Hold On, We're Going Home
Featuring Majid Jordan
"Hold On, We're Going Home" is the song that made Drake's pop-star ambitions impossible to argue with. Released August 7, 2013 as the album's third single, it features and is co-produced by Toronto duo Majid Jordan, alongside Noah "40" Shebib and Nineteen85, all of whom co-wrote it with Drake. The track moves on warm keyboards and gated drums with a chord progression that openly echoes early-1980s quiet-storm and soft-soul; Drake described it to MTV as "me and 40 just channeling our Quincy Jones/Michael Jackson production duo," and said he set out to make a timeless wedding-and-armed-forces record rather than a rap song. It became one of the biggest hits of the year, peaking at #4 on the Billboard Hot 100 and #1 on Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs, and was certified Diamond by the RIAA. Pitchfork named it the best track of 2013 and later ranked it #21 on its best-of-the-decade list; Rolling Stone placed it at #129 on its 2021 Greatest Songs of All Time. It also introduced Majid Jordan to a global audience and led to their signing on OVO Sound. The Bill Pope-directed video is a Miami-1985 short film in which Drake plays a kingpin rescuing a kidnapped love interest.
Sources & verification
Citations below were matched specifically to "Hold On, We're Going Home" and Nothing Was the Same. Drake Universe catalogs songs by album placement, verified collaborators, producers, samples, and themes, and avoids unsupported lyric-level claims.
- Genius: Drake 'The Language' lyricsGenius · 2013-09-24 — Primary track page for the Nothing Was the Same cut widely read as subliminal.
- Billboard: Drake — Nothing Was The Same coverBillboard · 2013-08-22 — Billboard cover story for the 2013 print interview.
- Complex: Drake — Nothing Was The Same coverComplex · 2013-08-12 — Complex cover story tied to Nothing Was The Same.
- Vibe: Drake — Nothing Was The Same coverVibe · 2013-10-01 — Vibe cover story tied to Nothing Was The Same.
- Wikipedia — Majid JordanWikipedia · 2026-05-15 — Used to verify the duo's U of T origin, A Place Like This (2012) EP, 'Hold On, We're Going Home' Grammy nomination, and album chronology.
- Wikipedia: Nothing Was the SameWikipedia · 2026-05-18 — Album-level reference for liner-note personnel, sample credits, single chronology, chart peaks, sales (658,000 first week), 6x platinum certification, and critical reception used in the NWTS editorial pass.
- Wikipedia: Hold On, We're Going HomeWikipedia · 2026-05-18 — Reference for Majid Jordan / 40 / Nineteen85 production, Drake's MTV 'Quincy Jones/Michael Jackson' and wedding-song quotes, #4 Hot 100, RIAA Diamond, Pitchfork #1 track of 2013, and Bill Pope video.
- Drake — The Motion (Genius)Genius · 2026-05-18 — Confirms 2013 SoundCloud release, Best Buy deluxe bonus-track status for Nothing Was the Same, and Sampha co-production/vocals.
- Drake — 5AM in Toronto (Genius)Genius · 2026-05-18 — Confirms March 7, 2013 release as '9AM in Dallas' sequel ahead of Nothing Was the Same, Boi-1da/Vinylz credits, Lou Donaldson sample.
