which samples Ethiopian musician Mulatu Astatke and features Nas rhyming "Ghana" and "Obama."

Drake released his debut album single, "Over," Thursday (March 4) night.

"This is my first song," he said in a radio interview. "This is still my first single off my first album. This is still the beginning, as great as everything has gone...I went with 'Over' as the first look because of the words in the hook...The hook being the most repetitive part. I got a lot of great songs on my album. I got songs for women who wanna feel special. I got songs for dudes -- if you ever thought my music was too soft, this is one you will enjoy. I got a lot of variety on there, but the biggest thing was that opening line on the hook."

According to Boi, music videos are currently being filmed for his solo project.

"The album is done," says Big Boi. "Right now I'm just shooting videos. I'ma shoot a video for just about every song on the album. I shot like five videos so far, for the past three weeks. I've been editing those videos... it's coming man it's coming. I know everybody's been waiting and I'm anxious to give it to them. But it will be here soon. Trust me."

Exact May release dates have not yet been revealed.

Check out Drake's "Over" single below: